The FloodAction Coalition, a new cross-sector partnership convened by The Conduit and chaired by Aviva, has been launched to mobilize up to £1 billion of investment in nature-based solutions to protect people, places, and infrastructure from flood and drought in the UK. Flooding is the UK’s fastest-growing climate risk, with over 5.7 million properties and one-third of critical infrastructure at risk, resulting in £2.4 billion in direct damages and £6 billion in indirect losses each year.
The coalition aims to make Natural Flood Management (NFM) a core part of the UK’s resilience strategy by aligning capital, land, and policy to create a framework that transforms reduced flood and drought risk into an investable asset class. The standardized investment models will enable the co-financing of catchment-scale projects, such as restoring wetlands, reconnecting rivers with floodplains, and improving soil health, which will not only reduce flood peaks and store water during droughts but also support biodiversity, food security, and rural jobs.
The initiative has received support from the UK government, with Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds welcoming the launch of the FloodAction Coalition and its commitment to developing nature-based projects that will help deliver sustainable infrastructure for the future. The coalition aims to have a £150 million investment pipeline by 2026, scaling to £1 billion by 2028, which aligns with the government’s £8 billion flood-defence programme and supports national adaptation priorities.
The founding members of the coalition include The National Trust, The Crown Estate, National Highways, and UBS, among others. Claudine Blamey, Chief Sustainability Officer at Aviva and Chair of FloodAction Coalition, emphasized the importance of Natural Flood Management in reducing the impacts of flooding, which is set to increase by over a quarter in England alone. Paul van Zyl, Co-founder of The Conduit, highlighted the coalition as a powerful example of cross-sector collaboration, turning the UK’s greatest climate risk into a resilience market that protects homes, supports livelihoods, and restores nature at scale.