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Bucknall water level

River gauge, River Trent, Staffordshire, United Kingdom

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Right now

Low for mid-October

Water level

0.08m Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours

0 1 2 Highest onrecord 2.51 m Lowest on record 0.03 m

History

History
0.10.20.30.4mOct 12Oct 13Oct 15Oct 17Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.10.20.30.4mOct 12Oct 15Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.10.20.30.4mSep 19Sep 26Oct 4Oct 11Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.10.20.30.4mSep 19Oct 4Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.20.40.6mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.20.40.6mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.20.40.6mJanMarMayJulSepNov20260.20.40.6mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

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

What this means

Low water at Bucknall: the gauge reads 0.08 m, below normal for mid-October.

The median for mid-October is 0.12 m, based on 21 years of readings, so the river level is 0.05 m below typical. On the same day last year the reading was 0.24 m, a difference of −0.16 m.

It is still going down, by 0.01 m over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. The 30-day range is 0.06 m – 0.21 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
0.12 m0.05 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.07 m – 0.24 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.07 m – 0.39 m
Same day last year
0.24 m−0.16 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.06 m – 0.21 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.05 m – 0.62 m
Highest on record
2.51 mAugust 23, 1987
Lowest on record
0.03 mFebruary 27, 1986

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 Trent

River Trent

The Trent, the third-longest river in the United Kingdom, has its source in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It drains the North Midlands, eventually flowing into the Humber Estuary. The river is known for dramatic flooding after storms and spring snowmelt, which in the past have often caused its course to change.

Read more on Wikipedia

Text and image from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 8.4 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

18 Sun 12° 7° 0.2 mm Wind 17 km/h
19 Mon 13° 8° 1.1 mm, 100% Wind 21 km/h
20 Tue 12° 8° 15 mm, 92% Wind 10 km/h
21 Wed 10° 2° 6.9 mm, 63% Wind 30 km/h
22 Thu 10° 0° 0.3 mm, 54% Wind 14 km/h
23 Fri 9° 6° 29 mm, 86% Wind 38 km/h
24 Sat 11° 5° 5.2 mm, 54% Wind 23 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:42 AM Sunset 06:06 PM Daylight 10 hr, 24 min First quarter 56%

Map

Other gauges on the River Trent

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Hanford BridgeRiver gauge, River Trent 0.42 m Normal −0.01 m 4.7 km
KnypersleyRiver gauge, River Trent 0.43 m Normal +0.01 m 7.4 km
DarlastonRiver gauge, River Trent 0.79 m Normal −0.01 m 11 km
Great HaywoodRiver gauge, River Trent 0.84 m Normal −0.01 m 26 km
Kings BromleyRiver gauge, River Trent 0.61 m Low −0.03 m 38 km
DrakelowRiver gauge, River Trent 1.04 m Low −0.03 m 43 km
WillingtonRiver gauge, River Trent 0.83 m Low −0.03 m 44 km
ShardlowRiver gauge, River Trent 0.47 m Normal −0.03 m 58 km
Clifton BridgeRiver gauge, River Trent 0.98 m Normal ±0 67 km
ColwickRiver gauge, River Trent 1.07 m Low +0.02 m 73 km
FarndonRiver gauge, River Trent 0.31 m Normal ±0 88 km
North MuskhamRiver gauge, River Trent 0.83 m Low −0.02 m 92 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Liverpool Road, Stoke-On-TrentRiver gauge, Fowlea Brook 0.03 m Low ±0 1.9 km
Newcastle Under LymeRiver gauge, Lyme Brook 0.21 m Normal ±0 4.6 km
Brookhouse FarmRiver gauge, Ford Green Brook 0.21 m Normal ±0 7.5 km
Blythe BridgeRiver gauge, River Blithe 0.32 m Normal +0.02 m 7.9 km
Flint MillRiver gauge, River Churnet 0.04 m Low ±0 10 km
WallgrangeRiver gauge, Endon Brook 0.08 m Very low −0.01 m 10 km
Basford BridgeRiver gauge, River Churnet 0.24 m Low ±0 10 km

Questions and answers

Is the River Trent at Bucknall higher than last year?

No, it is 0.16 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.24 m.

What is a normal level for the River Trent at Bucknall in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.12 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.07 m and 0.24 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 0.08 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Bucknall today?

On 19 Oct 2026, 04:45 BST, the water level was 0.08 m. Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Bucknall rising or falling?

Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours. Steady over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Bucknall normal?

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

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Bucknall?

The highest level on record is 2.51 m on August 23, 1987. The lowest is 0.03 m on February 27, 1986.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:4040 (Agency page)
Coordinates
53.01757, -2.16213 (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

ParameterLast valueTime (UTC)Quality
Water level 0.08 m 2026-10-19 03:45 Provisional

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Bucknall (ea:4040). Accessed October 19, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/staffordshire/bucknall

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.