Oxford University researchers have won £300,000 of funding to improve weather predictions and give residents better warning that their homes could be flooded.

The research will help hydrologists and civil engineers take appropriate measures to protect buildings and people from the devastating effects of extreme floods.

Parts of Banbury were hit by severe flooding in Easter 1998, while Oxford suffered in 2000 and 2003, with many homes flooded out.

Houses in Botley, Oxford, and streets in Kidlington were also flooded when flash floods hit the county in July.

The new research project at Oxford University is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council.

Dr Patrick McSharry, from the university's department of engineering science, said: "What we are doing is bringing together, for the first time, three different areas of science - mathematics, supercomputer weather prediction, and historical data.

"This helps us to improve the predictions we can make, based on data that has already been collected.

"To do this, we are using the vast computing power provided by new weather models."

The new mathematical prediction techniques to be used in the study will be developed in collaboration with researchers at Oxford's Said Business School, who were originally looking to improve models for forecasting electricity demand.

The techniques will be used in conjunction with the output from a state-of-the-art supercomputer weather model at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.

Data will come from the largest record of historical data of UK rainfall patterns, which date back as far as 1860.

It will be the first time that researchers have been given access to this vast amount of data in digital form.

Dr Harvey Rodda, of Hydro-GIS Ltd, who is providing the data, said: "Accurate rainfall predictions are needed as part of the information used to design measures to protect houses built in areas which are most vulnerable to flooding."

He added: "The connection between rain and flooding is complicated.

"It is not enough just to predict rainfall depth, but the prediction must also say how likely rain is at any time, which means calculating the probability of rainfall.

"Another element is the pattern of rainfall: for example, for the severe floods in Boscastle in 2004 and those on the Thames in 2003, the causes and pattern of rainfall were different, so scientists need to know what pattern of rainfall caused the flooding."

The research will also produce an automatic system for discovering the most likely pattern in the predicted rainfalls.

The new prediction system and data will be freely available over the Internet for use by hydrologists, civil engineers, Government policy-makers and researchers.

TORRENTIAL rain brought flash floods to parts of Oxfordshire yesterday, while one man was hospitalised after a lightning strike.

Oxford and Witney were among the areas worst hit by rain, as the Met Office issued a temporary severe weather warning.

In Oxford, Becket Street, pictured, flooded, while part of the B4022 through Witney was left under 10 inches of water.

A 22-year-old man was left stunned after a lightning strike yesterday as he accompanied 700 children from King Alfred's School, Wantage, on a sponsored walk on The Ridgeway. The walk was immediately called off.

Ambulance service spokeswoman Helen Robinson said the man was left stunned after the lightning struck him, or the ground close by.

He was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, for a check-up. Mrs Robinson said: "He was conscious and breathing. It was a mild strike. He was quite lucky."