HAMPSHIRE County Council has awarded a construction firm with the task of carrying out a multimillion-pound flood alleviation scheme in Buckskin.

Mildren Construction Ltd will carry out the next phase of the project which will see the installation of a bespoke pipe across the subway near McDonalds at the Leisure Park.

This will connect drainage works undertaken previously.

The £6.24 million flood alleviation scheme in Buckskin has so far seen improvements to ditches and culverts along Churchill Way West and Worting Road and the enhancement of ditches in Saunders Field to improve drainage of floodwater between Buckskin and the start of the River Loddon.

Consultations and plans for the work came to the forefront after areas of Buckskin suffered some of the most extensive property flooding in Hampshire after intensive and prolonged rainfall during the winter of 2013/14.

This overwhelmed the drainage system, including the public foul sewer network, and the county council took steps to convene a multi-agency group to work together to carry out a programme of maintenance improvements while working on the design for a major flood mitigation scheme.

At the time properties in Grampian Way, Exmoor Close, Bodmin Close, Antrim Close, Prescelly Close, Quantock Close and Holyrood Court were evacuated as groundwater flooding devastated the community, with families put into hotels and temporary accommodation.

Councillor Rob Humby, deputy leader at the county council and executive member for economy, transport and environment, said: “I am pleased that this important work is underway, which has been designed to reduce the impact of flooding to properties in the future.

“A great deal of collaborative work has been done by all the organisations involved since the winter of 2014, from designing a permanent scheme and securing funding for it, to clearing drains and ditches and setting up a local flood action group in the community.”

Work on this next phase got underway earlier this month and requires the closure of the entry slip road next to McDonalds for the duration of the works until December.

During construction, signs will be put in place to encourage the use of the main entrance to the Leisure Park.

For more information regarding the alleviation project visit http://hants.gov.uk/landplanningandenvironment/environment/flooding/strategies/scheme-buckskin.