Home › Rainfall › Rossendale

Rainfall in Rossendale

How much rain fell in Rossendale, Lancashire? Daily, weekly and monthly totals averaged over the Environment Agency rain gauges within 15km, updated every 15 minutes.

The average of 12 rain gauges within 15km of the centre of Rossendale's monitored area, all reporting in the last two days. This October they range from 113.5mm to 183.5mm. The nearest is Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale, 0.0km away. Rain can be very local, so one street may differ from the average.
7.3mm
Yesterday (26 Oct 2026)
64.0mm
Last 7 days
145.5mm
October so far
vs 147.1mm avg — 1% drier
5.0mm
Today so far (UTC)

Rain forecast

Next 24 hours: about 3.0mm of rain forecast for the area around Rossendale, heaviest in the hour to Wed 08:00 (0.8mm).

A computer model forecast (DWD ICON) for a square about 15 km across, updated 17:05 UK time. It is a forecast, not a measurement, and not a Met Office forecast. Weather data by Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0).

Next 4 days

Daily totals for UK days from the same computer model; "dry" means under 0.2mm. Forecasts further ahead are less certain.

🏠 Thinking of buying in Rossendale? Get the Property Flood-Risk Report for any Rossendale postcode — official risk band, recorded floods since 1946, warning history, river behaviour and nearby storm overflows. £19 one-off, instant. Learn more →
⚠️ Yesterday's 6.2mm at Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale was the wettest day at this gauge since 24 Oct 2026 and in the top 29.4% of 602 rain days in this gauge's 2-year record.
⚠️ Yesterday's 7.8mm at Rainfall gauge nr Haslingden was the wettest day at this gauge since 24 Oct 2026 and in the top 21.7% of 577 rain days in this gauge's 2-year record.
⚠️ Yesterday's 5.0mm at Rainfall gauge nr Great Harwood was the wettest day at this gauge since 24 Oct 2026 and in the top 33.5% of 612 rain days in this gauge's 2-year record.

Nearest rain gauges to Rossendale

GaugeDistanceYesterday7 daysOctoberToday
Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale 0.0km 6.2mm 62.0mm 144.0mm 7.1mm
Rainfall gauge nr Haslingden nr Haslingden 5.4km 7.8mm 72.6mm 161.0mm 5.0mm
Rainfall gauge nr Great Harwood nr Great Harwood 8.4km 5.0mm 46.2mm 113.5mm 2.7mm

Last 30 days (average of 12 gauges within 15km)

Daily totals 27 Sep–26 Oct. Wettest day: 29.0mm.

Rain days this October

23 days with at least 0.2mm of rain so far this October at Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale, against a full-month average of 23.1 rain days (based on 2 months of records at this gauge).

Rainfall year by year in Rossendale

2026 so far: 955 mm (1 Jan to 26 Oct), against 1,093 mm by the same date in an average year (2000–2025) — 13% drier.

One bar per calendar year, the average of 8 local rain gauges: the Environment Agency's quality-checked daily archive, then live telemetry for the latest months. Wettest: 2023 (1,855 mm). Driest: 2003 (1,052 mm). Average: 1,434 mm a year.

Wettest days and storms in Rossendale

Wettest days since 2000

  1. 80.5 mm 25 Dec 2015up to 90.2 mm at one gauge
  2. 70.5 mm 31 Dec 2024up to 90.0 mm at one gauge
  3. 65.8 mm 22 Jun 2012up to 72.6 mm at one gauge
  4. 60.8 mm 8 Feb 2020 · Storm Ciaraup to 78.4 mm at one gauge
  5. 54.4 mm 22 May 2024up to 67.6 mm at one gauge

Storms that brought the most rain here

  1. 93.1 mm Storm Ciara · 8–9 Feb 2020
  2. 82.4 mm Storm Christoph · 19–21 Jan 2021
  3. 79.6 mm Storm Bert · 22–25 Nov 2024
  4. 51.5 mm Storm Bronagh · 20–21 Sep 2018
  5. 49.7 mm Storm Elin · 9–10 Dec 2023

Daily totals are the average of 8 local rain gauges, for UTC days; one gauge can catch much more than the average. A storm's figure adds up the rain measured on its dates, from our list of Met Office named storms and major floods — other weather on those days counts too.

Average rainfall in Rossendale

Rossendale gets about 1,280 mm of rain a year on average (wettest month December, 146 mm; driest April, 73 mm). That is close to the UK as a whole, which averages 1,163 mm a year.

Monthly averages in mm. Source: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 (5 km grid), 1.2 km from the town's gauge centre. Average rainfall: HadUK-Grid v1.3.2, Met Office. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. UK comparison: Met Office HadUK-Grid areal series, 1991-2020, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Gauges and storm overflows around Rossendale

Rain gauge River gauge Storm overflow

Rivers near Rossendale

River Irwell the largest river near Rossendale

Nearest gauge on it: Holt Mill Bridge, 7.0 km away: 0.27 m Steady.

Every gauge on the River Irwell →

Nearest river gauges

A level is shown only when the gauge's latest reading is under 6 hours old. Distances are straight-line from the centre of Rossendale's monitored area.

Storm overflows near Rossendale

23 storm overflows within 5 km of the centre of Rossendale's monitored area. None of the 23 with a live status is discharging right now.

The most spills in 2025

Sewage & storm overflows →

Event Duration Monitors show when an overflow may be spilling; they do not confirm it, and this is not advice on water quality. A live status older than two hours counts as no current status. Live status: © United Utilities storm overflow activity data, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Annual spill figures: Environment Agency Event Duration Monitoring return, © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right, Open Government Licence (OGL) v3.0.

About Rossendale

Borough of Rossendale
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on the file page)

Borough and non-metropolitan district in Lancashire, England

Rossendale is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Bacup and its largest town is Rawtenstall. It also includes the towns of Haslingden and Whitworth. The borough is named after the Rossendale Valley, the upper part of the valley of the River Irwell.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Frequently asked questions

How much rain fell in Rossendale yesterday?

7.3mm of rain fell yesterday (26 Oct 2026), from the average of 12 rain gauges within 15km of Rossendale.

Is this month wetter than normal in Rossendale?

October so far: 145.5mm vs 147.1mm October average — 1% drier (the average covers the whole month; we are 27 days in). Figures are the average of 12 rain gauges within 15km.

Where is the nearest rain gauge to Rossendale?

Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale is the nearest rain gauge, 0.0km from the centre of Rossendale's monitored area. Rain gauges can be several kilometres from the town itself, so very local downpours may not register exactly.

How many rain days has Rossendale had this month?

23 days with at least 0.2mm of rain so far this October at Rainfall gauge nr Rossendale, against a full-month average of 23.1 rain days.

What was the wettest year in Rossendale?

2023 was the wettest year in the record since 2000, with 1,855 mm from the average of 8 local rain gauges, against an average of 1,434 mm a year. The driest was 2003, with 1,052 mm.

What is the wettest day on record in Rossendale?

25 Dec 2015: 80.5 mm on average across 8 local rain gauges, and up to 90.2 mm at one of them. Records since 1 Jan 2000.

Rainfall data: Environment Agency rain gauges, synced every 15 minutes. Daily totals are computed overnight (UTC days); "today so far" is live. Gauge distances are straight-line from the centre of Rossendale's monitored area — local rainfall can vary over short distances.