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United Utilities · overflow UUP01447

No active event

River Lea

United Utilities reports no current spill. In the last 30 days the overflow has discharged a cumulative 1.9 h across 5 events.

📍 53.00158°, -2.34089°

Truth Engine flags· 1 open

Spill record· last 12 months

5

spill events

156h

cumulative discharge

6 days

longest single event (all time)

2026-05-02

first event on record

In the last 30 days this overflow recorded 156h of discharge. Across United Utilities's 2,260 monitored overflows the median was 0h. This site is in the top 5% by 30-day spill duration.

On the River Lea· 2 other overflows

2 other overflows discharge into the River Lea. Operated by 2 different water companies.

Recent spill events· last 30 days

Nearby water quality· 6 sampling points within 5 km

  • NW-88000644 · FRESHWATER - RIVERS

    RIVER LEA U/S MADELEY ETW

    400 m away · last tested 4 weeks ago

    • pH7.7 PHUNITS
    • Water temperature10.5 CEL
  • NW-88000646 · FRESHWATER - RIVERS

    RIVER LEA AT WRINEHILL FARM

    2.1 km away

    No swimmer-relevant measurements available.

  • NW-88000643 · FRESHWATER - RIVERS

    CHECKLEY BK U/S R LEA

    2.3 km away

    No swimmer-relevant measurements available.

  • NW-RSN1056 · FRESHWATER - RIVERS

    RSN1056 CHECKLEY BROOK U/S CHECKLEY LANE

    3.1 km away

    No swimmer-relevant measurements available.

  • NW-88022334 · FRESHWATER - LAKES/PONDS/RESERVOIRS

    BETLEY MERE FROM JETTY

    3.7 km away · last tested 3 weeks ago

    • pH8.42 PHUNITS
    • Water temperature13.3 CEL
  • NW-88024024 · FRESHWATER - LAKES/PONDS/RESERVOIRS

    BETLEY MERE ADJECENT TO MERE GUTTER INLET

    3.9 km away

    No swimmer-relevant measurements available.

Take action

The record above is verifiable from public Environment Agency and water-company data. Three official accountability channels — pre-filled with the evidence on this page.

Are you here right now?

If you can see foam, sewage debris, dead fish, or smell something wrong — submit a citizen report. Confirmed reports are added to the Truth Engine and strengthen the public record on this overflow.

📷 Report what you saw →

1. Complain to United Utilities

The official complaints route. Most companies require submission through their web form rather than email — open the form, then paste the pre-filled letter.

Preview the letter
Subject: Complaint: storm overflow UUP01447 on the River Lea

Dear United Utilities,

I am writing to formally raise a concern about storm overflow UUP01447,
which public Environment Agency data shows recording 5 spill events totalling 1.9 h in the last 30 days into the River Lea.

Evidence:
- Last 30 days: 5 spill events totalling 1.9 h
- Cross-referenced flags from independent monitoring: 1 open Truth Engine discrepancies
- Location: 53.00158, -2.34089
- Source: Environment Agency National Storm Overflow Hub, OGL v3, cross-referenced via River Truth (https://rivertruth.co.uk/overflow/12392)

[Add your personal context here — e.g. how you use this stretch of water and how this incident affects you.]

Please respond with:
1. The cause of this discharge or monitor outage
2. The action being taken to resolve it
3. The expected timeline for resolution
4. What measures are in place to prevent recurrence

I have copied the Environment Agency, Ofwat, and my MP into this correspondence
where appropriate.

Yours faithfully,
[Your name]
[Your address]
[Your customer reference if you are a United Utilities customer]

2. Write to the MP for this stretch

This overflow sits in the Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency — currently represented by Adam Jogee (Labour). Click below to open WriteToThem with the letter copied to your clipboard — paste it into the message box.

Or write to your own MP instead

Prefer to write to the MP for where you live? Enter your postcode and we'll redirect WriteToThem accordingly.

Preview the letter
Subject: Constituent concern: United Utilities sewage discharge — overflow UUP01447

Dear [your MP — WriteToThem will fill this in],

I am writing as your constituent to raise concern about ongoing sewage discharges
from United Utilities in our area.

A specific recent example is storm overflow UUP01447, which public
Environment Agency data shows recording 5 spill events totalling 1.9 h in the last 30 days into the River Lea.

Evidence on the public record:
- Last 30 days: 5 spill events totalling 1.9 h
- Cross-referenced flags from independent monitoring: 1 open Truth Engine discrepancies
- Location: 53.00158, -2.34089
- Source: Environment Agency National Storm Overflow Hub, OGL v3, cross-referenced via River Truth (https://rivertruth.co.uk/overflow/12392)

[Add your personal context here — e.g. how you use this stretch of water and how this incident affects you and your family.]

I would like to ask:
1. Whether you support strengthening the regulatory regime for storm overflows
   and monitor coverage in particular
2. Whether you would raise this specific incident with the Secretary of State
   for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs or with Ofwat
3. What steps Parliament is taking to hold United Utilities accountable for
   the gap between shareholder distributions and the state of monitoring on
   the ground

Yours sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address — WriteToThem requires a postal address to verify constituency]

Sources: Environment Agency National Storm Overflow Hub · Environment Agency
WIMS Water Quality Archive · cross-referenced via River Truth (https://rivertruth.co.uk/overflow/12392)

MP details are looked up live from the UK Parliament Members API under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0. River Truth makes no claim about this MP's voting or advocacy record on water issues — they are shown solely as the elected representative for this constituency.

3. Report to the Environment Agency

For active pollution incidents — dead fish, foam, sewage on the riverbank — the EA hotline operates 24/7 and triggers a recorded investigation.

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