Rainwater pipes misconnected in flood-prone areas

Residents said they were regularly seeing standing water along Waterslade Road for at least nine months

A utility company has found more than 60,000m² of misconnected rainwater pipes in a village vulnerable to flooding.

Anglian Water made the discovery during an investigation into the sewer network serving Yaxley, Stilton, and Folksworth in Cambridgeshire.

The areas sat just a few metres above sea level and were prone to surface water flooding during heavy rainfall.

A spokesperson added wastewater from the misconnected pipes in Yaxley and Stilton would fill approximately 1.2 Olympic-sized swimming pools every hour.

The excess water is regularly flooding the pond behind St Peter's Church on Waterslade Road in Yaxley

The company said the misconnected pipes, where rainwater was wrongly directed into foul sewers, could overwhelm the system, especially during storms.

In some cases, the volume of water entering the network tripled from 2.2 million litres per day to more than six million litres, forcing emergency tanker operations to prevent flooding.

It also found about 1,000 points of infiltration, all of which were putting significant pressure on the network.

Anglian Water said £4m would be invested into the area to reduce the risk of flooding.

"Sewers are not designed to be completely sealed systems, and when extreme rainfall combines with saturated ground, excess water gets into our sewer network through cracks and joins, resulting in the pipes becoming overwhelmed which can cause flooding," a spokesperson said.

"We can tell from these investigations that in Yaxley, a large proportion of the flooding has been caused by infiltration."

In June, it started the second phase of works to re-line more than 730m of the sewer network and patch-line a more than 890m to help reduce infiltration.

It would also seal 29 manhole covers or chambers to prevent surface water ingress.

By April 2026 it hoped to have removed the equivalent of seven Olympic-sized swimming pools of surface water from the network.

As part of its works, temporary traffic measures would be in place through September and October 2025, including road and footpath closures in Yaxley and Stilton.

The company was working with the multi-agency group and the parish council to provide regular updates and ensure long-term flood resilience.