Peterborough City Council in Cambridgeshire published new ‘Drains and Gullies‘ guidance on 6 February 2026 to explain who is responsible for maintaining different types of drainage features. The release followed recent heavy rainfall that caused localized flooding on routes around the city and renewed public confusion about who should deal with blocked drainage systems.
According to the council’s ‘Drains and gullies myth buster’, Peterborough City Council maintains gullies on adopted public roads, footpaths and public car parks. Gullies are the pot-like chambers beneath road gratings designed to collect surface water; the council says it maintains approximately 42,000 such gullies in the area. Gullies on non-adopted roads are the responsibility of the landowner, and National Highways is responsible for gullies alongside motorways and trunk roads (for example the A1 and A47).
Anglian Water is responsible for public sewers — both foul-water sewers and public surface-water sewers — and for shared drains that serve more than one property. That means drains outside a property’s boundary, sewage backups and foul-smell complaints should be reported to Anglian Water rather than the council.
Private homeowners are responsible for gutters, pipes and drains within their property boundaries that serve only their house. On new housing estates, developers remain responsible for drainage and gullies until the roads and drainage are formally adopted by the council.
The guidance was published in the context of flood warnings and closures earlier in February 2026: North Bank Road was closed on 2 February 2026 after an Environment Agency flood warning, and flood alerts for parts of the Peterborough area remained on the government’s flood-warning site in early February. The council says clarifying responsibilities should help residents report blockages to the right organisation, and its guidance notes that seasonal leaf fall and debris can block gully covers — clearing leaves from the top of a gully grate is often the quickest way for a resident to prevent local ponding before a formal inspection or cleansing visit.
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