Holy Brook and the Kennet at Southcote Mill "acted as a barrier until the rising waters backing up in the flood plain fields finally breached". Network Rail's plans for electrification of the Great Western Main Line include provision for flood defences where the line is in proximity to the Holy Brook. The elevation of Southcote ranges from almost in the north-west extreme of the ward (SRTM data records this as , Ordnance Survey as ) to approximately in the floodplains north and south of the Kennet. Geology The geology of Southcote includes the Reading Formation—rock strata in the Lambeth Group consisting of clay, silt and sand formed in the Palaeogene period. Bedrock in Southcote is also formed of chalk, with geological surveys also finding flint samples. A map produced by the Geological Survey of Great Britain in 1860 identifies the area as being predominantly Plastic Clay (now known as the Lambeth Group) and chalk north of the river, with flint and gravel samples typical of the Bagshot Formation south of the Kennet. More specifically, the 2000 survey showed different types of gravel, including Winter Hill (variably clayey and sandy), Lynch Hill (sand and gravel with lenses of silt, clay or peat), and head (a polymict deposit usually formed by periglacial solifluction or gelifluction). The survey also identified that much of the land south of the Kennet is "infilled" or "worked" ground; this area was formerly gravel pits and now used for leisure. The British Geological Survey defines infilled ground as "areas where the ground has been cut away then wholly or partially backfilled" and worked ground as "areas where the ground has been cut away such as quarries and road cuttings". Built environment The settlement is concentrated to the south of the Bath Road (A4). Southcote consists substantially of planned post-war housing, much of which is Wates-constructed prefabricated housing. The majority of dwellings are semi-detached, which account for 37.7% of all residences. 29.1% of dwellings are flats, and 23.5% are terraces. Reading's first high-rise dwellings—three eight-storey tower blocks—were built in Southcote in the late 1950s. Home ownership in Southcote is 58.3%, which is average for the Reading area. Use of social housing is above the local average at 29.2%. Southcote's main thoroughfare is Southcote Lane which runs east–west through the area, connecting Southcote to Fords Farm (to the west) and Coley (to the east). Southcote is centred around Coronation Square,