There are now only two days left to respond to Thames Water’s statutory consultation on the proposed South East Strategic Reservoir Option (SESRO) — a large new reservoir planned to the south-west of Abingdon, between Drayton, Steventon and East Hanney. The consultation closes at 11.59 pm on 13 January.

The proposal is for a 150-billion-litre reservoir to serve around 15 million customers. Thames Water says the scheme is needed because the South East is ‘water-stressed’ due to climate change, population growth and limits on river and groundwater abstraction. Thames Water also loose water through leaks.

The company expects to submit a Development Consent Order in autumn 2026, with the reservoir planned to be operational by 2040.

Preparatory work has been under way to find out how they can best use material found on site. Clay compaction trials are being carried out to test how the local clay — taken from different depths and in different combinations —  can be best used for building the reservoir’s earth embankments.

Since the consultation began in October, Thames Water has held seven in-person events, including one in Abingdon.

The scheme remains controversial. Vale of White Horse District Council continues to oppose it, having concerns about its scale, environmental impact, rising costs, carbon emissions and flood risk. The campaign group GARD (Group Against Reservoir Development) argues that the project has grown substantially in cost and land take, and that alternative ways of getting water supplies should be reassessed.

Local MPs have also been raising questions in Parliament, particularly about Thames Water’s recent record.

Layla Moran, MP for Abingdon and Oxford West, said, ‘I would not trust Thames Water to run a bath, let alone deliver a project of this size.’

Olly Glover, MP for Didcot and Wantage, said ‘Concern about some of Thames Water’s plans is widespread and impossible to ignore, because of Thames Water’s performance and track record.’

With the consultation now in its final two days, this is likely to be the last opportunity for the public to influence the proposals. Even brief comments are counted, and you do not have to answer every question.

The consultation can be found here:
https://thames-sro.co.uk/public-consultations/south-east-strategic-reservoir-option-sesro-statutory-consultation-2025/

The brochure I used when responding is here:
https://thames-sro.co.uk/media/k40ndnes/statutory-consultation-brochure-2025-interactive.pdf

The GARD website for an opposing view and a guide to responding to the consultation is here:
https://groupagainstreservoirdevelopment.org/2025/12/06/consultation-response-guide/.