Houghton water level

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

River gauge, River Dearne, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Directions

Normal for mid-October

Water level

0.16m Down 0.08 m over the last 24 hours

Measured 20 Oct 2026, 08:15 BST (38 min ago)

History

7 days 30 days 1 year Years compared

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %) Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range

What this means

Water levels are unremarkable at Houghton, where the gauge shows 0.16 m.

The median for mid-October is 0.16 m, based on 21 years of readings, and the gauge is right on it. On the same day last year the reading was 0.20 m, a difference of −0.04 m.

It is still going down, by 0.08 m over the past 24 hours. The 30-day range is 0.10 m – 0.31 m.

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

Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date: 0.16 m0.00 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date: 0.12 m – 0.29 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range: 0.11 m – 1.70 m
Same day last year: 0.20 m−0.04 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days: 0.10 m – 0.31 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months: 0.12 m – 0.93 m
Highest on record: 2.11 mJune 26, 2007
Lowest on record: 0.06 mSeptember 10, 1999

For anglers and canoeists

This is an ordinary level for the river: most put-ins, beats and weirs behave as they usually do.

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

About the River Dearne

The River Dearne in South Yorkshire, England flows roughly east for more than 30 kilometres (19 mi), from its source just inside West Yorkshire. It flows through Denby Dale, Clayton West, Haigh, Darton, Barnsley, Darfield, Wath upon Dearne, Bolton on Dearne, Adwick upon Dearne and Mexborough to its confluence with the River Don at Denaby Main. Its main tributary is the River Dove, which joins it at Darfield. The river was one of those affected by the 2007 United Kingdom floods.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 8.9 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

20 Tue 12° 10° 8.9 mm, 100% Wind 16 km/h

21 Wed 11° 8° 30 mm, 87% Wind 37 km/h

22 Thu 11° 6° 0.3 mm, 44% Wind 15 km/h

23 Fri 13° 8° 14 mm, 80% Wind 28 km/h

24 Sat 11° 8° 2.6 mm, 86% Wind 27 km/h

25 Sun 15° 10° 1.6 mm, 63% Wind 27 km/h

26 Mon 18° 8° 3.3 mm, 45% Wind 24 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:42 AM Sunset 06:00 PM Daylight 10 hr, 18 min First quarter 66%

Map

Other gauges on the River Dearne

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Darfield BridgeRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.26 m	Very low	−0.08 m	0.8 km
Cundy CrossRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.10 m	Low	−0.08 m	4.7 km
Bolton BridgeRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.39 m	Normal	−0.01 m	5.1 km
AdwickRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.27 m	Normal	−0.01 m	6.7 km
BarnsleyRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.20 m	Normal	−0.09 m	7.1 km
DartonRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.27 m	Very low	−0.02 m	11 km
Denby Dale Norman RoadRiver gauge, River Dearne	0.22 m	Low	−0.01 m	19 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Manvers Old Moor LaneRiver gauge, Knoll Beck	0.38 m	Low	−0.10 m	3.4 km
Wath upon DearneRiver gauge, Brook Dike	0.10 m	Very low	−0.03 m	4.6 km
WorsbroughRiver gauge, River Dove	0.07 m	Low	−0.07 m	7.1 km
South ElmsallRiver gauge, Ea Beck	0.12 m	Normal	−0.12 m	8.0 km
Kilnhurst LowerRiver gauge, River Don	0.59 m	Normal	−0.33 m	8.9 km

Questions and answers

Is the River Dearne at Houghton higher than last year?

No, it is 0.04 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.20 m.

What is a normal level for the River Dearne at Houghton in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.16 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.12 m and 0.29 m, based on 21 years of records.

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 0.16 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Houghton today?

On 20 Oct 2026, 08:15 BST, the water level was 0.16 m. Down 0.08 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Houghton rising or falling?

Down 0.08 m over the last 24 hours. Up 0.05 m over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Houghton normal?

Normal for mid-October. Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year.

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Houghton?

The highest level on record is 2.11 m on June 26, 2007. The lowest is 0.06 m on September 10, 1999.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: Environment Agency
Station code: ea:L0807 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 53.54357, -1.36977 (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	0.16 m	2026-10-20 07:15	Provisional

Download

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<iframe src="https://nivelmap.com/embed/1200?lang=en" width="360" height="230" style="border:0;max-width:100%" loading="lazy" title="Houghton water level"></iframe>

How to cite

Environment Agency: Houghton (ea:L0807). Accessed October 20, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/south-yorkshire/houghton

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