Britain's biggest supplier had initially sought a 44% rise to bills across the five-year period to 2030 - but was it is now proposing a 52% increase. That would place the average bill at around £696, if the firm is given extra spending allowances by the regulator OFWAT. The company says the extra money is needed for investment in the sewer network and other improvements.
But the announcement has been met with outrage from communities who have spent months – and in some cases, years – dealing with sewage discharges from Thames Water. “Personally, I though it was a joke," said Carol Kennedy, who has lived in Hampstead Norreys, Berkshire, for more than 15 years. "It’s ridiculous.
They have these shareholders they are paying all this money to." Earlier in the year, residents in the village reported cars splashing people with sewage that was overflowing onto pavements in Water Street. The situation prompted fed-up residents to put up a sign that gave the road a new name – “Sewage Street.
” Carol said: “We have had sewage in our garden - but they have dealt with that quite quick. Its happened on several occasions. “In some ways Thames Water have been very responsive - and in some ways they have been in useless.
” Carol and other residents are also concerned about sewage being discharged into the nearby Pang waterway – a concern that is echoed by communities across the region. The banks along the River Misbourne in Chalton St Giles look like “a disaster area�.