Disruption to residents from Water Quality Improvement works to be kept to a minimum
Sidmouth Town Council is pleased that next year’s Sidmouth Folk Festival will not be impacted by South West Water’s £12m project to improve the town’s sewage network, reduce the use of storm overflows and protect the quality of its bathing waters.
South West Water presented their plans to a full Sidmouth Town Council meeting on Monday to provide assurance that the world famous festival will not be impacted when it takes place between 31 July and 7 August 2026 and that impact to residents would be kept to a minimum.
As a result, the Town Council unanimously agreed to back South West Water’s plan and their contingency arrangements to enable both the festival and the important improvement works to proceed, whilst minimising disruption for residents.
Construction is underway by South West Water to build a new storm storage tank at The Ham in Sidmouth to reduce the impact the town’s sewerage system is having on the environment and reduce storm overflow spills to a maximum of ten per overflow per year.
Once complete, the new tank will have 100,000 litres of storage and will capture excess flows during heavy rainfall, holding them safely until there is capacity in the sewer network for full treatment.
This will help to reduce storm overflow spills from The Ham Pumping Station and safeguard water quality at Sidmouth Town Beach, which has consistently received “Excellent” bathing water status.
To allow the work to take place safely, The Ham will be closed for recreational use from December 2025 until the works are completed.
The work follows the first phase of improvements made by South West Water in 2024 to reduce groundwater entering the network in Sidmouth. The company’s dedicated teams surveyed 8,475 metres of sewer and relined 604 metres of sewer, as well as 32 manholes.
Cllr Hilary Nelson, Chair of Sidmouth Town Council said: “ The Town Council was grateful to have the opportunity to discuss South West Water’s plans with them in person and to hear their guarantee that this vital scheme for the town will not disrupt plans for next year’s festival. Councillors were equally keen to ensure that disruption to local residents was kept to a minimum and that the area would be fully restored following completion of the works, and we were grateful for SWW’s reassurances on all these points. The sewage improvement works are of vital importance for our community and our environment, so we are pleased that these are now underway and look forward to their speedy completion.”
Through the Sidmouth Folk Festival, we’ve been championing folk music, dance, and song by the sea since 1995, attracting tens of thousands of visitors to our beautiful seaside town. We’re thrilled that next year’s event can continue to build on its many years of success in creating an inclusive music community that celebrates tradition in all its many forms.”
Charlie Ford, Project Manager at South West Water, said: “It was great to have the opportunity to meet with Sidmouth Town Council earlier this week to discuss our plans for the area and to provide reassurance that we will not cause any impact on the Sidmouth Folk Festival.
This investment in Sidmouth is very important and will reduce pressure on the town’s sewage system, protect its much-loved beach, and deliver cleaner seas for everyone to enjoy.”
View more information and further updates on South West Water’s work in Sidmouth: https://www.southwestwater.co.uk/about-us/what-we-do/engineering-projects/wastewater/sidmouth-sewer-improvements