Thames Water is set to begin works in Benson starting from July, with one business owner saying he expects "more chaos to the existing disaster". 

Gary Flux owns The Three Horseshoes in Benson and has had the road outside his venue closed six times already in 2024. 

He is unsure if the upcoming works this summer to provide a foul sewer network reinforcement will result in further closures outside his address, and said the village was "not built to cope with the number of new homes they are building". 

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He said: "Everything stems from overbuilding houses around a small village with no infrastructure let alone water infrastructure."

Thames Water representatives will be speaking to Benson residents at a parish hall meeting at 6pm on July 1, to answer any questions about the works.

The works will aim to alleviate the risk of flooding to properties on Littleworth Road and to ensure sufficient capacity to accommodate new developments. 

Mr Flux said: "The flooding in general has been horrendous, but not necessarily because of the volume of the downfalls.

"It's been because of the repeated disasters from Thames Water that have been concentrated around this area." 

Mr Flux described that he has seen local drainage replaced three times.

He claimed this was after Thames Water had had installed incorrect parts, and then had to "dig up the same piece of road three times".

He said the roadway outside his venue, The Three Horseshoes, had been closed six times this calendar year. 

He claimed these closures were all due to Thames Water works with the last closure around two weeks ago. 

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A Parish Council representative said they were currently unaware of what the project would involve - and have therefore requested the meeting which will be open to all in the community. 

A Thames Water spokesperson said: "We have published plans to upgrade 250 of our sites across the region including our Benson sewage treatment works.

"This site is being upgraded at a cost of around £9  million and will provide a major increase in treatment capacity, from 58.7 to 74.9 litres per second.

"This will reduce the need for untreated discharges in wet weather.”

These latest Thames Water works come following controversy last year when, according to its own map, the company released storm discharge - including a mix of untreated sewage and rainwater - into the river near Benson for nearly six hours overnight on April 14. 

A Thames Water spokesperson said: “While all discharges are unacceptable, the sewage system was historically designed to work in this way, to prevent sewage backing up into people’s homes.  

“We know how much rivers are loved and enjoyed by everyone, and we are committed to seeing our waterways thrive, but we can’t do it alone.

"Farming, industry, livestock and more extreme weather also play a role in river health."