Towns across England and Wales already beleaguered by flooding have been warned to expect as much as a month’s worth of rain in the coming days, as experts say that temporary defences should have been installed earlier.

Last night, more than 100 flood warnings were in place across Britain, with six areas told that there is a threat to life. The downpour forecast for the next 24 hours could be upgraded to Storm Ellen as it develops over the Atlantic.

The Environment Agency has installed more than 6km of temporary flood barriers across the country protecting nearly 25,000 properties from the ongoing impacts of Storm Dennis.

All of them have held firm so far, but there have been complaints that they are too little too late.

Craig Whittaker, Tory MP for Calder Valley, said his constituency had been "really badly" affected, with 1,187 properties flooded.

"It's the third time in seven-and-a-half years that this has happened to us,” he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Last night, the Environment Agency told the Telegraph that in Calder Valley temporary defences had been deployed in and around Mytholmroyd. But it said the high levels of rainfall were "the main driving force behind the flooding."

“There has been a failure of planning,” said Simon Gaskell, a managing consultant at engineering and environmental consultancy company Ramboll.

“There needed to be more of an action plan in place, and there has been a lack of communication between the Environment Agency and people with local knowledge.