The Nursery Road site in Birmingham involved the redevelopment of a commercial plot into a 24-apartment scheme with landscaped decking and below-ground parking. The existing site was around 95% impermeable, while the building footprint left no practical opportunity for conventional subterranean attenuation below the main structure. These constraints required a drainage strategy that could replicate greenfield runoff as closely as possible while fitting within a dense urban layout.

Civia was appointed as drainage engineer to assess the site and develop a sustainable drainage strategy. Using SuDS assessment, topographical information and hydraulic modelling, we designed a system incorporating green roofs, rainwater gardens, swale-aggregate attenuation and shallow permeable paving to delay and reduce discharge to the adjacent sewer network. By combining green infrastructure with carefully coordinated attenuation, the scheme achieved a sustainable drainage outcome within a highly constrained city-centre development.