Colwall, a village of less than 3,000 people on the border between Herefordshire and Worcestershire, is renowned for its spring water, which comes from the nearby Malvern Hills. An area of outstanding natural beauty, it has been favoured by the royal family for centuries, including Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria.

But the water at Colwall is now in the spotlight for very different reasons. The most recent data from Severn Trent Water, the company that covers the area, reveals that a sewage treatment works on Cradley Brook, near the village, spilled sewage for 1,756 hours in 2021 and 1,361 hours in 2022.

An analysis by the campaign group Windrush Against Sewage Pollution suggests some of these spills may be in breach of the water firm’s environmental permits. Its analysis suggests there were 72 unlawful spills in 2021 and 2022. Severn Trent said this weekend the “desktop” analysis was based on certain assumptions, and insisted the works were operating in line with permit conditions.