BUSINESS PROFILE

CEO of FPS Group

Words Alastair James

Simon Crowther’s passion for flooding started when his family home in Nottinghamshire was flooded five times in the summer of 2007. Being forced to live elsewhere for nine months led Crowther to start looking into how flood damage could be mitigated. He now runs the Flood Protection Solutions Group (FPS), which assesses and manages flood risks. Here he tells Attitude how things have changed since 2007 and how LGBTQ+ representation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics could be improved upon.

What happened in 2007?

When it first happened, it sounds strange, but as a 13-year-old it was fascinating because it was something I’d never seen before. We weren’t aware of the dangers, and we didn’t imagine the house was at risk. As the water got deeper, the community rallied together; it was a full-on Blitz spirit. The hardest time is afterwards when the waters have receded, and the media has gone, and you’re left in your cold and wet home with your ruined belongings. We thought we’d be back to normal within a week, but it was nine months out of the house. Kitchen out, floors dug up; there was huge disruption. The insurance claim was six figures.

What kind of impact did that have?

Many people found they couldn’t sleep because when it rained, they were terrified it would happen again. The impact of flooding on mental health is huge and was often overlooked. Fortunately, acknowledgement of the mental health impacts of flooding has become more widespread and insurers have begun allocating funding towards counselling as part of pay-outs. Lately, studies into the environmental and social impacts have estimated that four tons of carbon dioxide are released just through the drying and reinstatement process after a flood.