More than 800,000 homes could be at high risk of severe flooding by 2080, an analysis has found, as green groups warn of the growing climate change impacts facing UK households.
Campaigners are urging the British Government and other political parties to make polluters pay, fund local authorities and emergency services, and ensure access to affordable home insurance ahead of the local elections.
Communities across the country have been hit by storms, incessant rainfall and flooding in recent weeks, with the South East and south of England experiencing their wettest starts to the year on record.
Risk
Around 866,000 homes – equivalent to the total of those in Birmingham, Liverpool and Sheffield – could be at “high” or “very high” risk from increased levels of flooding by 2080 should global temperatures rise by 2.4C above pre-industrial levels, according to the research carried out by flood risk assessment firm Geosmart on behalf of Greenpeace.
The analysis compared the level of flood risk faced by each region and local authority across Britain under this climate scenario.
It showed that 386,716 homes in Scotland could face a “high” or “very high” risk of severe flooding, amounting to 19 per ent of all Scottish homes.
This was followed by 122,484 homes in the South East of England – two per cent of all homes in the region – 71,431 in Wales, 65,884 in the South West and 59,918 in the East of England.
For other regions, the analysis suggests 53,229 would be at this higher risk level in the East Midlands, 45,320 in the North West, 35,459 in Yorkshire and the Humber, 18,049 in the West Midlands and 7,595 in the North East.
Fuelled
Phillip Evans, Greenpeace UK’s senior climate campaigner, said: “The economic cost of the storms and floods battering Britain is skyrocketing.
“Our data clearly shows that more and more homes will face rising flood risk due to extreme weather events.
“Already, homes in some areas are becoming uninsurable and in certain cases insurers are abandoning towns, leaving councils to pick up the tab.
“Britain is taking a soaking while oil giants like Shell are raking in billions. It’s time they were made to foot the bill for the climate breakdown fuelled by their dirty industry.”
As of early 2026, the world has seen a long-term global warming increase of approximately 1.2C to 1.4C above pre-industrial levels.
Planet-heating
But the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates this could reach around 2.7C by 2100 based on the current policies implemented by governments worldwide, with 2.4C by 2080 fitting this mid-range scenario.
In the UK, scientists say climate conditions have become increasingly volatile, with six of the 10 wettest winters on record occurring in the last 20 years.
A separate analysis of Environment Agency data by green group Friends of the Earth released on Wednesday found that one million homes across England – or 2.4 million people – are already at the highest risk of flooding.