Step-by-step guide to developing our plan

All water companies in England and Wales have a statutory duty to develop a Water Resources Management Plan. The process is detailed and complex. The main steps in developing our draft plan for 2010 to 2035 are outlined below.

1. Stakeholder and customer research

Since 2007 we have sought the views of our customers, stakeholders and regulatory bodies through detailed research, customer surveys, and regular meetings to inform our draft plan.

2. Publication of our draft plan

In May 2008 we published our draft Water Resources Management Plan for 2010 to 2035. To assist readers in understanding the technical documents, we published a guide called 'Water - planning for the future', to explain the water resources planning process, and the public consultation process.

 Water - planning for the future (3.55Mb)

3. Public consultation

Water companies have a statutory duty to undertake a public consultation on their draft plans to understand the views and priorities of customers and other stakeholders.

In May 2008 we launched a 16-week public consultation on our draft plan. Events were held in Reading and London to encourage participation in the consultation. In addition, a series of exhibitions were held in Oxfordshire for local residents.

 List of organisations we were required to consult (0.74Mb)

4. Taking on board the views of consultees

In February 2009 we published our Statement of Response, which outlines:

• The consideration we gave to the representations received from the public consultation on the draft plan;
• The changes made to the draft plan after considering the representations, and the reasons for the changes;
• Where we did not make any changes to the draft plan after considering the representations, and our reasons;
• How other factors, including the economic downturn, have affected water supply and demand forecasts in the 12 months to February 2009.

5. Consideration our draft plan by Secretary of State

Following review of our draft plan and Statement of Response, as well as taking into account advice from technical experts and the responses to the public consultation, in August 2009 the Secretary of State announced his decision to hold a public inquiry on our draft plan.

6. Revised draft Plan

In September 2009 we published our revised draft Plan, which is an updated version of our draft Plan that takes account the views of our stakeholders.

7. Public inquiry

Defra has confirmed the timetable for the public inquiry, which will take place from 15 June 2010 at the Conference Centre in Oxford. The inquiry will take up to five weeks and will allow a full and comprehensive examination of our draft plan.

 Read more about the public inquiry

How to view PDF files

To view the documents listed above, you will need a copy of Adobe Reader which is free to download from Adobe Systems.