Background to the reservoir

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The site for the reservoir has been owned by Portsmouth Water since 1965 and covers 160 hectares.

It sits next to Rowlands Castle and Leigh Park in Havant and is bordered to the north by Forestry England woodland at Havant Thicket. To the south sits Staunton Country Park, which is owned by Hampshire County Council.

It was chosen as the perfect site for a reservoir because it sits in a valley on clay, which provides a natural seal for water. It is currently grassland and open space with a small area of trees and is used by communities via a network of paths which link Havant Thicket woodland and Staunton Country Park.

The site measures one mile (1.6km) in length from east to west and half a mile (0.8km) from north to south.

Plans for the reservoir were originally drawn up in 1964 and then again in 2008, when they were shared during a public consultation with the local community, businesses, organisations and schools through a series of talks, workshops and exhibitions.

There was strong support for the project at the time and the feedback helped shaped our plans for how the reservoir might look, a pipeline route and access road.

However, it didn’t go ahead back then as there wasn’t enough demand for the water.

Now there is a shortfall of water across the South East as a whole and plans for the reservoir have been included in Portsmouth Water’s and Southern Water’s long-term water resources plans.

On 9 June 2021, East Hampshire District Council’s Planning Committee resolved to grant planning permission for Havant Thicket Reservoir.

The decision came after councillors in neighbouring Havant Borough gave their support to our reservoir proposals on 3 June 2021, along with our plans for a reservoir pipeline.

Full planning permission has now been granted and work started on site in October 2021.

Further details can be found on the links below, plus you can read our Havant Thicket Reservoir Design & Access Statement.

You can watch our video showing what the reservoir would look like, once completed.




The site for the reservoir has been owned by Portsmouth Water since 1965 and covers 160 hectares.

It sits next to Rowlands Castle and Leigh Park in Havant and is bordered to the north by Forestry England woodland at Havant Thicket. To the south sits Staunton Country Park, which is owned by Hampshire County Council.

It was chosen as the perfect site for a reservoir because it sits in a valley on clay, which provides a natural seal for water. It is currently grassland and open space with a small area of trees and is used by communities via a network of paths which link Havant Thicket woodland and Staunton Country Park.

The site measures one mile (1.6km) in length from east to west and half a mile (0.8km) from north to south.

Plans for the reservoir were originally drawn up in 1964 and then again in 2008, when they were shared during a public consultation with the local community, businesses, organisations and schools through a series of talks, workshops and exhibitions.

There was strong support for the project at the time and the feedback helped shaped our plans for how the reservoir might look, a pipeline route and access road.

However, it didn’t go ahead back then as there wasn’t enough demand for the water.

Now there is a shortfall of water across the South East as a whole and plans for the reservoir have been included in Portsmouth Water’s and Southern Water’s long-term water resources plans.

On 9 June 2021, East Hampshire District Council’s Planning Committee resolved to grant planning permission for Havant Thicket Reservoir.

The decision came after councillors in neighbouring Havant Borough gave their support to our reservoir proposals on 3 June 2021, along with our plans for a reservoir pipeline.

Full planning permission has now been granted and work started on site in October 2021.

Further details can be found on the links below, plus you can read our Havant Thicket Reservoir Design & Access Statement.

You can watch our video showing what the reservoir would look like, once completed.




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