MP backs pleas from Warwickshire village where sewage floods roads and its like ‘living in medieval street’

RESIDENTS of a Warwickshire village told how human waste can flow in the streets during a crunch meeting to try to resolve their flooding issues.

Around 80 residents were at Cherington Village Hall on Friday (14th March) to hear about work being done to improve water storage and sewage transportation in the area.

The meeting was led by Stratford MP Manuela Perteghella, and included a panel of representatives from Severn Trent Water, Warwickshire County Council and Stratford District Council.

The issue of sewage flooding the streets of Cherington is not new. Residents have spoken to the Herald in the past and reported similar issues since at least 2021.

Residents at the meeting spoke of having sewage water filling up the streets of the village, instances of human waste and condoms floating down the roads, and having to clean sewage waste from dogs’ paws after walks.

James Webb, a networks manager at Severn Trent, fielded questions from frustrated residents, in particular about the size of water tanks used by the company to store waste water, including the one by the road that leads to the old Cherington Mill.

Mr Webb said: “When it was put in, before the shaft tank back in 2001, they were going to use this system as a holding tank. It’s designed to fill up and create space. That was inadequate back then, but upsizing the sewer in the short term isn’t the answer because of the form and the gravity and how it works. If that happens, all you’ll have is a flat sewer network and it’ll just continue to fill up. It’s about processing it and making it move faster away to where it needs to be.

“You can have all the biggest pipes in the world, but if the treatment works isn’t processing and getting rid of the stuff that’s coming through quick enough, those pipes are going to continue to fill up anyway.

“It’s about identifying [the solution], and I understand that it’s taking a long time. We’re talking about large amounts of money for investment, which is not a big problem. It’s not about the money itself, it’s about making sure that we get it right. It has to be done right, it has to be done to the highest standards to make sure that we don't just throw your money away.”

There was an air of frustration from some in the village hall who had felt that the issue was not being sorted quickly enough by authorities and they are left facing sewage overflows when the system cannot cope with peak times and heavy rainfall.

One resident, who said she lived in one of the last houses before arriving at the former mill building, said: “It’s
like living in a medieval street. You might as well chuck it straight out of the window. It’s disgusting. You're not curing it at all, because it's still building up there.”

Cllr Sarah Whalley-Hoggins (Con) represents Brailes and Compton on Stratford District Council. As the meeting unfolded she spoke of her frustrations and believed the process of fixing the issue wasn’t moving quickly enough.

“I’m finding it really difficult to sit here and listen to slow progress,” she said. “We’ve still got sewage going into the river. We’ve still got faeces and prophylactics floating down. It is simply unacceptable that there has not been any proper or decent progress in permanently rectifying this.

“We need a sewage system that works, that does not pollute the River Stour. I am appalled that you’ve come here today with nothing having been rectified.”

Measures to prevent flooding were suggested, including floodgates, which some residents in the village have. One resident told her story of her own floodgates. She said: “I have floodgates, and I find them extraordinarily difficult to use, and my husband has died. I don’t want to have to move house because the gates are too difficult. There aren’t many able-bodied people living there that can help you.”

County councillor Jo Barker (Con, Shipston) assured the resident that a process was being put in place to help out in flooding emergencies.

She said: “We are putting together the action plans that are necessary in those emergencies. Where we have people like you who can’t put their flood barriers in, you will be on those resilience lists once we've got them together.

“It will rely on volunteers because in a lot of places the floods rise so quickly. It just needs people to be there, and we’re working on that system as well.”

Following the meeting, Dr Perteghella (Lib Dem) said: “The ongoing sewage and flooding issues are completely unacceptable. I am pleased that we now have at least some progress on tackling the capacity of the treatment works and we have asked for an update in three months’ time.

“It was made clear to Severn Trent Water that the status quo of consistently prioritising shareholder profits over the needs of its customers is not acceptable, and that they now need to invest in infrastructure so that communities do
not suffer anymore.”