Hi All,

               In case you are not already aware, last night’s heavy rainfall has resulted in some serious flooding further up the valley, resulting in the Harrow being flooded again and also a number of gardens along Valley Road from the Harrow as far as the turning into the school.

Down the Village Hall end of Valley Road, we also are experiencing problems with high sewage levels in our inspection pits. Just 3-4 weeks ago, it seemed quite possible that we would escape the winter without any surcharge problems, but that appears not to be the case now. Properties close to Chiltern Car Sales have placed calls with TW as they are already suffered some spillage. Others further up towards the Village Hall are experiencing full inspection pits along with unusable downstairs toilets.

Our stretch of the stream is now running faster, so it’s as well to check that your garden section is clear of any detritus etc to ensure it runs through OK to avoid any other potential flooding.

The sewage junction in the field below the pumping station is clearly spilling sewage and the area is fenced off now so TW have clearly been visiting there.

We will be pushing for the supply of overpumping to be implemented.

Paul Woodford

18 Feb 2024

               I thought I would drop an update around as there are one or two things going on that might be of interest and it’s coincided with my having to drum up an article for the Hughenden News. As a result this update is a bit wordy…..

1. The Stream
   1. According to official statistics, the rainfall across South East England from November to January was 21.1mm; this compares to the long term average of 16.5mm for the same period. This was above average with most rain having fallen in December and frankly the rainfall seemed much more than this. The net result is that our winterbourne stream is showing in its upper reaches. At the end of January, the springs could be seen bubbling up in the ditch outside Spring Rising and even emerging from the middle of the culvert brickwork beside the pumping station. It is now flowing in the back gardens along Valley Road in the vicinity of the Village Hall.
   2. Normally at this time of the year, when the winterbourne stream is flowing and the water table is rising we expect to see signs of the sewers becoming full. This year there presently seems no threat of this happening as a brief check on the sewers suggests they are running normally, unless you know to the contrary that is.
2. Road Drains
   1. I’ve done a walk through the Valley checking road drains and that has shown that many are blocked with leaves, twigs and other detritus, to be expected perhaps after the winter. We have to count ourselves fortunate that the drainage system has coped during this time and we have not suffered massive levels of rainfall such as has happened in so many areas of the country. We have reported the state of the road drains via FixMyStreet and have requested a substantial operation to clear drains throughout the Valley. I’ve asked David Carroll to lend some impetus to this. Additionally, we have asked that the kerbsides are swept throughout the village as they, too, are in a poor state. It is worth saying that we requested the road drains outside the Harrow to be cleared in October following their flooding but that remains to be done, so we have to hope that this work can be prioritised soon.
3. Thames Water
   1. As reported in November, our contact in the planning area at TW, Darren Trenchard has departed to another area in the company and we have been left with no replacement contact, which makes it difficult getting hold of meaningful updates. I have directed an email to the Developer Services group and posed a simple request to them but there has been no response so far.
   2. Darren suggested when he left that I contact Customer Feedback for help. Following speaking to them I was referred to Developer Services, who then transferred me to Operations. Operations said yes, they could help and gave me a particular telephone number to ring, which actually turned out to be Developer Services…..waste of time.
   3. I have mailed Alan Beechey at the Chiltern Society to see if he can offer any advice as to who we might speak to.
4. Bucks CC Drainage Engineer Contact
   1. Well, we don’t have one since Jonathan Roberts left us. I am hoping we may be able to establish a contact through the FixMyStreet app.

Rgds

Paul

HVRA DIG

Harrow Pub

During September during a very heavy downpour the Harrow suffered flooding of the area immediately outside the two entrances to the pub. There was some penetration into the pub.

The likely cause of this of this was the lack of maintenance on the road drains but particularly the drain situated on the pavement beside the pub sign. We have done an article on this for the winter edition of the Hnews.

As regards remedial action, we have raised a FixMyStreet case to get the drains checked and cleared. We believe road drainage works are required. We are trying to establish a new contact with a Bucks CC drainage engineer as Jonathan Roberts is no longer contactable. David Carroll looking into this for us.

We no longer have a suitable contact with Thames Water as Darren Trenchard is no longer contactable. We are working on this.

Paul Woodford

3 Nov 2023

Harrow Flooded Again

Amidst the unseasonably hot and largely dry weather we experienced in September and October, the Valley had just one or two downpours. It was one of those that resulted in the Harrow pub being flooded yet again.

Some years ago……

The pub faces the double whammy of being close to the road and at the point where the winterbourne stream crosses the road. The stream is culverted from the ditch on the field side and continues in a pipe underground along Valley Road until it remerges beyond Deeters into the Hopkins field. When the pub was built in the Middle Ages, I expect scant regard was given to the proximity of the stream and most certainly the pub was at the same level as the cart track outside. The pub now sits some way below the road and the stream in flood will spill over the ditch.

Just recently….

This is the second time that Karen has experienced flooding in her five years as landlady at the Harrow. She is very aware of its history, the photos on the wall of the pub provide the evidence.

In recent years, some work has been done to try and prevent water getting into the pub, but it can still penetrate via the entrances and airbricks. Sandbags sit at the entrance to the public bar on a permanent basis.

Karen’s team work hard at keeping nearby drains clear, but their experience suggests that the problem lies mainly with the road – insufficient drainage, road camber and the wash from passing cars.

The DIG have offered to look into this with Bucks Council.

Paul Woodford

HVRA DIG