The River Chelt is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

's largest river, the Severn

River Severn

The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...

. The Chelt flows through the western edge of the Cotswolds

Cotswolds

The Cotswolds are a range of hills in west-central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, an area across and long. The area has been designated as the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...

 and the town of Cheltenham

Cheltenham

Cheltenham , also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds in the South-West region of England. It is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horse racing, the Gold Cup, the main event of the Cheltenham Festival held...

, before its confluence with the river Severn at Wainlodes Hill. There were a number of mills alongside the river in the west of Cheltenham.

Much of the river itself flows underground through the centre of the town of Cheltenham, and whilst it generally flows unseen it has posed serious threat to many regions of the town. The river flooded areas of Cheltenham in 1979, and a controversial flood prevention scheme was implemented shortly after the year 2000 in order to prevent future flooding. This flood prevention scheme was to be put to the test for the first time in the Summer 2007 Floods

2007 United Kingdom floods

The 2007 United Kingdom floods were a series of destructive floods that occurred in various areas across the country during the summer of 2007. The most severe floods occurred across Northern Ireland on 12 June; East Yorkshire and The Midlands on 15 June; Yorkshire, The Midlands, Gloucestershire,...

and unfortunately did not take the burden and many areas of the town were flooded substantially.