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Water Level Easing
Easing — down from 0.21 at 13:45, now 0.13
0.13

Little Bridge

Ogden Brook
Northern Manchester catchment • Helmshore • Lancashire • ID: 690142 • Level
(33m ago) • 4 readings/hr • 115 views

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Current Level
0.134 m
▼ Easing
24h Max
0.397 m
24h Min
-0.008 m
Typical Range
0.01 - 2.10
m
Highest Recorded
1.74 m
14 Jun 2002
Since Jul 1998
Current level is 8% of this
🚽 Sewage overflows nearby

Recent Water Levels

🌍 floodradar.co.uk
1 day

Recent Readings

Falling · -3 cm over 5h
09 Oct 22:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.134 m
09 Oct 22:15 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.136 m
09 Oct 22:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.137 m
09 Oct 21:45 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.139 m
09 Oct 21:30 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.141 m
09 Oct 21:15 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.145 m
09 Oct 21:00 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.147 m
09 Oct 20:45 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.150 m
09 Oct 20:30 ▲ +0.6 cm 0.152 m
09 Oct 20:15 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.146 m
09 Oct 20:00 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.148 m
09 Oct 19:45 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.149 m
09 Oct 19:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.153 m
09 Oct 19:15 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.155 m
09 Oct 19:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.156 m
09 Oct 18:45 ▼ -0.3 cm 0.158 m
09 Oct 18:30 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.161 m
09 Oct 18:15 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.163 m
09 Oct 18:00 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.164 m
09 Oct 17:45 0.168 m

Station Details

  • Monitoring Station: Little Bridge
  • Watercourse: Ogden Brook
  • Nearest Town: Helmshore
  • County: Lancashire
  • Nearest reservoir: Gorple Upper Ire (17.3 km) · 47.0% full (as of 28 Sep 2026)
  • Coordinates: 53°41'3"N 2°19'54"W (53.684084, -2.331538)
  • Open in: Google Maps · Apple Maps (opens your maps app)
  • Date Opened: 28 Jul 1998
  • Status: Active
  • Station Type: River level station
Technical details: references, datum, range, flow archive
  • Station Reference: 690142
  • RLOI id: 5082 (the EA's check-for-flooding station id)
  • EA Gauge ID: 690142-level-stage-i-15_min-m
  • Parameter: Level
  • Unit: m
  • Typical rise rate: 6 cm/hr (p95 sustained over 90 days)
  • Typical data delay: ~22 min (measured reading→publication lag)
  • Tidal: No
  • Lock / structure: No
  • Catchment Area: Northern Manchester
  • Typical Range: 0.014 – 2.100 m
  • EA Cross-check: 0.14 m (EA at 9 Oct 22:15)

Geographic coordinates may reflect the access point for the gauge, and not the precise location in the watercourse that it is taking readings from.

Nearby Stations

Gauges connected to this river, and others nearby. A distance “by river” follows the river on the map; any other is in a straight line.

Connected downstream

Same river system, separate branch

Distances by river: OS Open Rivers. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

💧 Storm overflows upstream of this gauge

Storm overflows whose water reaches this gauge on the mapped river network, nearest first by distance along the river. The status is each water company's monitor: it says whether an overflow is discharging, not how much or what it contains.

4 storm overflows are traced upstream of this gauge, the nearest 1.4 km away along the river. 0 report discharging now, 4 report not discharging.

💧
United Utilities · into Swinnel Brook · 1.4 km upstream along the river
48 spills · 106 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Swinnel Brook · 2.8 km upstream along the river
1 spill · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Swinnel Brook · 2.8 km upstream along the river
13 spills · 4 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Clvrt'd Section Swinnel Brook · 4.2 km upstream along the river
43 spills · 180 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

Nearby, connection not known

Within 6 km in a straight line, but the river map cannot say whether their water passes this gauge.

💧
United Utilities · into Culverted Langwood Brook · 1.6 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
2 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Rvr Irwell Via Langwood Brook · 1.8 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
58 spills · 53 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Clvrt'd Section Langwood Brook · 2.0 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
6 spills · 10 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Via Culvert To Woodnook Water · 5.2 km away in a straight line · reaches the river through a sewer or culvert
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
United Utilities · into Woodnook Water · 5.5 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
11 spills · 3 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Woodnook Water Via Sws · 5.8 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
United Utilities · into Whitewll Brook · 5.9 km away in a straight line · several watercourses close by, nothing to choose between them
2 spills · 4 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
United Utilities · into Woodnook Water · 5.9 km away in a straight line · not connected to this gauge on the river map
1 spill · 1 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

19 other overflows within 6 km are downstream of this gauge or on another branch of the river network, so they are not listed.

These are the water companies' monitor statuses; a spill does not by itself explain a change in the gauge level. River connections and distances are traced on OS Open Rivers (edition 2026-04), which leaves out many small channels. Explore the sewage map →

Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

Rainfall & Weather

Loading rainfall and weather data...

How often this river runs high

This gauge rarely reaches its typical high of 2.10 m: 0 days since 2017. This year so far: 0 days.

2026 0 days so far
2025 0 days
2024 0 days
2023 0 days
2022 0 days
2021 0 days
2020 0 days
2019 0 days
2018 0 days
2017 0 days

Counted from each day's highest reading. Days with missing or implausible readings are left out.

Flood history near this gauge

Official Environment Agency warnings issued since 2015 for the 10 flood areas linked to this gauge (nearest 0.4 km away).

20flood warnings 0flood alerts

Most recent flood warning: 20 Sep 2025 — Whitewell Brook at Piercy and Newchurch from Ashworth Road to Wood Lea Road

Year by year
YearWarningsAlerts
2025 2 0
2024 5 0
2023 1 0
2022 1 0
2021 1 0
2020 6 0
2017 3 0
2015 1 0

Warnings apply to a whole flood area, not necessarily this exact spot. Years before 2006 aren't covered by the EA's historic record. See also the Helmshore flood history.

Flood areas linked to this gauge

Flood warnings and alerts are issued for whole areas. These are the 10 areas linked to this gauge, nearest first.

Show 2 more

Frequently asked questions

Is the Ogden Brook at Little Bridge flooding today?

The current level is 0.13m, which is within the typical range of 0.01 to 2.10m. Flooding is unlikely at this level.

Is the river level rising or falling at Little Bridge?

Based on the most recent readings, the level is currently falling slightly. The chart above shows the last 12 hours of measurements by default (up to 7 days), updated roughly every 15 minutes.

Why is the level slowly falling?

When little or no rain has fallen for a while, a river level gradually drops as the water stored in the ground and soil drains away with nothing to replace it. This is called baseflow recession and is normal in dry spells. A gentle decline like this is expected and is not a sign of a problem — downstream gauges often recede a little faster than headwaters further upstream, and levels recover once rain returns.

What is a normal level for the Ogden Brook at Little Bridge?

The typical range at this station is 0.01m to 2.10m, based on Environment Agency historical data. Levels above 2.10m are higher than usually seen and may indicate a flood risk.

How often is this river level data updated?

Readings are supplied by the Environment Agency gauge. FloodRadar checks for updates roughly every 15 minutes; the timestamp above shows how recent the latest available reading is.

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📮 Flood risk by postcode near this gauge

Postcodes within 5 km with properties in the Environment Agency’s rivers-and-sea flood-risk bands:

Check any UK postcode’s flood risk →

🏠 Buying or renting around here? Get the Property Flood-Risk Report for any English postcode — official risk band, recorded floods, warning history, river behaviour and nearby storm overflows. £19 one-off. Learn more →