Dear Customer

Following our last post on 20th February, I’m writing to let you know that we will be returning to the reservoir site to complete our essential work from Monday 1st April 2019. The work is expected to take up to 4 months to complete, however be assured we are working to complete this as soon as possible.

We will be remobilising the working area from Monday and over the coming months this will involve bringing plant and machinery back to the site as required, with more specific dates for large deliveries via Linden Avenue to be communicated in due course. As before, we will have staff presence at the gate to escort wagons on and off site. We will try and use the West road entrance where possible for any smaller vehicles to minimise any impact and we will ensure the community portal is updated to keep you informed.

We hope that we can continue to work with yourselves and that we will be able to complete this work with minimal impact.

When we have information on further dates, we will of course duly update you.

Best regards 

Hi everyone

Thank you for your co-operation over the last couple of weeks whilst we have been transporting materials from site. We really do appreciate you working with us in ensuring there were no vehicles parked in the immediate vicinity of our access point, this meant we were able to progress as planned. We are now nearly ready to leave site safe, and would like to provide a further update on our works schedule, so residents and locals are informed of our plan.

As previously noted, we are planning to be off-site until Spring when this final set of collections/deliveries are complete.  Deliveries/collections have been arranged for:

Tuesday 26th February between 09:00 and 16:00 – we will be delivering a final load of fencing bracing and collecting (via the same vehicle) a load of pedestrian barriers; the delivery/collection cannot be accommodated on a vehicle that can access via the West Road so we will require access via Linden Avenue.  We will have a staff presence at the gate as usual, to escort the wagon on and off site.

As you will now be aware, we do need larger vehicles to be able to safely and easily access and egress site, so we would ask that residents who normally park their vehicles within 30 metres of our access gates find an alternate parking solution on the day we need to get these vehicles to and from ste. As noted previously, we acknowledge that this may cause some inconvenience to residents, but this access route has been agreed by the local council and we do have to use it to transport the materials; there is no other way we can remove them from site.  

As noted previously, we hope that we can continue to work with residents and that we will be able to complete this work with minimal impact. Whilst we hope this support continues, if we cannot safely access and egress site with our vehicles then we will contact local police so they can support us by speaking with vehicle owners and ensuring the vehicles impeding access and egress are safely removed. We really hope this step won’t be necessary, but we will work with police if we have to, in order that we can ensure the safety of our people and our delivery partners - as well as of everyone and everything in the vicinity of our access point.

Best regards,

The Project team

Hi everyone,

Thank you for your co-operation over the last couple of weeks whilst we have been transporting materials from site. We really do appreciate you working with us insuring there were no vehicles parked in the immediate vicinity of our access point, this meant we were able to remove a number of the large materials from site, which is great. We are progressing well with the planned works, and we would like to provide a further update on our works schedule, so residents and locals are informed of our plan.

We are planning to be off-site until Spring when the next set of collections/deliveries are complete, and we have some materials that need to be brought onto site to enable us to leave it safe.

Deliveries/collections have been arranged for:

Tuesday 5th Feb between 09:00 and 16:00 - the blocks being delivered cannot be brought to site on a vehicle that can access via the West Road so we will require access via Linden Avenue

Tuesday 5th Feb and Wednesday 6th Feb also between 09:00 and 16:00 - we hope the vehicles bringing this material may be able to go through the West Road access but may need to access via Linden Avenue

Wednesday 6th  Feb or Thursday 7th Feb again between 09:00 and 16:00 - we need to bring a telehandler onto site to enable us to position the above materials; we will then need to remove this from site.

Friday 8th Feb or or Monday 11th Feb- we plan to remove the telehandler from site.

Again, we do need larger vehicles to be able to safely and easily access and egress site, so we would ask that residents who normally park their vehicles within 30 metres of our access gates find an alternate parking solution on the days we need to get these vehicles to and from site. As noted previously, we acknowledge that this may cause some inconvenience to residents, but this access route has been agreed by the local council and we do have to use it to transport the materials; there is no other way we can remove them from site.  

As noted previously, we hope that we can continue to work with residents and that we will be able to complete this work with minimal impact. Whilst we hope this support continues, if we cannot safely access and egress site with our vehicles then we will contact local police so they can support us by speaking with vehicle owners and insuring the vehicles impeding access and egress are safely removed. We really hope this step won’t be necessary, but we will work with police if we have to, in order that we can ensure the safety of our people and our delivery partners - as well as of everyone and everything in the vicinity of our access point.

With best wishes

Hi everyone,

Thank you for your co-operation on Tuesday 22 January; because there were no vehicles parked in the immediate vicinity of our access point, we were able to remove a number of the large materials from site, which is great; and your help in achieving this is appreciated.  We do still have a lot of materials to remove though, so we would like to provide a further update on our works schedule for removing the remaining cabins and other large site materials, so residents and locals are informed of our plan.

Collections have been arranged for:

Friday 25th from 9:30 am and both Monday 28th and Wednesday 30th from 09:00: remaining materials with size and/or weight constraints

Monday 28th after 09:00: collection of the generator

Tuesday 29th from 09:00: collection of the four 32’ cabins

We expect that this will see the vast majority of all materials that need to be transported through the Linden Avenue route safely removed from site.  If this changes, we will of course let you know as soon as possible.

Again, we do need larger vehicles to be able to safely and easily access and egress site, so we would ask that residents who normally park their vehicles within 30 metres of our access gates find an alternate parking solution on the days we need to get these vehicles to and from site.  As noted previously, we acknowledge that this may cause some inconvenience to residents, but this access route has been agreed by the local council and we do have to use it to transport the materials; there is no other way we can remove them from site.  

We hope that we can continue to work with residents on this and that we will be able to remove materials with minimal impact; this is also why we will limit removal to as few days as possible.  We didn’t manage to remove as much from site today as expected, due to some unforeseen logistical challenges, which we have now mitigated.

Residents’ support today was great as it allowed us safe and straightforward access to and from site, with no cars parked in the street area identified; thank you again.  Whilst we hope this support continues, if we cannot safely access and egress site with our vehicles then we will contact local police so they can support us by speaking with vehicle owners and ensuring the vehicles impeding access and egress are safely removed. We really hope this step won’t be necessary, but we will work with police if we have to, in order that we can ensure the safety of our people and our delivery partners - as well as of everyone and everything in the vicinity of our access point.

With best wishes

Project team

Hi everyone

We would like to provide an update on our works schedule in relation to removing some of the cabins and other large site materials, and how we will move forward with this so residents and locals are all informed of our plan; we will also be popping letters through the doors of residents in Linden Avenue.

As you may know, we tried to remove materials and cabins from site pre-Christmas but were unable to ensure the safe access and egress of the large vehicles that are needed to transport these, due to the proximity of parked cars to our access gate. We appreciate that residents’ cars can normally be parked here without any access implications, as the majority of site traffic has been much smaller than the large wagons which we need to use for transportation of the above materials. However, we do now need larger vehicles to be able to safely and easily access and egress site, so we would ask that residents who normally park their vehicles within 30 metres of our access gates find an alternate parking solution on the days we need to get these vehicles to and from site.  

We acknowledge that this may cause some inconvenience to residents, but this access route has been agreed by the local council and we do have to use it to transport the materials; there is no other way we can remove them from site.  

We hope that we can work with residents on this and that we will be able to reach a solution together. At this point, the first planned date for removal of materials is Tuesday 22 January 2019 and we expect around 5 return trips across the day. We are making arrangements for another day of transportation too; we want to limit the impact of removal to as few days as possible - but this will depend on how quickly and simply we can access and leave site, so if there are delays on the day then it may take more than two days.

Whilst we hope we can work with you locally to ensure the safe access and egress of the vehicles, we have taken advice from the local police as well as the Police Community Support Officer. Their feedback has been that if we cannot safely access and egress site with our vehicles then we should contact them so they can support us by speaking with vehicle owners and ensuring the vehicles impeding access and egress are safely removed. We really hope this step won’t be necessary, but we will work with police if we have to, in order that we can ensure the safety of our people and our delivery partners - as well as of everyone and everything in the vicinity of our access point.

When we have information on further dates, we will of course update you here.

With best wishes

Project team

Good evening everyone,

We wanted to share a further update with you on our progress on removing materials from site.  

Unfortunately, we have had two failed attempts at removing kit from site this week and so progress on the project has been further impacted.  We must access site via Linden Avenue, both because of the size of the vehicles and the weight restrictions on the West Road access gate.  

In order for us to be able to complete works and remove materials, we require ample access and egress manoeuvrability for the vehicles.  This means that we need the areas immediately beside as well as on the approach to this gate to be clear.  We have explained these areas previously, and this has not changed.  This will allow vehicles to safely and efficiently access and then leave site.

We appreciate that this may require customers to park in alternate locations for a short period during the working day, but respectfully ask that vehicles parked on Linden Avenue are repositioned to allow us to complete this work; our intention is to do it before Christmas but this is only possible if easy and full access is given.  

Thanks again for your patience and support.

Best wishes

The Project Team

Good afternoon.

We thought it would be useful to provide a further update on activity on our site.

We wrote to you recently to confirm that the construction phase of our works is nearly complete and that some works inside our reservoir cell would be continuing up until Christmas.  This work is going well and we continue to access site via the West Road for these works.

We also explained that we have replanned our landscaping works so they take place in the grass-growing period; likely to recommence in April next year.  We noted that this would mean deliveries of landscaping materials would not be made via Linden Avenue during the winter months.  This remains true.

As we are nearing the end of our construction project we will be removing cabins from the site over the next two weeks, ahead of the Christmas break.  Unfortunately, due to the weight restrictions in place on our West Road access point, this has to be done via the Linden Avenue access gate.

Your help would be appreciated in keeping the access gates and approach clear of parked cars between 8am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.  This is to allow us to get large, flat-backed wagons in and out of the site to enable us to complete this phase of works.  

With best wishes,

Project Team

Good afternoon.

Please find below a copy of a letter which will be posted to the residents of Fenham this week by way of an update. 

Many Thanks

Fenham Project Team

Our Ref: WN016/0199

Update on our work near your home

Following my last letter, and our community event where we shared information on how our work at Fenham Service Reservoir was progressing, I would like to provide you with a further update.

As you may recall, the programme of works we are carrying out at Fenham Service Reservoir is essential to ensuring that we can consistently provide a reliable supply of clean, clear and great-tasting tap water to the people of Fenham.

Our work has been progressing well and we have now completed most of the works that we originally planned to do.  However, whilst our project has been running, there has been some updates in regulations set out by the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) which has prompted us to make some small changes to our plan.  Specifically, we have made changes to both the methodology we apply to some of our engineering works, and also the product choice for the coating we will use in our tank.  These changes are safeguarding the future quality of the water we will provide to residents. 

Because we are committed to providing only the best quality water supply to our customers, we have taken the decision to implement these changes whilst we have contractors on site and do further work before we re-fill the service reservoir and return it to supply.  This means that we will continue to work on site to complete works inside our reservoir cell, as part of our detailed commissioning phase, until Christmas.  This includes us checking and monitoring our concrete to ensure everything as is as we expect, before we return the reservoir to service.  We will be using the West Road access point to complete this work.

These extra works, which we know are the right thing to do and will ensure we continue to provide only the highest quality tap water, mean that we need to reconsider our schedule for the landscaping and reinstatment phase of the project.  In order that we complete the relevant works at the most sensible time of year – and to ensure that we are working within the grass-growing period – we are going to pause works on this phase of work until early April 2019.  This means that we will not be bringing deliveries through the Linden Avenue access point during the winter months.  We currently expect all landscaping and reinstatement works to be completed by Summer 2019.

I will keep you updated as we move forward.  However, should you require further information or advice please contact our Customer Centre on 0345 717 1100 or tweet us @nwater_care to request a call back from the Project Team.  Thank you for your continued patience and understanding while we work to complete this complex project.

Good Evening

Due to weight restrictions on our West Road access point, we ask you to be patient with us as we receive various deliveries of heavy plant and materials via Linden Avenue from Monday 1 October.

The co-operation of local residents is greatly appreciated with regards to parking of vehicles due to the size of plant being delivered.

Heavy plant deliveries will be coming in on a low loader which will be reversing with the assistance of banksmen towards the gate. Due to the size of the machinery they will be unloaded and tracked through the gates, again with banksmen present. Wagon deliveries of backfill materials will commence once plant is on site and will run between 8am and 5pm  until the required amounts are on site.

The gates will continue to be manned throughout the week and any further information will be updated as soon as it becomes available.

Thank you for your patience as we continue to work hard towards the completion of this project.

We were made aware earlier in the week that a customer observed a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) approaching our site at a speed which may have exceeded the speed restrictions clearly signposted on Linden Avenue and our site itself. 

Safety is something which we take very seriously, which is why we have placed signs on the approach to site which show a 10mph speed restriction.  The signage makes it clear to drivers that this is expected on the approach to our site as well as on site; it is of course the responsibility of the driver – as it is in any other situation on a public road – to adhere to these signs and warnings.

As we have been made aware of concerns, we have reiterated to all our suppliers and contractors that we expect their drivers to adhere to these speed restrictions, both on the approach to site and on the site itself. 

Based upon feedback, we have checked CCTV footage in relation to the alleged incident.  Whilst our CCTV does not record the speed of drivers, it does seem that this vehicle could have been travelling at a higher speed than other vehicles; we have therefore asked that as well as reiterating our expectations to all drivers, that the company for whom this particular driver works also speaks with him directly to raise this matter. 

We are confident that these steps mean we have taken appropriate and proportionate steps to the concerns you and another customer have raised, and we consider the matter to have been dealt with and closed.

Separately, we have had an incident this week where a vehicle was parked across our gates, preventing access to site from Linden Avenue.  As you know from our letters, the only access gate which can accommodate HGVs is Linden Avenue.  As a result of the vehicle being parked there, we had to cancel site deliveries, which of course has impacted our project plan.  We also had to contact the police about the issue, and get their assistance in removing the vehicle.  Although we have amended our upcoming schedules so we do not need to extend the completion date at this point, there is a real risk that this will happen if we cannot access site in the future.  As such, we would respectfully ask that all residents refrain from parking their vehicles across, or unreasonably close to, our gate access. 

The Police have instructed us to contact them if there are any further instances of vehicles blocking access, and so this will be how we approach the issue if it recurs: we hope that by making residents aware here, this will not be an issue in the future.  Thanks again for your patience whilst we complete these essential works.