Thames Water has launched a supplementary consultation on proposed design changes to its Teddington Direct River Abstraction (TDRA) project.

The supplementary consultation runs from Thursday 21 May to Thursday 18 June 2026, with local people and stakeholders invited to have their say on planned changes to the project at Burnell Avenue and Beaufort Road. The company will host two events to share more information about the updated project plans, including one in-person event and one event online.

The nationally significant project is essential to securing London’s future water supply and would provide up to 75 million litres of water each day during drought, supported by water recycling.

During times of drought, water would be taken from the River Thames upstream of Teddington Weir and transferred through a tunnel to the Lee Valley reservoirs, ready to be turned into drinking water for London.

To maintain river flow and protect the local environment, the company would top up the Thames with highly treated, recycled water. Wastewater is already treated until it is clean enough to go back into environment; this project involves an additional layer of cleaning, known as Tertiary Treatment.

What has changed?

Thames Water held a 10 -week statutory consultation in summer 2025 and since then, has been carefully reviewing community feedback, alongside continuing discussions with stakeholders and analysing further information from technical assessments and surveys. The process has influenced a number of important changes to the project, including a series of proposed design changes on land to the south of Burnell Avenue and at Beaufort Road.

These include:

• Changes to the designs of the proposed intake and outfall structures, including increasing the size of the nearby control building and increasing the number of maintenance hatches that would be needed.
• An increase in the boundary of the area needed for the project (draft Order limits) at the existing substation at Beaufort Road to enable a power cable diversion.
• Increase in the total number and peak levels of Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) servicing the Burnell Avenue worksite during construction, while reducing the number of HGV movements at the Tudor Drive worksite and removing all HGV movements from the Ham Playing Fields worksite. 
• Extending the length of time that construction would take place at the Burnell Avenue site.
• Use of Ewell Road (in addition to other roads previously identified) to route construction traffic to service the Burnell Avenue and Tudor Drive sites.

Leonie Dubois, Head of Engagement, Land and Consents, Thames Water said:

“Community feedback is fundamental to how we’ve developed our project plans and the response to our consultation last summer made clear just how much people care about this project.

"We've been listening carefully, reviewing what people told us, continuing dialogue with key stakeholders, and refining our proposals as a result. The changes we're making to the project reflect that process.

"We still have a way to go before we reach final design stage, and I'd encourage everyone to share their views during our supplementary consultation. Local communities should feel reassured that we are listening, and that their feedback is genuinely shaping our plans."

An in-person event will be held on Tuesday 2 June 2026, 2pm to 8pm, at St Andrew's Church Hall, Church Road, Ham, TW10 5HG.

An online event will be held on Monday 8 June 2026, between 12pm and 1pm (register via thames-sro.co.uk/events).

Due to its supplementary consultation and on-going design changes, the company is now planning to submit its Development Consent Order (DCO) application for the TDRA project, which is of national significance, in early 2027. 

Click here for more information about the supplementary consultation