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Water Level Falling
Down from 0.33 at 20:15, now 0.29
0.29

Water Orton

Tame ⚙ Structure
Tame Anker and Mease catchment • Water Orton • West Midlands • ID: 4003 • Level
(1h ago) • 3 readings/hr • 182 views

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Not an emergency service — if in danger call 999. Alerts rely on EA/SEPA/NRW data and are best-efforts. Terms

Current Level
0.285 mASD
▼ Falling (-1cm/hr)
24h Max
0.334 mASD
24h Min
0.199 mASD
Typical Range
0.27 - 1.44
mASD
Highest Recorded
3.43 mASD
EA official record
3.40 in our data (since Sep 1955)
Current level is 8% of this
🚽 Sewage overflows nearby

Recent Water Levels

🌍 floodradar.co.uk
1 day

Flood predictions aren't generated for lock / structure gauges — their levels are driven by gate operation, not by catchment rainfall, so the forecast models would have no skill here.

Recent Readings

Rising · +2 cm over 7h
08 Oct 01:15 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.285 mASD
08 Oct 01:00 ▼ -0.6 cm 0.289 mASD
08 Oct 00:30 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.295 mASD
08 Oct 00:15 ▼ -0.6 cm 0.299 mASD
07 Oct 23:45 ▼ -0.4 cm 0.305 mASD
07 Oct 23:30 ▼ -1 cm 0.309 mASD
07 Oct 22:30 ▼ -0.6 cm 0.323 mASD
07 Oct 22:00 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.329 mASD
07 Oct 21:45 ▼ -0.2 cm 0.331 mASD
07 Oct 21:30 ▼ -0.1 cm 0.333 mASD
07 Oct 21:15 ▬ steady 0.334 mASD
07 Oct 21:00 ▲ +0.1 cm 0.334 mASD
07 Oct 20:30 ▲ +0.7 cm 0.333 mASD
07 Oct 20:00 ▲ +2 cm 0.326 mASD
07 Oct 19:30 ▲ +1 cm 0.308 mASD
07 Oct 19:15 ▲ +1 cm 0.295 mASD
07 Oct 19:00 ▲ +1.0 cm 0.283 mASD
07 Oct 18:45 ▲ +0.6 cm 0.273 mASD
07 Oct 18:15 ▬ steady 0.267 mASD
07 Oct 18:00 0.267 mASD

Station Details

  • Monitoring Station: Water Orton
  • Watercourse: River Tame
  • Nearest Town: Water Orton
  • County: West Midlands
  • Coordinates: 52°31'13"N 1°45'4"W (52.520390, -1.751178)
  • Open in: Google Maps · Apple Maps (opens your maps app)
  • Date Opened: 6 Sep 1955
  • Status: Active
  • Station Type: River level station (multi-sensor)
Technical details: references, datum, range, flow archive
  • Station Reference: 4003
  • RLOI id: 2098 (the EA's check-for-flooding station id)
  • EA Gauge ID: 4003-level-stage-i-15_min-mASD
  • Parameter: Level
  • Unit: mASD
  • Typical rise rate: 12 cm/hr (p95 sustained over 90 days)
  • Typical data delay: ~22 min (measured reading→publication lag)
  • Tidal: No
  • Lock / structure: ⚙ Yes — lock, weir, sluice or pump
  • Catchment Area: Tame Anker and Mease
  • Typical Range: 0.270 – 1.436 mASD
  • Drainage Area: 408 km² upstream of this gauge
  • Flow Data: Daily mean flow (m³/s) to 6 Oct (2 days behind — the EA publishes each day's mean a day or two after it ends; unchecked, provisional) via EA Hydrology
  • EA Cross-check: 0.28 mASD (EA at 8 Oct 01:30)
  • Flow Archive: National River Flow Archive ↗

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 upstream

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.

151 storm overflows are traced upstream of this gauge, the nearest 520 m away along the river. 0 report discharging now, 150 report not discharging, and for 1 the monitor is offline or has not reported, so their status is not known.

💧
Severn Trent Water · into River Tame · 520 m upstream along the river
24 spills · 190 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Plants Brook · 2.6 km upstream along the river
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Tributary Of River Tame · 4.2 km upstream along the river
9 spills · 23 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Tributary Of River Tame · 4.3 km upstream along the river
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
Severn Trent Water · into A Trib Of River Tame · 4.5 km upstream along the river
90 spills · 353 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Plants Brook · 5.2 km upstream along the river
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now
💧
Severn Trent Water · into River Tame · 6.2 km upstream along the river
4 spills · 1 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into River Tame · 6.2 km upstream along the river
1 spill · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

143 more further upstream, up to 37.5 km away along the river.

Nearby, connection not known

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

💧
Severn Trent Water · into Trib Of River Tame · 500 m away in a straight line · no mapped watercourse close enough to be sure
0 spills · 0 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Tributary Of River Tame · 4.4 km away in a straight line · several watercourses close by, nothing to choose between them
2 spills · 1 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Yardley Brook · 4.5 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
46 spills · 88 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last
💧
Severn Trent Water · into Trib Of River Blythe · 4.8 km away in a straight line · its watercourse is not on the river map
3 spills · 1 hours in 2025
Not discharging now · last

16 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

In a typical year this gauge reaches its typical high of 1.44 m on about 14 days. This year so far: 12 days.

2026 12 days so far
2025 11 days, 2 of them high · 2 high
2024 25 days, 4 of them high · 4 high
2023 16 days, 3 of them high · 3 high
2022 9 days, 1 of them high · 1 high
2021 15 days, 2 of them high · 2 high
2020 13 days, 1 of them high · 1 high
2019 26 days, 5 of them high · 5 high
2018 9 days, 1 of them high · 1 high
2017 6 days

Counted from each day's highest reading. Days with missing or implausible readings are left out. The darker part is days above 2.34 m, the level this gauge tops only a few days a year.

Flood history near this gauge

Official Environment Agency warnings issued since 2006 for the 22 flood areas linked to this gauge (nearest 0.1 km away).

126flood warnings 400flood alerts

Most recent flood warning: 1 Mar 2026 — River Blythe at Blyth End

Year by year
YearWarningsAlerts
2026 6 39
2025 9 23
2024 9 49
2023 15 29
2022 1 19
2021 5 22
2020 7 28
2019 24 44
2018 16 18
2017 1 3
2016 7 23
2015 0 2
2014 0 14
2013 1 9
2012 18 23
2011 0 4
2010 0 3
2009 0 5
2008 7 21
2007 0 16
2006 0 6

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 Water Orton flood history.

Flood areas linked to this gauge

Flood warnings and alerts are issued for whole areas. These are the 22 areas linked to this gauge, nearest first.

Show 14 more

Catchment Character

🌊 Urban & flashy Heavily built-up — rain runs off hard surfaces fast, so levels can spike within hours of heavy rain.

Your catchment is all the land that drains rainfall into the river above this gauge. Its character — how steep, wet, wooded, urban or chalky that land is — decides how fast rain here turns into a rising river. A steep, bare or clay catchment is “flashy” (rises and falls quickly, floods easily); a flat, chalk or well-wooded one is slow and steady. The tiles below put numbers to that; the flow-duration curve reads left-to-right from the river’s typical high flows (Q5) down to its low flows (Q95) — a steep curve means a flashy river.

The physical character of the land that drains to this gauge, and how it shapes its flood response — from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH).

Baseflow Index
0.50
mixed response
Avg Annual Rainfall
768 mm/yr
1991–2020 · +5% since 1941–70
Urban Extent
59%
heavily urbanised
Median Annual Flood
82.60 m³/s
QMED — typical yearly peak flow
Highest Daily Mean Flow
84.90 m³/s
20 Jul 2007 · daily mean, not the instantaneous peak
Flow-Duration Curve
mean 5.2713.303.802.065% (high)% of days exceeded95% (low)
Daily flow (m³/s) exceeded each % of the time — a steep curve is flashy, a flat one is steady. Q5 high · Q50 median · Q95 low.
Land Cover (2023)
Woodland 5%Grassland 18%Arable 3%Urban 74%Other 1%

Flow affected by: effluent returns, industrial / agricultural abstraction.

Photos

Gauging-station photographs from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH).

Photos © NRFA / UKCEH & the measuring authority — shown at web resolution. Full gallery on the NRFA ↗

About this gauge

Simple Crump profile weir constructed in 1993 to replace VA gauge subject to backwater influence and weed growth.

More detail

The catchment

Almost fully urbanised catchment of moderate relief in Birmingham. Solid geology: Mercia Mudstone, but subordinate to extensive cover of Boulder Clay and glacial sands and gravel.

The station

Simple Crump profile weir, 8.5m wide, located just upstream of Minworth WRW and trunk sewerage system. Site constructed in 1993 to replace VA gauge subject to backwater influence and weed growth. Channel re-graded in 1974 - channel control became unstable.

How it measures flow

The low weir drowns and flow can overtop wing walls. Affected by turbulence. Multiple peak flow ratings applied across period of record, the most recent is valid from February-1993 when crump weir constructed. Gaugings show more scatter at low flows.

Flow regime

Fast responding catchment with effluent baseflow and substantial regime disturbance from imports.

The flow record

Peak flow data 1982-1992 rejected due to abandonment of flow processing during unstable channel period. Full period of record peak flow data reviewed and released in September 2019 (WINFAP Files v8).

Descriptions from the National River Flow Archive (UKCEH). NRFA station record ↗

Gauge Details

How this gauging station is built and how long it has measured (NRFA / UKCEH).

Gauge type
Crump weir
Operating since
1955
Station datum
74.4 mAOD
Flow record
1955–2024 · 69 yrs · 84% complete
Peak-flow record
since 1955
Hydrometric area
28
Measured by
Environment Agency

Frequently asked questions

Is the River Tame at Water Orton flooding today?

The current level is 0.29m, which is within the typical range of 0.27 to 1.44m. Flooding is unlikely at this level.

Is the river level rising or falling at Water Orton?

Based on the most recent readings, the level is currently falling. 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. Only about 4.0mm of rain has fallen nearby in the last 7 days, so the flow is being sustained mainly by groundwater. 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 River Tame at Water Orton?

The typical range at this station is 0.27m to 1.44m, based on Environment Agency historical data. Levels above 1.44m 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.

Embed this gauge on your website

Free live river-level widget — ideal for parish councils, angling clubs and local sites. Updates automatically.

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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 →