Green councillors are questioning a huge increase in water charges for a Katesgrove allotment site.
Green councillors have questioned the very large £54,000 water bill for the Reading Council allotment site at Waterloo Meadows. This is a 2,600% increase. They want to know why this wasn’t spotted earlier.
Councillor Louise Keane (Green Party, Katesgrove Ward) said: “We have been contacted by frustrated plot holders who have been without water for months. The water bill for this site has increased massively since 2021/22 when the bill was only £2000. In 2022/23 it increased steeply to £14,000 and in 2023/24 it was a whopping £54,000. The council has informed us that this massively increased water bill was caused by a leak which Thames water says is on the council’s pipework.
“A water bowser was provided by the council to help plot holders with the watering of fruit and vegetables but it often ran out of water within a day. We are concerned that the water bill could increase so substantially without the council’s finance team noticing last year and that plot holders have been left without water for so long.
“We need the Labour council to take notice and take action when £50,000 worth of water drains away.”
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