£3.2m storm overflow investment at Vickers Road Sheffield

Yorkshire Water starts work on the first of seven storm overflow projects in the Sheffield area as part of its £1.5bn investment to reduce the number of discharges into watercourses across the region.

The £3.2m storage tank at Vickers Road will build additional 1,500m³ (1.5m litres) storage capacity to the network, holding excess water during periods of prolonged and heavy rainfall.  Flows will be sent for treatment when the network capacity has returned to normal levels.  On completion it should result in a 90% reduction of storm discharges going into Firth Park stream. 

The construction site for the tank is adjacent to allotment gardens that will have to be temporarily relocated until the work is completed and Yorkshire Water is working with Sheffield Council to find temporary plots for tenants whilst the work is underway.

Lexie Thubron, project manager, Yorkshire Water said: “Moving allotment tenants is not an easy decision to take and we understand how important allotment spaces are, providing lots of wellbeing benefits, as well as the joy of gardening and growing your own fresh produce.

“We’re working closely with the local authority and Friends of Firth Park community allotments to support them with assistance and funding to help move tenants onto temporary pitches at nearby allotment sites.” 

Yorkshire Water and contract partner Ward & Burke investigated a number of alternative sites; however, Vickers Road was identified as the most cost-effective location with the least amount of disruption to the local community during construction.

Lexie continues: “We’re keen to make this transition as easy as possible and, as well as supporting temporary moves, we’ll be providing storage for tenants who can’t move, so that their equipment and garden tools can be safely returned to their allotment once the work is completed.

“A number of the plots are currently overgrown, and together with our contract partners Ward & Burke, we’ll be working with the local authority to clear these so that more tenantable spaces are available once the construction work is complete. We’ll also be working with the tenants for other betterment activity such as new fencing, materials and planting new native species, when we hand the site back.”

Construction starts on site in February 2026 and is expected to take up to 18 months to complete.

This project is one of 92 storm discharge reduction projects across South Yorkshire over the next five years, including seven identified in the Sheffield area.  The overall £1.5bn investment programme follows a £180m investment over the previous two years, which helped reduce discharges to watercourses by 12% in 2024, compared to 2023. 

Storm overflows are designed to function as a relief valve for the combined sewer network, which carries both wastewater and surface water, during periods of heavy or prolonged rainfall. They discharge when the system is at capacity to prevent flows backing up and flooding homes and gardens. 

Across Yorkshire, the need for storm overflows to operate will be reduced by building new: 

• Surface water sewers, to separate surface water and wastewater so that wastewater networks aren’t impacted by bad weather 
• Underground storage tanks, to build additional capacity into the network 
• Nature-based solutions, to build additional capacity into the network 
• Sustainable drainage systems, to slow the flow of surface water into the combined network 
• The storm overflow project is part of Yorkshire Water’s £8.3bn investment into its services and the environment over the next five years.