Over the last two decades, we have invested millions of pounds upgrading our wastewater treatment sites, pumping stations and sewers in and around Windermere. Between now and 2030 we are investing £200 million in the Windermere catchment to further improve treatment standards, reduce phosphorus entering the lake and reduce stormwater spills.

Our project at Hawkshead

Our proposals include upgrading both the wastewater treatment works and the pumping station located in Hawkshead.

At the wastewater treatment works we are proposing to install new equipment to further boost treatment standards. In order to do this we will need to extend the current site which requires us to relocate the existing landscape mound.

At the pumping station we are proposing to build a new 29 metre diameter below ground storage tank which can hold around 3000m3 - that’s similar to 10 public swimming pools!

Why we are doing this

Currently, rainwater can enter the sewer system during wet weather. When large amounts of rainfall enter the network, it can become overloaded, increasing the likelihood of spills from storm overflows. Our proposal to install an underground storage tank to store stormwater, would help reduce the frequency of spills from the storm overflow.

Additionally, the proposed upgrade to our wastewater treatment works will improve treatment standards at Hawkshead and further reduce phosphorus entering the lake.

What will the impact be locally?

We understand that construction activity can be disruptive and our teams are doing all they can to minimise impacts for the local community, visitors and road users for the duration of the project.

We have assessed the local highways and prepared a traffic management plan, to ensure that all disruption is kept to a minimum. All construction traffic will follow a one way system to and from Hawkshead and a temporary access track between the treatment works and pumping station is proposed in an adjacent field. This means that access to and from the site would minimise impact on the road, also making deliveries to site easier. This temporary track would be removed once the project is complete.

When will the project be complete?

The project is due to be fully completed by March 2030, and visualisations of how the site will look in the future can be seen below.