Image description: Sewage outflow pipe pouring out into a river. Photo by Jacob Antony on Unsplash

Wessex Water has been ordered to pay £11m over wastewater failures and told to spend it on improvements to reduce sewage spills and other measures.

The company reportedly proposed the package to avoid a £10m penalty after an Ofwat investigation found it had failed to adequately maintain and upgrade its wastewater network.

Wessex Water and Ofwat claim the deal would mean the money would be used for the benefit of its customers and the local environment, rather than going to HM Treasury. The package includes upgrades to reduce spills at storm overflow sites, extra monitoring equipment, and help for customers better manage rainwater at their properties.

Earlier this year the company raised its bills by an average of 20%, however Ofwat says Wessex Water and its shareholders will fund the total enforcement package and it will not be paid by customers or added to bills.

When will the package be implemented?

A public consultation will now be held on the agreement before Ofwat makes its final decision to give it the go-ahead.

Some campaigners have voiced scepticism the deal would have much impact. Clean water campaigner and wild swimmer Johnny Palmer told the BBC he disputes “it’s not an investment, they are just being told to do the things that we pay them to do so I challenge the concept of investment entirely.”

Wessex Water has invested more than £150 million since 2020 on upgrading storm overflows in its region and said it was already planning investment of £300m in its sewerage infrastructure by 2030. There remain further measures that the company needs to take to ensure that it is fully compliant which Ofwat says it will continue to closely monitor.