Anglian Water New Lincolnshire Reservoir

Project overview  

Anglian Water is proposing a new reservoir in Lincolnshire that will secure water supply to our customers for future generations. The reservoir will store water so it’s on tap when we need it, meeting the challenges of a changing climate and a growing population. It will mean less water is taken from sensitive sources, helping us to protect and restore the environment. We expect the proposed reservoir to supply up to 166 million litres of water per day to 500,000 homes in Lincolnshire and the wider East of England region throughout the year. As a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, there are several key phases for the project progress through before we hope it’s supplying water by 2039 – 41. We are currently in the pre-application stage before our next phase of consultation in 2024, and we will hold a further phase of public consultation after this. Our aim is to submit our Development Consent Order in early 2026, to enable construction to start in 2029. Further information on the project can be found at: https://www.lincsreservoir.co.uk/

Introduction

The Community Liaison Group (CLG) for the Lincolnshire reservoir project will bring together representatives from the community to meet with the project team at regular meetings (e.g. quarterly). The meetings will be hosted by Anglian Water and will provide a forum for discussion on all matters relating to the reservoir proposals including design, community consultation and project progress. The first meeting will be held in Autumn 2023 and meetings will continue for the duration of the project, from planning to submission of the Development Consent Order planning application to the Planning Inspectorate 

Purpose and function

The purpose of the community liaison group is to provide a forum for discussion between the project team and local stakeholders, where questions can be raised and answered and input gathered on the ongoing development of the project’s proposals. The CLG will play a critical role in highlighting areas where communities require further information and engagement, as well as the best ways to make this happen. This includes best practice when communicating key project updates and relevant information, CLG – Terms of Reference advising on groups to include in consultation, and identifying any existing communications lines we can contribute to. It is expected that members of the CLG will effectively represent their communities interests, and will help to relay information from the meetings to their respective communities.

The main aims of the meetings are to:

• Provide a forum of discussion for the ongoing development of proposals for the Lincolnshire reservoir project

• Allow for regular sharing of information on the project’s progress

• Deliver key project updates to the community

• Give the communities we serve regular opportunities to engage with and input to the project, outside of more formal consultation phases

Structure and membership

Membership of the CLG is on an invitation-only basis. We have extended invitations to representatives from a cross-section of the community who may have interests in the project’s approach and proposals, in their capacity as a community authority. This includes:

• Parish Councils

• Local conservation and environment groups

• Local community organisations and networks including religious, youth and leisure groups

No more than two representatives from each group are expected to attend, and all representatives are expected to represent their respective group rather than individual views. The meetings will be managed by the appointed independent chair. The matter of selecting a chair will be discussed at the first meeting, which will be chaired by the secretariate.

Meeting Requirements

To ensure the smooth running of the meeting and to make sure everyone is able to have the opportunity to provide input, we have set out some requirements. Out of respect for all those attending, we ask everyone to:

• Cooperate with the Chair whilst taking part in any open discussions and wait your turn to input or ask questions

• Be polite to fellow members and the project team

• Participate in accordance with the role for which you have been invited, instead of in a personal manner

• Attend meetings regularly

Organisation of the meeting

The CLG will meet regularly at a rotation of venues in the project area. CLG – Terms of Reference An agenda will be provided to all invitees a week in advance of the meeting. The Anglian Water project team is responsible for the coordination of the meetings, and will act as the secretariat for all CLG meetings. This will include the preparation of all agendas, meeting minutes and management of attendees. The Chair will be responsible for managing the discussion, fielding questions and overseeing participation in the forum. The secretariat will ensure the Chair is provided the relevant materials for each meeting. As a minimum, each meeting will cover:

• Review of previous meetings minutes and actions

• An update on progress of the project proposals from the project team

• Discussion forum on these updates • Additional questions / AOB The minutes will be kept as a record of the meeting and will be published in full 20 working days after each meeting.