Specially-designed rain gardens and pavements which absorb rainwater and slowly release it in to the sewer network have been unveiled by Thames Water in London.

The gardens in Godolphin Road, Shepherd’s Bush, are the first to be installed by the company as part of an effort to relieve pressure on sewers in the capital during periods of heavy rain.

Instead of rainwater running off hard paving and tarmac in to drains, where it can overwhelm the sewer network, it is instead soaked up in to crates installed underground and gradually let in to the network.

The gardens are fed by surrounding permeable paving which also allows rainwater to pass through the gaps between paving stones and absorb in to the base underneath.

Together they form a type of sustainable drainage system (SuDS) and are among a number of such systems being used by Thames Water to safeguard the sewage network.

The company worked with Hammersmith and Fulham Council and the Hammersmith Community Gardens Association (HCGA) to install the gardens and held a community planting day with residents, council staff and volunteers to plant flowers last week.

The flowers, which include daffodils, crocus and tulips, will be fed by the water absorbed by the garden.

Chris Butterfield, from Thames Water’s major projects team, who tookk part on the day said:

“These SuDS are essential to reducing the risk of sewer flooding in the catchment area, and the rain gardens are fantastic way to showcase all the benefits the SuDS provide to the residents, especially given how the rainwater storage is hidden under the road.”

The association will now take over maintenance of the garden, while Hammersmith and Fulham Council will care for the permeable paving, which is part of Thames Water’s Counters Creek Flood Alleviation Scheme.

The scheme, which is due to be completed by March 2020, is installing paving in roads across central London, along with other flood alleviation methods including sewer upgrades and the installation of the FLIP (Flooding Local Improvement Process), a self-contained pump which can be installed at properties to transfer sewage and rainwater from private drains to larger sewers in the road, even during heavy rainfall.