Would this put you off buying a home here?

[IHateWasps]

I'm planning a move in the next year or so. My street which is a nice street has a stream running alongside it. I hadn't thought of it as an issue but a friend said it might put viewers with families off because of the danger.

I appreciate that it's a real risk but we have a lot of families in the street, some with very young children. It's a nice quiet street that's next to woodland and farmland.

Would it stop you from buying a home here?

I’d have to see if- I know two roads locally with streams, one I wouldn’t live near at all (from a safety perspective and because it stinks!)

What's the flood risk?

No it wouldn't stop me. Depending on the ages of the kids it's a teaching opportunity surely? If they're young enough to fall in they should be supervised and if they're old enough to be playing out unsupervised then need water safety education.

When I was young we lived quite near a level crossing and were surrounded by lots of fields with livestock and were educated from a young age about the dangers of both. Where I live now all kids have water safety training from a young age as we're right on the coast.

The only reason I would be put off is the chance of future development because as much as woodland and farmland sounds great, could it be developed on in the future. The actual stream would not bother me unless there was no fence at the end of the garden.

Depends on the flood risk but generally no

We have a stream in our garden but due to distance and it’s height v the house there is no heightened flood risk. However it might have put me off if I had a small kid.

If there was a flood risk - yes
Otherwise, no

Low flood risk and measures have been built in to protect the place. As far as I can see and have found from local papers, the street and those round about it have never flooded(at least in the fifty years that a neighbour has been here. Even though we're also ten minutes from a canal and river.

Sounds lovely! I have small children and would live somewhere like that.

Wouldn't put me off. In fact it sounds lovely.

I grew up with a wood and stream at the end of the garden and would love that for my kids.

Wouldn't bother me. Whilst they're little they're attached to me or in a buggy, if they're old enough to be there alone and thus at risk of drowning, they can also walk in front of a car or hey hot by a falling branch

Only if there was flood risk. We have small dc and are looking for a house with a stream as it’s lovely for playing and swimming if deep enough.

Have you checked the flood risk on the environment Agency pages on direct.gov? I know you’ve said there are defences in place, but some insurers also look at the undefended risk. If you message me thr postcode, I’ll have a look at the recurved flood history for you.

(I work for the EA in flood risk management. I know what I am taking about, I’m nit scaremongering).

No, sounds lovely. We live four doors up from a stream and ds benefitted from seeing ducks and herons, playing pooh sticks and about once a year, the excitement of the road being closed because the water had come up over the road.

It would put me off, flood risk, rats, young kids visiting

BikeRunSki I have checked that too thank you. That's very kind of you. I did quite a bit of research before moving here six years ago, especially as I was concerned about the flood risk and getting insurance but luckily I didn't have any trouble.

No rat trouble here thankfully. I've never seen one.

Thank you all for your opinions. It's very helpful and it's nice to know that many people wouldn't be bothered by the stream. The area being semi-rural tends to be what attracts people here and the views are nice but I can understand how some people with young children would see it as a potential death trap.

With young children EVERYTHING is a potential death trap though. Don't most accidents happen in the house?

And don't forget that not everyone looking at your house will have very young children. Families with older children may well love it too!

I'd love to live in a street with a stream - including when my DCs were tiny. Apart from the flood risk which I'd look into it wouldn't put me off at all.

A stream is great when you have kids over toddler age. As long as it is a stream, not something faster flowing or deep?
My friend lives beside a river that is slow moving and shallow with a lovely gravel/stone bar and her two primary aged daughters spend all summer splashing around in it.

The garden gate to it is closed when it's winter or has been raining though when the river naturally rises.

To me, it's a selling point for sure if it's in a pretty setting.

Goodness, would not put me off.

We lived in the sticks and had streams, canals,woods and farmland all around us. At the ages of six and seven we would go for walks, build dens in the woods and dams in the river. We used to swim in the pools we created then break the dams and swim in the current. In school holidays we would go off after breakfast then back for lunch before going off again in the afternoon. It was like going to work...! But we knew the dangers and were taught what risks were acceptable and which were not (and some of that was trial and error). We also knew how to swim.

Probably because of flood risk rather than safety. Assuming you can't access it via your garden safety shouldn't be an issue.

With young children EVERYTHING is a potential death trap though. Don't most accidents happen in the house?

And don't forget that not everyone looking at your house will have very young children. Families with older children may well love it too!

Good point. It could attract families with older children too.

I feel a little more reassured now. Thank you for all of your opinions.