Leeds Flood Risk
In Leeds, 6,320 of 446,973 properties (1.4%) 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 19th of 296 local authorities in England by number.
By bandProperties in Leeds 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 | 2,886 | 2,162 |
| Medium | between 1% and 3.3% (1 in 100 to 1 in 30) chance in any year | 3,434 | 2,675 |
| Low | between 0.1% and 1% (1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100) chance in any year | 12,431 | 9,964 |
| Very low | less than 0.1% (1 in 1,000) chance in any year | 797 | 670 |
4,837 of the high- or medium-risk properties are homes and 1,171 are non-residential. 544 postcodes in Leeds have at least one property at high or medium risk.
Postcode districtsFlood risk across Leeds
Counts are for the part of each district inside Leeds.
| District | Properties | High + medium | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LS1 | 9,115 | 1,228 | 353 | 13.5% |
| LS7 | 18,400 | 939 | 437 | 5.1% |
| LS2 | 18,599 | 667 | 217 | 3.6% |
| LS21 | 9,503 | 575 | 395 | 6.1% |
| LS9 | 22,985 | 512 | 321 | 2.2% |
| LS10 | 21,752 | 279 | 98 | 1.3% |
| WF10 | 2,779 | 257 | 39 | 9.2% |
| LS13 | 18,472 | 231 | 190 | 1.3% |
| LS4 | 5,387 | 210 | 13 | 3.9% |
| LS20 | 6,638 | 160 | 149 | 2.4% |
| LS12 | 25,138 | 139 | 98 | 0.6% |
| LS19 | 10,884 | 133 | 104 | 1.2% |
| LS18 | 11,628 | 123 | 82 | 1.1% |
| LS3 | 5,999 | 109 | 0 | 1.8% |
| LS25 | 15,913 | 105 | 84 | 0.7% |
| LS26 | 15,692 | 88 | 54 | 0.6% |
| LS5 | 5,422 | 83 | 6 | 1.5% |
| LS22 | 8,019 | 81 | 31 | 1.0% |
| LS23 | 5,733 | 76 | 44 | 1.3% |
| LS6 | 26,619 | 66 | 39 | 0.2% |
| LS11 | 21,419 | 66 | 11 | 0.3% |
| LS28 | 21,309 | 55 | 41 | 0.3% |
| LS17 | 20,475 | 50 | 24 | 0.2% |
| LS8 | 21,959 | 44 | 26 | 0.2% |
| LS27 | 20,958 | 17 | 16 | 0.1% |
| LS14 | 19,544 | 15 | 6 | 0.1% |
| WF17 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 45.5% |
| LS16 | 19,726 | 3 | 1 | 0.0% |
| WF3 | 12,967 | 2 | 2 | 0.0% |
| LS29 | 429 | 1 | 1 | 0.2% |
| WF12 | 26 | 1 | 1 | 3.8% |
| LS15 | 18,948 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD11 | 3,228 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD4 | 1,012 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD3 | 175 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| BD10 | 109 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| LS99 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
Recorded floodsPast floods mapped in Leeds
The Environment Agency has mapped flood outlines on 16 dates in postcode districts that mostly lie in Leeds since 1978; the most recent started on 20 Feb 2022.
1970s 1 1980s 2 1990s 2 2000s 5 2010s 1 2020s 5
| Started | Place / name in the record | Source of flooding | Cause | Districts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 Feb 2022 – 28 Mar 2022 | Storm Dudley, Eunice and Franklin 14 outlines | Main river, drainage | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS13 LS17 LS2 LS23 LS25 LS27 LS28 LS5 LS6 LS7 LS99 WF3 |
| 18 Jan 2021 – 6 Feb 2021 | Storm Christoph 3 outlines | Drainage, sewer | Groundwater/high water table | LS14 LS20 LS23 |
| 28 Oct 2020 – 3 Nov 2020 | Hurricane Epsilon 2 outlines | Main river, drainage | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS21 |
| 15 Feb 2020 – 19 Mar 2020 | Storm Dennis 14 outlines | Main river, drainage | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS13 LS14 LS17 LS19 LS21 LS22 LS25 LS5 LS7 LS8 |
| 8 Feb 2020 – 14 Feb 2020 | Storm Ciara 29 outlines | Main river, drainage | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS11 LS13 LS14 LS16 LS17 LS18 LS19 LS21 LS5 LS7 LS8 LS9 |
| 25 Dec 2015 – 29 Dec 2015 | — 21 outlines | Main river | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS1 LS13 LS18 LS2 LS4 LS5 LS7 LS9 LS99 |
| 25 Jun 2007 – 28 Jun 2007 | — 7 outlines | Ordinary watercourse | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS14 LS22 LS23 |
| 12 Aug 2004 | — | Sewer | Channel capacity exceeded (no raised defences) | LS9 |
| 10 Feb 2002 – 15 Feb 2002 | River Aire. Leeds 11 outlines | Main river | Overtopping of defences | LS17 LS21 LS22 LS3 |
| 31 Oct 2000 – 4 Dec 2000 | — 8 outlines | Main river | Not recorded | LS1 LS18 LS26 LS3 LS99 |
| 30 Oct 2000 – 15 Nov 2000 | — 22 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS15 LS17 LS21 LS22 LS23 LS25 |
| 28 Jan 1995 – 4 Feb 1995 | — 29 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS17 LS21 LS22 LS23 |
| 21 Feb 1991 – 27 Feb 1991 | — 9 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS16 LS17 LS21 LS22 LS23 |
| 3 Jan 1982 – 16 Jan 1982 | — 7 outlines | Not recorded | Overtopping of defences | LS16 LS17 LS21 LS22 LS23 |
| 1 Jan 1982 – 31 Jan 1982 | Lowther Washlands | Main river | Other | LS26 |
| 1 Dec 1978 – 31 Dec 1978 | — 18 outlines | Main river | Overtopping of defences | LS13 LS18 LS19 LS22 LS25 LS26 |
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.
"Leeds" means the local authority area (ONS code E08000035), not only the town centre.
If you live in Leeds
- 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 Leeds at risk of flooding?
In Leeds, 6,320 of 446,973 properties (1.4%) 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 19th of 296 local authorities in England by number.
Which parts of Leeds have the most properties at flood risk?
Postcode district LS1 has the most: 1,228 properties at high or medium risk (13.5% of its properties in Leeds). The table on this page lists every district.
When did Leeds last flood?
The Environment Agency has mapped flood outlines on 16 dates in postcode districts that mostly lie in Leeds since 1978; the most recent started on 20 Feb 2022.
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.