Elford water level

Name: Elford water level (Environment Agency)
Creator: Environment Agency
License: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

River gauge, River Tame, Staffordshire, United Kingdom

Directions

Lower than ever recorded here

Water level

1.18m Down 0.06 m over the last 24 hours

Measured 18 Oct 2026, 12:15 BST (34 min ago)

History

7 days 30 days

Water level

What this means

Low water at Elford: the gauge reads 1.18 m, at a record low.

That is below the previous record low of 1.39 m (November 28, 2025), so the gauge is setting a new low.

It is still going down, by 0.06 m over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. The 30-day range is 1.09 m – 1.47 m.

Autumn rain usually starts to lift rivers again after the summer low.

Compared with the highest and lowest levels the agency has recorded at this gauge. How to read levels

Key numbers

Lowest and highest in 30 days: 1.09 m – 1.47 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months: 1.15 m – 1.31 m
Lowest on record: 1.39 mNovember 28, 2025
Lowest on record: 0.21 m below the lowest level on record

For anglers and canoeists

Low rivers are hard going for paddlers, with exposed gravel and weirs that are awkward to shoot. Salmon and sea trout usually wait for the next spate to run.

Many angling and canoe clubs check gauges like this one before heading out.

About the River Tame

The River Tame is a river in the West Midlands of England, and one of the principal tributaries of the River Trent. The Tame is about 95 km (59 mi) long from the source at Oldbury to its confluence with the Trent near Alrewas, but the main river length of the entire catchment, i.e., the Tame and its main tributaries, is about 285 km (177 mi).

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 4.0 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

18 Sun 12° 4° 0.6 mm Wind 20 km/h

19 Mon 14° 8° 2.4 mm, 88% Wind 22 km/h

20 Tue 12° 7° 9.6 mm, 75% Wind 9 km/h

21 Wed 11° 6° 0.9 mm, 57% Wind 19 km/h

22 Thu 13° 5° 2.0 mm, 42% Wind 16 km/h

23 Fri 9° 6° 16 mm, 63% Wind 24 km/h

24 Sat 9° 4° 0.6 mm, 53% Wind 29 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:38 AM Sunset 06:07 PM Daylight 10 hr, 29 min First quarter 49%

Map

Other gauges on the River Tame

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
HopwasRiver gauge, River Tame	0.46 m	Normal	−0.04 m	5.3 km
TamworthRiver gauge, River Tame	0.83 m	Low	−0.02 m	6.8 km
Lea MarstonRiver gauge, River Tame	0.25 m	Very low	−0.03 m	17 km
Water OrtonRiver gauge, River Tame	0.21 m	Low	−0.01 m	19 km
Brookvale RoadRiver gauge, River Tame	0.49 m	Normal	−0.02 m	22 km
Perry ParkRiver gauge, River Tame	0.40 m	Low	−0.01 m	22 km
BescotRiver gauge, River Tame	0.79 m	Low	−0.02 m	23 km
Sandwell WoodendRiver gauge, River Tame	0.52 m	Normal	−0.02 m	23 km
Park HillRiver gauge, River Tame	0.20 m	Low	−0.01 m	24 km
SheepwashRiver gauge, River Tame	0.28 m	Low	−0.01 m	28 km
PortwoodRiver gauge, River Tame	0.12 m	Low	−0.02 m	86 km
Broomstairs BridgeRiver gauge, River Tame	0.25 m	Normal	−0.01 m	89 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Clifton HallRiver gauge, River Mease	0.15 m	Normal	−0.07 m	7.6 km
HintsRiver gauge, Bourne Brook	1.24 m	High	±0	8.2 km
Kings BromleyRiver gauge, River Trent	0.64 m	Low	−0.08 m	9.2 km
PolesworthRiver gauge, River Anker	0.15 m	Normal	±0	10 km
Hoar CrossRiver gauge, River Swarbourne	0.18 m	Very low	±0	11 km
DrakelowRiver gauge, River Trent	1.08 m	Low	−0.07 m	11 km
Hamstall RidwareRiver gauge, River Blithe	0.11 m	Normal	±0	12 km

Questions and answers

What is the lowest level on record at Elford?

The lowest reading on record is 1.39 m (November 28, 2025).

Is the river level the same as the depth of the water?

No. The reading is measured from a fixed zero mark at the gauge, so 1.18 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Elford today?

On 18 Oct 2026, 12:15 BST, the water level was 1.18 m. Down 0.06 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Elford rising or falling?

Down 0.06 m over the last 24 hours. Steady over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Elford normal?

Lower than ever recorded here. Compared with the highest and lowest levels the agency has recorded at this gauge.

How often is this data updated?

The Environment Agency publishes a new reading every 15 minutes. This page refreshes within minutes of each update.

Where does this data come from?

The values come directly from the Environment Agency, the official operator of this gauge, and are published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. We do not estimate or model live values.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: Environment Agency
Station code: ea:4805 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 52.69070, -1.72286 (WGS84)
Vertical datum: station datum
Update interval: every 15 minutes
Licence: Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Environment Agency data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0

Published series

Parameter	Last value	Time (UTC)	Quality
Water level	1.18 m	2026-10-18 11:15	Provisional

Download

Embed this gauge

Add a live card for this gauge to your website. It updates on its own and links back here.

<iframe src="https://nivelmap.com/embed/3904?lang=en" width="360" height="230" style="border:0;max-width:100%" loading="lazy" title="Elford water level"></iframe>

How to cite

Environment Agency: Elford (ea:4805). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/staffordshire/elford

How we check values

Each reading is stored as published. We hold back values that jump faster than physically plausible and show the measurement time with every value.

Readings are provisional, can be delayed or wrong and are not a flood warning. Read the disclaimer