Sewage spill near primary school unacceptable, MP says

The government is to investigate reports of raw sewage floating down a Surrey high street and spreading to a primary school during recent flooding.

Monica Harding, Liberal Democrat MP for Esher and Walton, told the House of Commons that the spillage in Thames Ditton was "unacceptable".

"In last week's heavy rain, human waste flooded two homes and spread to the local primary school, and Thames Water's proposed solution was to wash it straight back into the river," Harding said.

Thames Water apologised to residents and said "engineers carried out a thorough investigation of the sewer network and confirmed the flooding was caused by exceptionally heavy rainfall, which overwhelmed the system".

The water company said during the inspection, silt build-up was identified and a full clean of the line has been completed.

It added if residents still experienced issues they could contact Thames Water for assistance.

Thames Water says it is delivering its "biggest upgrade" to its network and assets in more than 150 years.

This includes boosting treatment capacity, reducing storm discharges and delivering nutrient-reduction schemes.

"In the first six months of 2025/26 we increased capital investment by 22% to £1.26 billion," the company said.

In response to Harding, Emma Hardy, minister for water, said it had been a "shocking and awful case".

"I am more than happy to have a meeting with her and look into it," Hardy said.

"There's no excuse for sewage ending up in primary school and could be seen floating down the street."

Thames Water is the UK's largest water company.

There have been calls to place the company under special administration after it was fined £122.7m in 2025, the biggest penalty ever issued by Ofwat.

The penalty was for breaching rules on sewage spills and shareholder payouts.

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