What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I supported the work of one of Devon County Council’s Flood and Coastal Risk Engineers by providing bespoke surface water drainage advice, in respect of major planning applications, to eleven Planning Authorities in Devon. I fulfilled this statutory duty by critically reviewing the technical aspects of Flood Risk Assessments and engineering drawings, using my knowledge of environmental science, engineering and mathematics, supported by specialist computer software. Whilst preparing this advice, I was responsible for liaising with the Flood and Coastal Risk Officers within the Team, alongside staff from other Risk Management Authorities, to identify any local flood risk issues which could impact a development.

Providing this advice often involved attending site and office meetings, at which, if I was the principal officer, I was responsible for ensuring that a technically viable and sustainable surface water drainage management plan was negotiated and secured, even where significant environmental or financial constraints to development existed.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

Whilst providing bespoke advice to Local Planning Authorities, I was able to deploy much of my knowledge gained throughout my degree, ultimately ensuring that all new major developments throughout Devon employed sustainable measures to manage surface water flood risk.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I was able to provide support to one of the Flood and Coastal Risk Management Team’s new statutory duties, ensuring that the surface water drainage aspects of all new major developments across Devon were scrutinised in detail.