A major output of the Children, Young People and Flooding project is the development of the Flood Snakes & Ladders game, which takes participants on a flood journey from a child’s perspective. The game uses real data from our research (quotes, photographs, drawings and 3D models) to explore what it is like to experience and recover from flooding. It can be played either online (1-4 players) or ‘live’ in a workshop setting.

Go to our dedicated Flood Snakes & Ladders website for more information and to play the game: www.lancaster.ac.uk/floodsnakesandladders   

Flood Snakes & Ladders is a versatile training tool that highlights the different ways that social research data can be used to engage with the policy and practice of flood risk reduction, preparedness and emergency management. It can be used in a variety of situations such as:

• With emergency planners – to highlight the issues that they might wish to think about when planning recovery
• With policymakers – to help them experience how their policies are played out on the ground
• With public and private sector practitioners involved in disaster recovery – for example, insurers, loss adjusters, damage management professionals, local government workers, teachers, health professionals – to highlight good and bad practice and stimulate debate on the best ways to manage recovery
• With students – to help them explore the disaster recovery process, to illustrate the potential consequences of climate change and as the basis for exploring issues of flood preparedness and response
• The game also makes an excellent ‘ice-breaker’ for courses dealing with a wide range of subjects – from hazard and disaster management to emergency planning and understanding the social impacts of climate change. While flooding is the case study used, the game shines a light on issues generic to disaster preparedness, experience and recovery