South West Water: Woman to sue after being 'unable to swim' at Devon beach due to illegal sewage spills

Jo Bateman, a year-round sea swimmer from Exmouth in Devon, is taking South West Water to court after she said she is unable to swim at her local beach due to ongoing sewage discharges. The 62-year-old told NationalWorld that she is “frequently unable to swim” at her local beach in Exmouth “due to combined sewer overflows (CSOs) releasing untreated sewage into the sea just metres from where I swim”.

She added: “I've had enough. I can't sit back any longer and do nothing.”

Ms Batemen has submitted an action to the Small Claims Court alleging that illegal sewage spills into the sea at her local beach in Exmouth, Devon, have affected her physical and mental wellbeing. In her claim, she detailed 54 instances when she believes South West Water illegally dumped sewage into the sea last year.

She said: “I've issued a claim against South West Water for compensation for 'loss of amenity', for those days when I've been unable to swim due to unpermitted/illegal overflows.” The water company has until 12 February to respond - but they can request an extension of 14 days. 

Feargal Sharkey, former singer of 80s group Undertones and now fierce sewage campaigner, hailed Ms Bateman on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) as “incredible”. He posted: “The incredible Jo Bateman has decided she's had enough and is taking @SouthWestWater to court. But here's the thing, we have a regulatory system that should be protecting Jo from exactly that kind of abuse and illegality. Will @Ofwat and @EnvAgency ever admit their culpability?”

The court case comes amid a growing boycott across the UK where people are refusing to pay the sewage element of their water bills in protest against the raw waste being poured into rivers and seas. One woman, Caz Dennett, from Weymouth in Dorset told NationalWorld she is refusing to pay sewerage charges from Wessex Water because of its “poor performance and appalling pollution record.”

According to campaign group Top of the Poops, South West Water was responsible for 37,587 sewage overflows in 2022, equating to an average of 103 a day polluting rivers including the Tamar, Teign and Torridge. In April it was fined more than £2 million for a series of environmental offences across Devon and Cornwall spanning a period of four years - the largest ever fine imposed for environmental offences in the region.

South West Water said: “We are unable to respond to individual cases, however we take our responsibility to the environment very seriously and are investing record amounts to reduce the use of permitted storm overflows across the region, including circa £38 million earmarked for Exmouth up to 2030.”

NationalWorld has contacted the Environment Agency for comment.