Stronger flood defences to protect tomorrow’s communities, today

For the Rother Tidal Walls East Flood Defence Scheme, we helped strengthen 6.5km of existing tidal embankments, protecting communities across Rye and Romney Marsh while working within one of the South East’s most environmentally sensitive landscapes. 

As part of the Environment Agency’s long-term strategy to safeguard low-lying areas from future tidal flood risk, we were appointed by VolkerStevin to deliver the major earthworks package required to improve the region’s long-term flood resilience.

Project overview

The scheme included raising and widening over 6km of existing flood embankments while creating new intertidal habitat and improving key flood defence infrastructure. Located in a highly sensitive environmental setting, the works required careful planning, robust quality assurance and close collaboration with VolkerStevin to maintain programme certainty while minimising disruption to neighbouring communities and protected habitats. 

The full works

As the principal earthworks subcontractor, we delivered the bulk earthmoving operations required to construct the new embankment profile. Our experienced team provided a fully integrated earthworks solution, managing excavation, imported engineered fill placement, compaction and profiling to achieve the demanding specification required for this critical flood defence asset. 

The works comprised a range of earthmoving, infrastructure and environmental management activities, including: 

• Construction, maintenance and removal of temporary haul roads (8km) 

• Topsoil strip and reinstatement of storage and compound areas 

• Bulk excavation and earthmoving 

• Import, placement and compaction of Class 2B1 engineered clay (97,709m3) 

• Construction of raised flood embankments (6.5km across 8 sections) 

• Earthworks associated with habitat creation areas (saltmarsh) 

• Construction of strengthened earthworks (1:1 slopes) 

• Supply and placement of rip-rap scour protection 

• Topsoil screening 

• Transport of surplus materials in accordance with the MMP 

• Environmental and quality compliance throughout construction 

• Surface and ground water management 

Rother Tidal Walls East in numbers

• Raised and strengthened 6.5km of tidal flood embankments
• Imported, placed and compacted 97,709m³ of engineered clay 
• Constructed 8km of temporary haul roads
• Delivered works across 8 embankment sections
• Supported the creation of new intertidal habitat and saltmarsh areas

Engineering challenges

Delivering major earthworks alongside an active tidal flood defence presented a number of complex engineering challenges. Working adjacent to live watercourses and existing flood embankments required careful planning and sequencing, particularly where tidal working and re-alignment activities were involved. 

Maintaining embankment stability throughout construction was also critical, while the environmentally sensitive nature of the site demanded strict controls to protect surrounding habitats and minimise disruption. At the same time, significant volumes of imported material had to be managed under stringent planning requirements, with multiple construction activities taking place across the scheme simultaneously. 

Through close collaboration with VolkerStevin and the wider project team, we successfully overcame these challenges while maintaining programme momentum and delivering the highest standards of safety, quality and environmental performance. 

Delivering sustainable infrastructure

The Rother Tidal Walls East scheme demonstrates our capability to deliver complex, large-scale earthworks on nationally significant infrastructure projects. By combining experienced personnel, modern plant technology and efficient material management, we helped deliver resilient flood defences that will protect thousands of homes, businesses and critical infrastructure for decades to come. 

The project reflects our commitment to quality, safety, environmental stewardship and collaborative delivery, providing our client with a reliable earthworks partner on one of the South East’s most significant flood resilience schemes.