Each year water companies are inspected. The 1995 inspection found that the Company's arrangements for sampling, analysis and reporting were very good and that treatment processes were satisfactory. One recommendation for improvement in practices was made.

The quality of the water supplied by the Company in 1995 has been generally very good. 99.7% of the 2,468 tests performed by the Company met the standards - the tests were largely made on samples taken from consumers' taps. Of the 0.3% of tests that did not meet the standards some were for coliform bacteria. Each time these bacteria were detected the cause was investigated and any problems identified were corrected. Other significant failures were for PAH.

The graph above shows continued good water quality over the past five years. The Company needs to replace or repair some of its water mains to reduce concentrations of PAH.

If you want more detailed information about the quality of drinking water in your local area please contact the Company. Their telephone number is 01429 274405.

Drinking water standards in England and Wales include all those in the European Community Directive on drinking water and are mainly based on levels recommended by the World Health Organisation. Those of significance to health have generally been set with a wide safety margin. The occasional breaches of the standards which have happened do not mean the water was not suitable for drinking.

The Inspectorate assesses each breach of the standards and if necessary requires water companies to give legally binding undertakings to carry out improvements.

The summary of the 1995 Report gives the results of tests for England and Wales as a whole and sets out in more detail how the quality of your drinking water is checked and the significance of each of the listed substances. Printed copies of each Water Company Summary, and the Summary of the 1995 Report are available from :