Brechin beyond the flood

Brechin Newsletter February 2026

Housing

BRSA – Phase 3 Housing Information Sessions

We’d like to share some of the work we’ve been doing on understanding the challenges and possibilities of the council-owned houses in this area. This includes the practical difficulties of remodelling or rebuilding and the reasons that people can’t return to these properties.

We want everyone in the community, council tenants, private tenants and homeowners to be able to see the challenges and possibilities for the future of the area.

We’ll be sharing work which will go to the Housing Committee on 30 March, when elected members will be asked to decide on the next steps.

These information sessions will give you the opportunity to understand the issues, speak directly with Housing and Communities staff, and ask any questions you may have. We would really like as many of the community to attend as possible because the issues are complex and the next stage is really important.

Upcoming Sessions

• Monday 23 February 6pm – 8pm JARS
• Thursday 26 February 9:30am – 12pm The Crickety
• Thursday 26 February 2pm – 6pm JARS

Please try to attend one of these sessions if you can.

Infrastructure

Recent Flooding Concerns

In the second wettest January since records began, on Thursday 22 January, Angus had an Amber weather warning for rain. The river South Esk recently rose to a high level, which led to some concerns for another flooding event in the area.

Flooding early warning

The local resilience partnership met, with Brechin very much on the agenda. From data received from its river gauges, SEPA predicted that the river would peak at about 3.1 metres around 5:00pm on Thursday 22 January, and was confident that the 3.8 metre flood defences would not be breached. The river in fact reached 3.2 metres and peaked earlier, at around 3:30pm. However, these differences are normal, and it shows that the forecasting system is reliable for future warnings.

Inch Park railings

One casualty of the raised water levels were the new railings installed at the Inch. These railings replaced the old stone wall so that water can safely flow into the floodplain in front of the flood defence embankment. These worked exactly as designed, and although they now need to be replaced, it’s far cheaper and easier than replacing a stone wall which may also have caused a wave as it collapsed against the water pressure, as has happened in the past.

Leak on River Street flood wall

A small leak was seen in one section of the concrete flood wall on River Street. The wall is built in separate sections so it can expand and contract with changes in temperature. Each section has seals between the joints, plus an extra seal on the outside. When the river is high, some water can be pushed through these joints, but this does not weaken the wall. The outer sealant does wear out over time because it is exposed to the weather, and it is likely that this section now needs to be renewed.

Uplift to the flood protection scheme - Public Engagement Survey Results

Thank you to everyone who attended the two public engagement sessions and completed the online survey. Your views are helping to guide this process to its final design.

We have reviewed all feedback and considered the issues and suggestions raised. From this we have identified the options that will progress to the developed design stage. These are:

• The Inch bund: most respondents preferred an offset wall
• River Street: most respondents selected the glass panels
• East Mill caravan park: most respondents supported the concrete wall

Work will now begin on further developing the design for each of these elements of the uplift.

Thank you again to everyone who took part. Your contributions have played an important role in shaping the final design.

Communities

Brechin Community Group Meetings

These groups are open to all, and you will be made most welcome. Thank you to everyone who attended February’s group meetings.

• Brechin Community Resilience Group - Monday 9 March 6:30pm Glebe Park – the Blue Cabin

This meeting is for residents to finalise the resilience plan for the locality, review the recent walk around and assess feedback from Scottish Flood Forum. We will also discuss what equipment will be purchased using the Resilience Fund. All welcome.

• Brechin Residents Group – Speak Up Monday 2 March 6.30pm JARS, Victoria Park

The next meeting will focus on what ideas and concerns the group have for the local area. We will also discuss the housing options consultation and look at the potential community art project. We will hopefully also have a chat with the local police officer.

• Brechin Community Drop In – Every Thursday 9.30 -12 noon, The Crickety

The drop-in continues on a weekly basis so pop along for a cuppy if you need a chat, digital support, assistance with anything or have any questions.

With heavy rainfall leading to high river levels, Sepa has issued 27 flood warnings across Scotland, including five in Angus.

This will result in localised flooding and unfortunately some individual properties may be affected.

Sepa has advised that the flood protection scheme at Brechin is working as intended, including its pumps and the defences at River Street are NOT expected to overtop. We do understand that there are concerns in the Brechin area and, along with Sepa, we are continuing to monitor the river levels.

We also continue to monitor the impact of this current spell of bad weather and is working closely with partners to this end, to ensure any response and support is available and provided as required.

If you have any concerns, you can contact us via our website or on 03452 777 778

We will share any updates, advice and information on our website and social media channels.

Here is a round up of the next actions coming up in the New Year.

Community Resilience

The next Brechin Community Resilience Meeting is on Tuesday 20 January at 6.30pm at The Crickety , everyone is welcome to come along. The group is exploring possible resilience hubs in Brechin and are also working on a resilience plan for the locality supported by Angus Council and Scottish Flood Forum. Some of the group attended the Angus Community Resilience Forum Practical Exercise in Forfar and got the opportunity to meet and chat to other resilience groups in Angus, which has given them ideas for future actions.

Community Action

The next Brechin Speak Up residents' meeting is on Monday 26 January 2026 at 6,30pm at JARS, Victoria Park. The group have been working with Angus Council to identify , suggest and work towards improvements in the area. Everyone is welcome to come along.

Brechin Flood Defence Options Survey

The Brechin Flood Defence Options Survey continues until Friday 16 January 2026. Thanks to everyone who has come al ong to the drop in sessions and has completed the survey so far. Please click on the link to take you to the Engage Angus page for full details -

https://engage.angus.gov.uk/brechin

The link below will take you directly to the survey -

Brechin Flood Defence Options | Engage Angus

If anyone would like any support in completing or has any questions, please pop into The Community Drop in on Thursdays from 9.30 – 12 noon.

We hope you all have a lovely Christmas and New Year and thanks for all your contributions this year into various engagement sessions, drop ins, surveys and community groups.

I look forward to working with you all in 2026.

Derek Lucas from Infrastructure will be at the community drop-in at The Crickety on Thursday 27 November at 11am

He’ll be giving an update about the face-to-face public engagement which is coming up soon.

This is where we will be presenting options for the uplift to the existing flood defences. The options will be split into three areas, The Inch, River Street and East Mill Caravan Park.

Derek will be available for a short time to take any questions on the engagement process. It doesn’t start until December, but this session will help to give you information about what to expect.

Look forward to seeing you then.

The next residents – Brechin Speak Up Meeting is on Monday 24^th November at 6.30pm at JARS, Brechin Community Hub, Victoria Park, Nursery Lane.

Derek Lucas from Infrastructure will be giving an update about the face-to-face public engagement which is coming up soon.

This is where we will be presenting options for the uplift to the existing flood defences. The options will be split into three areas, The Inch, River Street and East Mill Caravan Park.

Derek will be available for a short time to take any questions on the engagement process. It doesn’t start until December, but this session will help to give you information about what to expect.

Claire Greenhill, Community Housing Manager is also coming along to give an update on the recent housing committee report.

Look forward to seeing you all then.

The next meeting of the Brechin Community Resilience group will be held at The Crickety on Tuesday 18 November at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome and remember, it's not just about flooding - storms, snow and ice can affect everyone across the town and having a local resilience group can really make a difference during severe weather, so come along and see how you can get involved.

The newly-formed Residents group will be meeting again on Monday 27 October at 6:30pm at JARS - Brechin community hub, Victoria Park, Nursery Lane. Everyone is welcome to come along, have a cuppie and discuss how to get involved to support your community. This is a group run by the community, for the community so please support it if you can.

We have appointed leading environmental and engineering consultancy JBA Consulting to develop designs for the uplift of Brechin’s Flood Protection Scheme.

And their team is now working in the Brechin River Street area, with a drone flight survey taking place in recent days and the Preliminary Ecological Survey of the area now underway.

The drone survey captured a series of photographs that will help to create a 3D model that will assist with future measurement and modelling of the designs.

An important part of the consultant’s work in close association with Angus Council will be continued community engagement across the channels that have already been established with local residents and businesses.

These will include online meetings, drop-in sessions, direct emails from our Communities Team, and updates on social media and the Engage Angus web pages - where residents can also subscribe to stay informed and receive updates, news and events relating to Brechin beyond the Flood.

It is anticipated that engagement on the design proposal options to raise the existing flood protection scheme will begin in December. Full details will be confirmed shortly.

Elected members agreed the allocation of £100k from the Year 4 UK Shared Prosperity Fund 2025/26 to progress design work to increase the height of the existing Flood Protection Scheme at Council’s meeting in June. The Communities Committee will receive reports on the progress and outcome of the design work and community engagement from the Council’s Director of Infrastructure and Environment.

BRSA Housing Engagement Phase 1 Update: Community Activity: Residents’ Group

Ten local residents attended the meeting. Through discussion it was agreed which issues were of primary concern. These included a build-up of leaves in drains, street lighting and bins and general appearance of railings and planters.

It was agreed we would explore how Angus Council could help address some of the issues and consider how the group can proactively contribute to reducing litter and improving flower planters. There was also an agreement by the group that they would take part in a research project about Police visibility.

The date of the next meeting is 27 October at 6:30pm in JARS, Brechin. All are welcome.

If you are interested in getting involved, and want further information please contact communityresilience@angus.gov.uk

Everyone is welcome.

Resilience Group

The resilience group met on Wednesday 17 September to further explore what the needs were in the local community that can be included in a resilience plan and what can be purchased from the resilience fund to benefit the community in response to any emergency incident. The group explored what would happen in a community and what would be needed if there was a National Power Outage (NPO) in the United Kingdom. Grant from The Crickety also outlined what equipment/ resources they had purchased from their recent successful funding bid from SSEN and how that can contribute to the group’s plan.

The next meeting is Wednesday 22 October at 7pm at The Crickety – all welcome and if you have any questions or ideas contact communityresilience@angus.gov.uk or just come along. We look forward to seeing you then.

Infrastructure

As promised, we’ve made a short video which explains how the flood defences work, including the role of the railings in the historic Inch wall and the pumps.

Housing Engagement

Phase 1 of the BRSA Housing Engagement Plan began after Angus Council approved key recommendations on 26 June 2025. This stage focused on listening to tenants and residents living in BRSA currently or ex Council stock, including those who resided there at the time of Storm Babet, and gathering their views on the future of the area.

Engagement activity

• What we did: written updates, questionnaires, local drop-in sessions, and one-to-one conversations.
• Who we spoke to: tenants and residents in BRSA housing stock, including households affected by Storm Babet.

Why we consulted

• Statutory requirement: the Council must consult tenants and other affected residents before disposing of, transferring, or making significant changes to Council housing under Scottish Government Guidance and related statutory requirements.
• Tenant Participation: this engagement also meets the commitments in our Tenant Participation Strategy to involve the people most affected at an early stage and ensure their views shape any proposals.

Options discussed

• Complete removal of Council housing in the area
• Removal and replacement elsewhere in the town
• Remodelling of the existing housing stock.

Next steps

• Early findings from Phase 1 consultation, including survey results, will be reported to the Housing Committee on 18 November.
• The committee will also consider recommendations to move into Phase 2, which will set out detailed consultation and design work.
• No final decisions will be made without further formal consultation with tenants and residents.

Environmental Improvements

Thanks to valuable feedback from residents received during the housing consultation we’ve taken action to restore and improve the look of the area, specifically to:

• Remove surplus bins
• Clear fly-tipping and debris
• Dismantle damaged fencing

Parks’ staff are also planning ongoing maintenance and one-off improvements that will improve the look of the area for everyone.

Additionally, work is progressing to clear or secure disused sheds and cellars, helping to make the area safer and more welcoming.