Churches facing water bill threat
Reporter: OUR LOBBY CORRESPONDENT
Date published: 16 January 2009
Criticism flows over new charge
MPs are demanding that the water company which serves Oldham reviews its decision to charge churches up to £1,000 a year in bills — fearing local places of worship could be forced to close.
United Utilities has introduced the new charge to cover the cost of surface water and highways drainage. Churches were previously exempt from water rates but must now pay this charge, calculated on the surface area of their site.
The charge applies only to non-household premises, such as businesses and public buildings, which have a water meter. Water industry regulator Ofwat and the customer watchdog, the Consumer Council for Water, back the move, considering it to be fairer than the previous scheme.
However, a House of Commons petition demands United Utilities rethink the change, which MPs believe will have a negative impact on all places of worship.
The Rev Neil Chappell, of Greenacres Congregational Church, said: “The concern is many churches have big sites and not just in terms of the buildings but the grounds, as we do, and people could be faced with very large bills.
“When they are struggling with other increases in gas and electricity it is already worrying and this will be another problem.”
The Rev Phil Barratt, of St James’s Church, Thornham, said: “It has not impacted on us as yet, but I know people are worried about it. We have not had the bill so I do not know what it will be, we have been advised to pay it and then discuss it later.”
In the past, non-household customers paid for the surface water drainage element of their bill through a fixed charge, usually based on a property’s rateable value. Under the new charge, which is being phased in by 2011, it is based on the drained area occupied by a property and its site.
United Utilities said it was making no financial gain from the changes.
Customer service director Brian Hurd said: “The aim is not to increase our revenue but to provide a system which better reflects the costs involved. This means that individual customers have seen either increases or decreases in these charges.
“Rateable value was previously the most common method used to assess rainwater drainage charges.
“Although this did take account of property size, it was also influenced by a property’s location and this could lead to many inconsistencies in charges for surface water drainage.”
A spokesman for the Consumer Council for Water added: “The change has been approved by Ofwat to try to ensure a fairer system of charging so that non-household customers are paying for the load they place on the public sewers and drains.”
