Officials from the water company responded to questions from councillors about the lengthy period when many homes had no water supply.

Appearing before Wealden District Council’s overview and scrutiny panel on Monday, March 30, senior figures from South East Water tackled questions about the significant water service disruptions that affected Kent and Sussex throughout January.

South East Water’s chief executive David Hinton told councillors that the supply problems arose from a freeze-thaw event, made worse by Storm Goreti.

He described how the freeze-thaw pattern caused water mains to burst. The storm created difficulties at one of the company’s main treatment works at Barcombe Mills, resulting in reduced production of clean water.

According to Mr Hinton, this meant supply and demand were not balanced, and certain areas of the region experienced effects — 25,000 properties; 4,000 in Wealden district between January 10 and January 14.

According to Mr Hinton, the supply problems were partly due to power outages during Storm Goreti, which forced the Barcombe water treatment works to halt operations temporarily.

The storm also impacted the River Ouse, which provides water to the Barcombe site. Mr Hinton explained that heavy rain carried soil, sediment and other substances into the river, changing the water quality to a condition he described as almost untreatable.

Councillors disputed this account, asking whether the company’s management and spending on infrastructure had also played a role. Some pointed to the company’s track record of previous service failures, noting the £22m penalty from Ofwat for supply disruptions happening between 2020 and 2023.

Mr Hinton said the company was preparing major spending on infrastructure projects.

He outlined that this would involve funding aimed at lowering system demand and improving the Barcombe site’s ability to stop the river reaching the quality levels experienced.

The panel heard the company was working on a drought avoidance scheme involving transferring water from Weir Wood Reservoir to Ardingly Reservoir.

Initially the company intended an above-ground pipeline, but now expects to start building an underground pipeline in 2028, according to the panel.

Some members asked whether this spending would be sufficient given climate change and increasingly frequent severe weather.

Labour councillor Ben Cox suggested that evidence indicates weather events are becoming more concentrated within particular periods. He noted that there are fewer wet days, but when rain falls it is heavier. He said that for South East Water to claim Barcombe struggles during extreme rainfall events represents the reality that is being moved towards. He expressed that the answers given did not inspire confidence that future situations would improve.

Mr Hinton stated that climate change has progressed faster than anyone forecast. He noted that while fewer freeze-thaw cycles were expected, more are actually occurring.

Addressing a similar question, Mr Hinton continued by explaining that the company operates a 25-year investment plan. They had one for 2019/20 and have produced a new one for 2024/25. Climate change effects and demand changes have essentially required them to bring this plan forward. For example, building a second reservoir beside the existing Arlington reservoir was far off in the 2019/20 schedule. Climate change has shown this must happen sooner. Effectively, their risk timeline has moved forward.

Councillors also sought details about the impact of additional housing development.

Panel chairman and Independent councillor Andrew Wilson asked Mr Hinton about the company’s capacity to serve Wealden’s housing growth targets.

Cllr Wilson pushed for a straightforward yes or no answer, though Mr Hinton said the matter was too complicated for such a clear-cut response.

Mr Hinton explained that they had only recently seen how dispersed the housing figure increase is across their region. He said they have submitted their response to the council’s consultation, and their view is that they had planned to meet the 2019 forecast and need to engage with planners, government, local authorities and regulators about how they might need to adjust that plan to accommodate additional housing. He said this remains a significant part of the discussion, as the plan has changed and requires review. He said he cannot commit yes or no without working through this position.