Windrush

Catchment partnership vision

Our partnership vision is where the Windrush catchment has clean water, is healthy and full of wildlife, is enjoyed and valued by all, and managed sustainably for the long-term. The target areas for the Windrush Catchment Partnership to address are agreed as; water quality, natural environment, development pressures, co-ordination and monitoring. Our declared aims are to:

  • conserve, protect and improve water quality and biodiversity
  • increase awareness of the importance of clean water, sustainable water use, and the benefits of a healthy river system, as well as the need for measures and actions to conserve and protect the water environment
  • have a shared evidence base.We want to increase partnership representation and bring new voices into the room, such as farmers, flood groups, recreational users, and our ability to bring in money to advance our partnership aims, including selling the wider society benefits and tapping into new funding streams.

Related websites

Find out more about the activities and ambitions of this catchment partnership and how you can get involved to help improve the water environment in the catchment.

Catchment challenges

Current challenges identified by partnership

  • Pollution from waste water

    Sewage discharges have damaged the rivers ecology, compounded by a lack of monitoring and enforcement

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    Much of the catchment is rural: impacted by diffuse and point source pollution from farming and other rural activities

  • Changes to the natural flow and water levels

    Borehole abstraction in the upper catchment and changes to the flow regime downstream of Witney is adversely impacting on the rivers ecology

Wider water environment challenges identified by partnership

  • Reduce storm overflows and drainage system incidents

    Storm sewage discharges are seriously damaging the rivers ecology

  • Improved bathing waters (including inland)

    Public concern that rivers are not fit to swim in

  • Nature Recovery, protect and enhance rare habitats including chalk streams

    Cotswolds limestone streams have witnessed serious ecological declines, including invertebrates and some fish species

  • Protect and restore healthy soils and nutrient balance

    Modern agriculture has seriously damaged soils through both compaction and erosion of top soils

  • Support Nature Recovery Network and Local Nature Recovery Strategy

    Helping nature recover given the economic constraints and other conflicting demands, e.g. development needs

  • Build environmental resilience and adaptation to climate change

    The ephemeral streams in the Cotswolds at risk from future predicted summer droughts

Future challenges predicted by partnership

  • Pollution from waste water

    Eliminating pollution from untreated/semi-treated sewage discharges is the catchment partnerships number one priority

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    Pollution from agriculture and rural areas remain major adversely impacting water quality in the catchment

  • Changes to the natural flow and water levels

    Borehole abstraction in the upper catchment and changes to the flow regime downstream of Witney is adversely impacting on the rivers ecology

Future challenges predicted by Environment Agency

Future challenges in 2050

  • Invasive Non-native Species
  • Pollution from waste water
  • Changes to the Natural Flow and Water Levels

Emerging challenges

  • Pollution from waste water
  • Changes to the Natural Flow and Water Levels
  • Pollution from Agriculture and Rural Areas

Partnership success highlights 2016 to 2021

Partner successes include:

  • Gloucester Wildlife Trust Cotswold Rivers Programme, extension for natural flood management, invasive non-native species control, water vole and fish habitats, land management advice to riparian owners including National Trust collaboration
  • awareness raising campaigns on poor water quality including sewage spills led by Windrush Against Sewage Partnership and supported by ongoing citizen science sampling and 'big data' analysis
  • successful engagements included River Rangers and Yellow Fish schemes with local schools, and at large events such as Countryfile Live and Oxford Festival of Nature
  • ecosystem service modelling and mapping of the Windrush catchment, guiding project development
  • Lower Windrush Valley project community engagement: increased access, habitat restoration and production of a detailed biodiversity opportunity review to guide future work
  • 5 years of Upper Thames Farmer Conservation Group, building on RSPB Upper Thames Waders project, linked to BBOWT Living Landscape programme
  • Cotswold Flyfishers fish habitat restoration work with volunteer work parties including River Windrush at Sherborne, Widford, Asthall, Sherborne Brook, River Leach at Lechlade and Southrop and River Dikler at Bourton on the Water, Lower Swell and Upper Swell
  • BBOWT near £2 million Chimney Duxford Water Environment Grant funded wetland habitat creation, restoration, and fish bypass projects started
  • metaldehyde reduction projects with FWAG South West and Thames Water
  • Water Vole Recovery Project surveying, mink control and habitat advice.

Partnership development plans

We would like to have:

  • Wider partnership involvement
  • More substantive outcomes as a partnership, moving the partnership on from discussion to action
  • greater influence addressing the climate and biodiversity crisis at a catchment level
  • more community ownership, including stewardship of water to recognise it as a resource and provider of ecosystem services
  • more co-developed research, monitoring and evidence sharing - guiding risk assessments and plans to adapting to water pressures changes in the region
  • funding for substantial project development, completion and long-term partnership hosting.

Partnership priority actions and measures for 2022 to 2027

  • Confident

    Enhancement/no deterioration measures in 2020-2025 Water Industry National Environment Programme

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage point source discharges
    Delivery mechanism
    Confirmed water industry national environment programme 2020-2025
    Location
    Windrush

  • Confident

    Enhance 'Upper Thames Farmer Conservation Group': natural flood management, INNS, soil health, habitat restoration

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Environment Land Management Scheme (future full-scale roll-out)
    Location
    Windrush

  • Confident

    Extend Cotswolds Rivers Living Landscape work: INNS control, natural flood management, fish habitat restoration

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Windrush

  • Confident

    Continue Water Vole Recovery project: recruit more volunteers and landowners: species protection, greater biodiversity

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage invasive non-native species
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Windrush

  • Confident

    Floodplain restoration (Chimney and Duxford Old River): natural flood management, habitat creation biodiversity increase

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Windrush

  • Less certain

    Emma's Dyke and Colwell Brook restoration (if sewage spills stopped): fish habitat creation, higher oxygen levels

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Barriers to delivery
    Cessation of heavy pollution from Witney Sewage Treatment Works, funding
    Location
    Windrush

  • Less certain

    'Windrush in Witney' landscape scale project: habitat restoration, community engagement, natural flood management

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage urban diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    EA Flood/coastal risk management programme
    Barriers to delivery
    Secure funding
    Location
    Windrush

  • Less certain

    Lower Windrush lakes and ponds project: UK BAP Priority Habitats creation and restoration, threatened species recovery

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    Other local funding
    Barriers to delivery
    Secure funding
    Location
    Windrush

  • Less certain

    Conduct or support surface water flow route surveys to better understand flooding and pollution routes

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage regulated flows
    Delivery mechanism
    Other local funding
    Barriers to delivery
    Funding - including more catchment host time
    Location
    Windrush

Catchment Partnership contributors

Partners involved in the creation of this page and the actions of the partnership: