A management shake up has taken place to ensure better gully clearing ahead of the winter weather.

Shropshire Council said it has “changed the management arrangement” regarding its plan to clear gullies after some roads were left with standing water in recent wet weather.

Councillor Roger Evans, leader of the Lib Dem group on Shropshire Council, asked full council on Thursday what was being done to tackle the issue.

He asked: “Recently we have had a number of very heavy rain showers causing many many roads to become flooded, a number being due to the drains and associated gullies becoming overgrown or blocked. 

“A number of these are in my division and no doubt other councillors, especially those in rural areas are having similar problems. 

“Can a telephone number be provided so we, including parish clerks, can contact the appropriate staff during office hours and so inform them of the problems and obtain updates on what action is being taken. 

“Who is it best to report these to, especially the urgent ones so they can be attended to without undue delay?

“How is it best to report these floods during weekends and when our offices are closed?

“How do members of the public obtain updates on what actions are being taken and an indication of likely timescales when work to overcome the problem is to be carried out?”

He adds: “With the onset of autumn can the process of how gully cleaning is being processed, who is doing the work and what resources are being made available to clean these numerous blocked drains and gullies.”

In his response, Councillor Steve Davenport, portfolio holder for highways, will say: “We have been reviewing our gully emptying programme and have changed the management arrangement that supports this area of highway maintenance. 

“We have approximately 32,000 gully assets in our annual programme, our priority is to ensure that these are all routinely cleansed as efficiently as possible within the financial year. 

“A high percentage of issues relate to this programme not being delivered appropriately in previous years. 

“Drainage issues should be reported via the appropriate highways email address. These can then be reviewed by the appropriate officer. 

“They will have visibility of the annual programme and can advise on when the location in question will be attended to. 

“If the flooding issue pose a significant risk to properties or present other significant highways issues, we may escalate this and attend ahead of the programme.”