Bradford Flood Risk
In Bradford, 4,138 of 272,136 properties (1.5%) are in areas at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers and the sea — at least a 1 in 100 chance in any year — per Environment Agency data updated 6 July 2026; that ranks 38th of 296 local authorities in England by number.
By bandProperties in Bradford by flood-risk band
| Risk band | Chance of flooding each year | All properties | Homes |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | 3.3% (1 in 30) or greater chance in any year | 2,412 | 1,174 |
| Medium | between 1% and 3.3% (1 in 100 to 1 in 30) chance in any year | 1,726 | 1,006 |
| Low | between 0.1% and 1% (1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100) chance in any year | 3,180 | 2,318 |
| Very low | less than 0.1% (1 in 1,000) chance in any year | 79 | 65 |
2,180 of the high- or medium-risk properties are homes and 1,790 are non-residential. 494 postcodes in Bradford have at least one property at high or medium risk.
Postcode districtsFlood risk across Bradford
Counts are for the part of each district inside Bradford.
| District | Properties | High + medium | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BD1 | 8,292 | 1,036 | 738 | 12.5% |
| LS29 | 17,859 | 975 | 518 | 5.5% |
| BD21 | 14,524 | 638 | 135 | 4.4% |
| BD7 | 18,729 | 347 | 346 | 1.9% |
| BD16 | 14,261 | 257 | 170 | 1.8% |
| BD17 | 10,568 | 173 | 57 | 1.6% |
| BD20 | 13,525 | 135 | 104 | 1.0% |
| BD22 | 15,142 | 122 | 76 | 0.8% |
| BD18 | 13,908 | 108 | 60 | 0.8% |
| BD10 | 13,965 | 93 | 65 | 0.7% |
| BD2 | 14,713 | 65 | 42 | 0.4% |
| BD8 | 13,226 | 61 | 41 | 0.5% |
| BD13 | 14,846 | 49 | 24 | 0.3% |
| BD12 | 8,698 | 42 | 8 | 0.5% |
| BD15 | 7,957 | 35 | 27 | 0.4% |
| BD14 | 4,314 | 2 | 1 | 0.0% |
| BD4 | 15,952 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD6 | 14,280 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD5 | 13,860 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD3 | 12,604 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD9 | 10,880 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| LS19 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD99 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD98 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD97 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
Recorded floodsPast floods mapped in Bradford
The Environment Agency has mapped flood outlines on 15 dates in postcode districts that mostly lie in Bradford since 1978; the most recent started on 28 Oct 2020.
1970s 1 1980s 1 1990s 3 2000s 6 2010s 2 2020s 2
| Started | Place / name in the record | Source of flooding | Cause | Districts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Oct 2020 – 3 Nov 2020 | Hurricane Epsilon 2 outlines | Main river, ordinary watercourse | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS29 |
| 8 Feb 2020 – 19 Mar 2020 | Storm Ciara/Dennis | Main river | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | BD4 |
| 14 Mar 2019 – 17 Mar 2019 | Flooding Yorkshire | Main river | Not recorded | LS29 |
| 25 Dec 2015 – 29 Dec 2015 | — 27 outlines | Main river | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | BD16 BD17 BD18 BD20 BD21 BD22 |
| 9 Aug 2004 – 10 Aug 2004 | — 10 outlines | Main river | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | BD20 BD21 BD22 |
| 10 Feb 2002 – 15 Feb 2002 | Lower Aire 14 outlines | Main river | Overtopping of defences | BD10 BD16 BD17 BD20 BD21 LS29 |
| 31 Oct 2000 – 4 Dec 2000 | Upper Aire 2 outlines | Main river | Not recorded | BD16 BD18 |
| 30 Oct 2000 – 4 Dec 2000 | Upper Aire 12 outlines | Main river | Overtopping of defences | BD17 BD20 BD21 LS29 |
| 1 Oct 2000 – 30 Nov 2000 | Upper Aire Stockbridge 4 outlines | Main river, ordinary watercourse | Overtopping of defences | BD20 BD21 |
| 3 Jun 2000 – 30 Jun 2000 | Eller Beck Skipton | Main river | Overtopping of defences | BD20 |
| 1 Feb 1995 – 28 Feb 1995 | Upper Aire 17 outlines | Main river | Other | BD20 BD21 |
| 28 Jan 1995 – 4 Feb 1995 | — 11 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS29 |
| 21 Feb 1991 – 27 Feb 1991 | — 3 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS29 |
| 3 Jan 1982 – 31 Jan 1982 | Upper Aire 10 outlines | Main river | Other | BD20 BD21 LS29 |
| 1 Dec 1978 – 31 Dec 1978 | KIldwick to Keighley 20 outlines | Main river | Other | BD10 BD16 BD17 BD20 BD21 BD97 |
What this page shows, and what it misses
The Environment Agency's count of properties in each postcode that sit in areas of land at very low, low, medium or high risk of flooding from rivers and the sea, allowing for flood defences and their condition, added up here by postcode district and local authority. Every property in England is counted once, so the share is of all properties in the area.
It misses: surface water (heavy rain), groundwater, sewer and reservoir flooding; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; and anything about a single building. A band describes the land a property stands on, not its floor level or flood protection, so it is not a forecast for any one home. Past floods come from the EA's Recorded Flood Outlines and are placed in the postcode district whose centre is nearest (within 12 km), so a flood near a boundary can be listed under a neighbour. Older records are patchy, and a flood with no outline is not listed.
"Bradford" means the local authority area (ONS code E08000032), not only the town centre.
If you live in Bradford
- Check your own address on gov.uk; it also covers surface water.
- Sign up for free flood warnings: gov.uk/get-flood-warnings. Floodline: 0345 988 1188.
- What is in force now: flood warnings UK · river levels.
- Never walk or drive through flood water: why shallow water kills.
FAQQuestions people ask
Is Bradford at risk of flooding?
In Bradford, 4,138 of 272,136 properties (1.5%) are in areas at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers and the sea — at least a 1 in 100 chance in any year — per Environment Agency data updated 6 July 2026; that ranks 38th of 296 local authorities in England by number.
Which parts of Bradford have the most properties at flood risk?
Postcode district BD1 has the most: 1,036 properties at high or medium risk (12.5% of its properties in Bradford). The table on this page lists every district.
When did Bradford last flood?
The Environment Agency has mapped flood outlines on 15 dates in postcode districts that mostly lie in Bradford since 1978; the most recent started on 28 Oct 2020.
Does this include surface water flooding?
No. These counts cover flooding from rivers and the sea only. Surface water (heavy rain) flooding affects more properties in England; check it for one address on gov.uk's long-term flood risk service.
Flood risk counts: Environment Agency, Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea – Postcodes in Areas at Risk and Recorded Flood Outlines, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2025. All rights reserved. Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, © NERC (CEH). © Crown Copyright and Database Rights 2025 OS AC0000807064. This product is produced in part from PAF® and Multiple Residence Data, the copyright in which is owned by Royal Mail Group Limited and/or Royal Mail Group plc. All rights reserved. Licence number AC0000807064.
Local authority of each postcode: Office for National Statistics postcode lookup (May 2026), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026. District centres and place names: postcodes.io (ONS/OS open data). Totals, ranks and grouping are Global Incident Tracker's own calculations; the Environment Agency does not endorse them.