Nusrat Ghani, MP for Sussex Weald, joined Hellingly Parish Council Chair Cllr David White and Clerk Jenny Hoodless at a recent stakeholder forum in Hellingly to continue holding local agencies to account and examine progress made to date on works to prevent flooding and sewage overspills.
Since the severe incidents in January 2023, Nusrat continues supporting Hellingly Parish Council in pushing for full review of current infrastructure provision and assessment of the necessary upgrades. Nusrat has been intensely involved in a series of regular meetings with local stakeholders including Wealden District Council, East Sussex County Council and Highways, Southern Water and the Environment Agency, to hold them to account on their infrastructure maintenance responsibilities and continue pushing for further investment.
At the most recent meeting held on Friday 14th November, Nusrat welcomed the news that a series of works has now been completed to help rectify the situation. These include: clearing works of the culverts along Park Road, connectivity study of several hundred households in Hellingly, identifying and rectifying some misconnections, installation of more sewer monitors, sealing 21 manholes, pipe re-lining work, and regular network inspections.
Additionally, ESCC as the Highway Authority confirmed they are in discussion with Southern Water to provide highway sustainable drainage (SuDS) in order to ease the burden on the Southern Water system and help prevent flooding and overflows.
Nusrat Ghani said: “Having been working closely with Hellingly Parish Council Chair Cllr David White and Clerk Jenny Hoodless since 2023, and brining all stakeholders regularly together in one forum, I am pleased to have helped secure some investment and improvements to the local infrastructure. This is a great result for local residents and a step in the right direction to help prevent the recurring flood issues in Hellingly. However, I am mindful of the fact that we have had an unusually dry period since these improvements were implemented and therefore, they are yet to be put to the test over the winter months. Concerns about the Hellingly pumping station and the overall network capacity continue to be raised as well and I look forward to receiving further updates on resilience and future planning, and a timeline for further investment from Southern Water in due course.”
