Norfolk landlady paints water firm slogan on flooded pub in protest

The landlady of The Huntsman pub has nodded to the water company she takes issue with over flooding

The landlady of a pub "fighting for a resolution" to its flooding issues has painted the water company's slogan on her own building.

Kristine Hall renamed The Huntsman in Strumpshaw, Norfolk as "Love Every Drop Inn", in a reference to Anglian Water.

She said the building was unviable and had spent four years trying to resolve the underlying problems.

Anglian Water said it was working with the council "to develop a solution".

The pub has been forced to close over the years because of flooding

Ms Hall said the graffiti was an attempt to "draw attention to the fact that the sewage problem in the road and the lack of capacity in the ditch in the road still hasn't been addressed after four years of fighting for a resolution".

Her insurance company has taken flooding off the cover and she did not qualify for any government grants during the coronavirus pandemic.

"[It's] like an albatross around my neck," said Ms Hall.

"We can't get any grants because we were closed at the beginning of covid, but we were closed at the beginning of covid because the authorities... are not assisting to resolve the issue - which is their issue.

"The road is a highways issue... and obviously the sewage is surcharging from Anglian Water's drains."

Ms Hall said the pub was "a worthless piece of land and real estate", adding: "It's just bleeding us dry."

Norfolk County Council leader Andrew Proctor said the authority had produced a feasibility study and four options for solutions.

"The key thing around that is making sure all this work is tied up with Anglian Water to make sure they find a solution to the issues of the foul water drainage," he added.

An Anglian Water spokeswoman said they were "completing a survey to understand how we can prevent future rain and floodwater infiltration in our sewer network".

"We know these plans have been in development for some time, largely because drainage systems are complicated and often have different owners and organisations responsible for planning how they need to operate in tandem."

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