Plan to take over sewage plant
Residents faced with paying thousands of pounds to repair Bridgnorth council sewage works are considering taking over the plants themselves.
Bridgnorth District Council says residents have the right to assume responsibility for the treatment works if they wanted to do the job instead of the council.
Tom Clark, the council's head of legal and democratic services, said he would be happy to draw up the paperwork if residents wanted to take the job on.
He said: "If residents decided to assume responsibility for the sewage plant, the council would transfer ownership to them and assist with preparing the necessary documentation.
"The residents would need to set up a company to maintain the plant, which would hold the legal title and in which they each would all have a share.
"The company would then be responsible, through its shareholders, for arranging the maintenance of the sewage plants. The cost would be divided between the residents involved.
"If a council property was also connected to the plant, the council would be part of the company."
Residents who own former council houses and are connected to council sewage works will have to pay a total of about £83,000 towards major repairs to 17 plants.
Bob Teague, of Sutton Maddock, said he and fellow residents were considering taking over their plant but it was a big decision.
"It is a possibility but I don't know which way we are going yet," he said. "It's a catch-22 situation really."
Mr Teague said some people thought taking on the sewage works themselves could work out cheaper in the long term, but it would take a lot of time and effort.
