A WATER supply company is being forced to fund an £11million enforcement package after it failed to "operate, maintain and upgrade" its wastewater network.
Ofwat has confirmed that Wessex Water will fund the package, following a proposed decision on November 11 and a 21 day consultation period following this.
Ofwat said the company "failed to operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater network adequately to ensure that they could cope with the flows of sewage and wastewater".
The water regulation authority says the investment will be paid for by the company, and not by "shareholders or through customer bills".
Lynn Parker, senior director for enforcement at Ofwat, said: "We are pleased with the conclusion of Wessex Water’s case.
"This is the sixth case completed in our wider wastewater investigation, which during 2025 has resulted in Ofwat securing £250m in fines and enforcement packages.
"These cases are a crucial part of holding water companies to account and driving the transformation of the water sector that the public wants to see.”
Wessex Water said they "regret" the impact their wastewater performance has had on customers and the environment, and said that once the issues at their treatment sites were found, they were "quick" to fix them.
A spokesperson for the company said: "But we do agree that there is much more to do – particularly in areas where groundwater enters the sewerage network and can result in overflows operating long after rainfall events."
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The enforcement package includes:
- Helping private landowners to seal their sewer pipes to prevent unnecessary groundwater reaching Wessex Water's network
- Reducing spills at specific storm overflows through investment which would have otherwise occurred beyond 2030
- Installing additional monitoring equipment to better enable management of flows at treatment works and storm overflows
- Helping customers to sustainably manage rainwater at their properties
A Wessex Water spokesperson added that the proposals will "tackle the problem directly", helping to seal pipes on private land, as well as "additional monitoring and initiatives like water butts and rain gardens".
The spokesperson said: “Looking ahead, we are planning a step change in the maintenance of our sewerage infrastructure with investment of £300 million in this area by 2030, with expansions to some of our key waste treatment sites either already underway or completed.
“We also continue to encourage sustainable rainwater management, ensuring rain is returned to the environment near where it falls rather than entering the sewer system.”
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