News

Midlands water company Severn Trent is to reopen some of its smaller visitor sites from Wednesday (May 20) after all sites were closed to keep people safe during the coronavirus crisis.

The company is introducing a number of measures to keep visitors as safe as possible, including closing some footpaths, introducing one-way systems and keeping all playgrounds shut.

Hand sanitiser will be provided in some car parks and toilets, although the number of toilets available will be reduced.

That means, from Wednesday, the following sites will reopen to the public:

• Trimpley in Worcestershire;

• Shustoke near Birmingham;

• Ogston in Derbyshire;

• Priorslee in Telford;

• Nanpantan in Leicestershire

;• Linacre In Derbyshire;

• Thornton in Leicestershire, and

• Stanford in Leicestershire.

The larger sites will remain closed for now, while further plans are worked up to reflect the larger number of visitors expected. 

Dominic Robinson, Visitor Experience Lead at Severn Trent, said: “With the restrictions to outdoor activity and travel eased, we know our visitor sites will provide a way for people to get outside and to enjoy some exercise. 

“While we’re reopening our smaller sites, our top priority remains the safety of our visitors, staff and tenants.

“So, if, after the smaller sites have reopened, we’re confident our plans are working well, and social distancing is being maintained, we’ll look to open our larger sites over the coming weeks.”

The sites remaining closed are:

• Staunton Harold in Derbyshire;

• Fairholmes at Upper Derwent Valley in Derbyshire;

• Draycote Water in Warwickshire;

• Tittesworth in Staffordshire;

• Foremark in Derbyshire; and

• Carsington in Derbyshire.

Severn Trent is also warning they will be carefully monitoring visitor numbers and may need to close sites if too many people turn up at once.  The company therefore advises people to check the website and relevant social media feeds for the sites before travelling to see what facilities are open and what measures are in place.

All current information on visitor sites can be found at: https://www.stwater.co.uk/wonderful-on-tap/our-visitor-sites/come-visit-us/reopening-our-visitor-sites/.

Draycote (@STWDraycote), Carsington (@STWCarsington), Tittesworth (@STWTittesworth), Staunton Harold (@STWStaunton), Foremark (@STWForemark), Upper Derwent Valley (@STWLadybower) and Linacre (@STWLinacre) all have individual social media feeds.