SOLAR campaign enters New Phase After Overwhelming community 'No'

Thames Water's Statutory Consultation throughout July and August aimed to convince the public of their scheme's merits. Instead, they received an overwhelming wave of community opposition. The message was clear: No. Our local group, SOLAR, hand-delivered over 7,500 postcards against the proposals, and thousands more emails, letters, and detailed statements of opposition were submitted by countless individuals and organizations. We understand the total number of responses against the scheme was approximately 14,000, demonstrating the depth and breadth of public concern.

Our campaign is now entering a pivotal nine-month period, running from October 2025 to Summer 2026. Our strategy is shifting decisively to focus on increasing political pressure and public visibility at the highest levels. This is the critical window where our focused efforts can have the greatest impact.

We will be targeting key regulatory and political moments over the coming months. This includes applying pressure during the Thames Water business plan review in October 2025, responding strategically to the publication of the pilot results on water treatment levels in November 2025, and influencing the direction of the Cunliffe Review white paper in Autumn 2025. All of this work will lead to the final push before Thames Water's crucial Gate 4 (DC) submission, expected in August 2026.

We will continue to keep the thousands of opponents to this scheme aware and activated through our newsletter, regular social media posts, and public events. This is arguably the most important period of the entire campaign. Please sign up, follow, and get involved now to help ensure our collective opposition stops this scheme.