A town council is taking matters into its own hands to make sure residents are as protected as they can be against flooding this winter.

Keswick Town Council has voted to apply for a permit which would allow it to have gravel removed from the River Greta by the end of September if the work is not done by another body.

A town council meeting heard that the Environment Agency had stated its intention to start work in early September remove the gravel build up on the corner of Crosthwaite Road and High Hill.

But Councillor David Burn said he was concerned that, if the work did not happen as planned, the opportunity to address the situation by the end of September - the point after which work cannot be done in the river - would be missed for this year.

Coun Burn explained that it would take four weeks to secure a permit, and a contractor would need two weeks' notice once that was in place.

The council agreed to pay £170 for a permit so that, if the Environment Agency did not do the work as planned, it could hire Thomas Armstrong to do the work on behalf of the town.