Exmouth sea swimmer sues water firm over sewage spills

Jo Bateman says she has been unable to swim on many occasions due to the frequent sewage spills on the beach

A keen sea swimmer has taken legal action against South West Water (SWW) for dumping sewage into the sea near her home.

Jo Bateman, 62, from Exmouth in Devon, said swimming benefits her physical and mental health.

However, she added she had been unable to swim on many occasions due to the frequent sewage spills on the beach.

SWW said it was investing £38m to reduce spills at Exmouth and took its responsibilities "very seriously".

Retired physiotherapist Ms Bateman claimed pollution of the Exmouth sea has led to a "loss of amenity" and she was taking the matter to the small claims court.

"The sea is an amenity that is available to all of us and every single one of us has the right to swim in that sea as often as we like," she said.

"I've had that choice taken away from me."

'Not about money'

She moved from the Midlands to Exmouth five years ago so she could be by the sea, she said.

"That's when I started swimming in the sea and was absolutely bitten by the bug," she said.

"The mental health benefits in terms of stress reduction mood enhancing are huge."

But her daily swims were being interrupted by sewage spills, with a Surfers Against Sewage app alerting her to spills.

Court action was the "only option open to me", she said.

It cost her £50 to make the claim and she is asking for £379.50 compensation.

"I think it's worth fighting for the principle," she said.

"It's not about the money."

'Huge' response

She added: "It's happening all round the coast, they are allowed to spill into the sea and I don't think that should be allowed.

"This is for all the people that want to swim."

The response to her claim had been "absolutely huge" she said.

"It's all over Twitter and TikTok, I don't even know what TikTok really is, but it's there."

South West Water said it was unable to respond to individual cases but said: "We take our responsibility to the environment very seriously and are investing record amounts to reduce the use of permitted storm overflows across the region, including circa £38m earmarked for Exmouth up to 2030."

Bathing water quality at Exmouth has been rated as excellent in the latest classification by the Environment Agency which tests water every week between May and September.