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Northenden Weir is used to provide Flood Warnings and Alerts to communities in Northenden, Didsbury, and others downstream on the River Mersey. It does this by providing a consistent water level reading from the Northenden River Level Gauge upstream of the weir. By maintaining the upstream water level, the weir also ensures the river embankments and walls remain stable enabling these flood defences to continue to protect the local communities.
Northenden Weir became damaged during high river levels following storm events in 2023/24 causing several masonry blocks to become displaced.
Image showing displaced masonry blocks.
Environment Agency (EA) Operations staff and their contractor, VolkerStevin, have been regularly monitoring the condition of the weir. This monitoring has recently confirmed further deterioration of the weir, and the EA and VolkerStevin will now undertake a repair in advance of the winter months. The EA would like to assure you that this is a proactive measure and that there is no immediate flood risk to the local community.
The damaged weir does however pose a safety risk to those using the river, e.g. canoeists, as the specific area of damage to the weir is not visible when upstream on the river. The EA continue to liaise with local kayaking/canoe groups and have put up additional signage warning river users of the risk. Until the weir is repaired, the safety risk to river users remains. Therefore, the EA ask that members of the public stay clear of the weir until the repair works have been completed.
The Environment Agency (EA) and their Partners are grateful to residents for their patience whilst they undertake repairs to the Weir. On the 18th of November the EA undertook work with the use of a helicopter to dewater the weir to enable them to inspect the damage and understand what they need to do to repair it. The EA have now updated our their design based on these findings and are working with their Delivery Partner to undertake the repair works.
With the occurrence of Storm Bert recently and subsequent heavy rainfall on 5th December this has meant that unfortunately at this time the EA are not able to undertake the full repair work due to river levels rising. The EA have however been able to dewater the weir again this week and will be undertaking the first major part of the repair which will involve grouting the large hole in the weir which has occurred due to the masonry blocks becoming dislodged. This part of the repair will ensure that no further blocks will become dislodged until the EA are able to come back and finish the remainder of the works in the New Year.
Designers were able to get on the de-watered Northenden Weir in South Manchester last week to inspect damage caused by last winter’s storms. They’ll now develop their repair plan, with works taking place over the coming months.
Image: Environment Agency
The inspection was enabled by an operation involving a helicopter earlier this month to place rock bags in the River Mersey. The EA would like to reassure people this is a proactive repair – there is no immediate flood risk.
Click here to watch a time lapsed video showing the helicopter place rock bags in the weir.
The Environment Agency (EA) and their Partners are grateful to residents for their patience whilst they undertake repairs to the Weir. On the 18th of November the EA undertook work with the use of a helicopter to dewater the weir to enable them to inspect the damage and understand what they need to do to repair it. The EA have now updated their design based on these findings and are working with their Delivery Partner to undertake the repair works.
With the occurrence of Storm Bert recently and subsequent heavy rainfall on 5th December this has meant that unfortunately at this time the EA are not able to undertake the full repair work due to river levels rising. The EA have however been able to dewater the weir again this week and will be undertaking the first major part of the repair which will involve grouting the large hole in the weir which has occurred due to the masonry blocks becoming dislodged. This part of the repair will ensure that no further blocks will become dislodged until the EA are able to come back and finish the remainder of the works in the New Year.
The EA are installing rock bags at Northenden Weir in South Manchester. This will enable inspection and repair of the weir, which was damaged in last winter’s storms. The EA would like to assure people this is a proactive measure, there is no immediate flood risk.
Click here to watch a video of a helicopter placing rock bags in the weir.
The repair plan is progressing well and on Monday morning (18th November) a helicopter will be on site to move the bulk bags into position upstream in front of damaged section of the weir.
The helicopter is expected to be there for most of the morning, but this may vary and is also subject to local conditions. If the forecast changes significantly the EA may have to reschedule the helicopter work.
On Monday there will be a significant presence on site from the EA and their partner contractors to ensure that the public are kept safe and to answer any questions they may have.
The EA would like to remind people that this is a proactive measure and that there is no immediate flood risk to the local community
They ask members of the public to adhere to footpath closures and to follow advice from staff on site to enable them to keep everyone safe, details of footpath closures below. The EA expect the footpath closures to be in place for approximately 1 to 2 days.
Entry points at the above locations marked in red will be closed to the public. Yellow triangles are where EA staff will be in place to assist and divert you to other routes.
The Environment Agency and Contractors would like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding during these works.
Regular updates on progress will be posted on The Flood Hub and social media platforms X and Instagram: @EnvAgencyNW.
The EA are getting ready to use a helicopter for repairs to Northenden Weir in South Manchester. The weir’s been deteriorating since storm damage last winter. Rock bags will be put in place upstream later in November to enable inspection and repair.
Image: Environment Agency
Helicopter will be used in the plan to repair Northenden Weir in South Manchester. The EA have been monitoring since masonry became dislodged in last winter’s storms. Rock bags will be put upstream in mid-November to enable inspection & repair.
The EA set up on site on Monday 28th October 2024. This involved setting up a site compound and storage area for materials.
During mid-November, the EA will dewater a section of the weir enabling them to complete a detailed inspection to fully understand the condition of the weir. To dewater the weir, the EA’s contractor Volkerstevin will install large rock bags upstream in front of the weir which directs the water elsewhere leaving the weir exposed for inspection. The large rock bags will be installed using a helicopter as this is the most efficient and cost-effective way of installing the rock bags in a short period of time. Installation of the large rock bags is expected to take 1-2 days dependent on weather conditions.
The inspection of the weir’s condition will determine the repair work required. The repair works will progress shortly after the inspection, and the EA expect all works to be complete early in the New Year.
Regular updates on progress will be posted on The Flood Hub and the Environment Agency’s social media platforms:
On the day of the helicopter activity, areas in and around the weir will be closed off including:
There will be site staff in place to assist and divert you around the works to the most appropriate route.
Entry points at the above locations marked in red will be closed to the public. Yellow triangles are where EA staff will be in place to assist and divert you to other routes.
Given the proximity of the weir to homes and businesses, there will be some noise disruption on the day of the helicopter activities due to the low position of the helicopter above the weir.
A section of Withington Golf Club car park will be closed off with this being utilised as the landing area for the helicopter.
During the repair works, footpaths will be re-opened and there will be signage in place to divert members of the public away from any working areas.
The EA have been working with Withington Golf Club, Manchester City Council, the local Kayak Club and landowners directly affected by their works to keep them informed of their plans.
If you have any queries or would like any further information, please contact the scheme as follows:
