🗂️ The Disappearing Mystery Drain Of Crowle, North Lincs
A Line on the Map, A Trail Gone Cold
*Map of the field and the drain in question, located adjacent to Windsor Crescent & Windsor Lane, Crowle, North Lincolnshire DN17 4EQ. Note: location of the drain is arrowed in red. Taken from GOV UK website.
It started with a line — a faint, blue marking on an Ordnance Survey map. A nameless riparian “Drain” cutting quietly across the field where construction now shakes Crowle to its core.
Then it appeared again.
On North Lincolnshire Council’s own planning maps.
And again — on the official Land Registry Title Plan (HS355882).
The same drain.
The same route.
But no clear answers.
2022: Frustrated by a lack of public clarity, a Crowle resident contacted the local Drainage Board.
Nothing.
So the resident contacted the local MP, Andrew Percy. His office said they, too, were frustrated by the Drainage Board’s responses — which was odd, since they had been perfectly cooperative with the resident during enquiries about a different site in Epworth, back in 2020, with e-mail correspondence as proof.
The pattern of silence was beginning to form.
Fast forward to 2022 again:
SOCOTEC surveyors appear on the field — working, drilling, measuring.
The resident asked Severn Trent Water about the drain.
Their reply?
“We know nothing.”
So the resident sent them the evidence. Maps. Titles. Location data.
Still nothing.
In frustration, the resident reported the matter to North Lincolnshire Council’s Planning Department, flagging it as a possible breach of planning regulations.
Their reply?
“Exempt under the Town and Country Planning Act.”
No explanation, no breakdown — and, notably, no mention of the watercourse.
A convenient exemption — one that seems to neatly sidestep any accountability around the drain’s presence, purpose, or protection. Permitted development isn’t a licence to ignore undocumented, unacknowledged, or mismanaged drains or watercourses, override drainage authorities, or sidestep public accountability.
2 April 2025 – The Turning Point
With a friend (a former Drainage Board member), the resident visited the local board office in person.
They’re shown the drain — on their own internal plans.
They confirm it exists. They confirm it's on record.
They tell the visitors:
“Someone will be in touch.”
No one ever was…
…except - North Lincolnshire Council, who sent a letter (via e-mail) to the resident warning that future contact could be restricted under its “persistent and unreasonable complainants” policy. Coincidence?
The resident discovered prior to the visit to the Drainage Board office (and North Lincolnshire Councils’ offices, earlier that day to ask questions), that on the Register of Interests for two Ward Councillors, Julie Reed & Ian Bint, they both declared themselves as Drainage Board Members. Coincidence?
The same two Ward Councillors who proudly boasted on a newsletter in February 2025, reassuring residents that they were “scrutinising” the ongoing sewer and drainage works being carried out by Severn Trent, in partnership with the local drainage board and highways authority. This same newsletter featured a photo of Cllrs Julie Reed and Ian Bint alongside North Lincolnshire Council Leader Cllr Rob Waltham (who, at time of writing, is campaigning for Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire) and others, appearing to celebrate the works. Coincidence?
Also on 18 March: The resident submitted a formal Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Drainage Board.
Requesting the following basic details:
The designation of the drain
Any agreements or correspondence about it
Maintenance or historical records
As of today — 15 April — the request remains unacknowledged. Coincidence?
The legal deadline for a response (20 working days) expires today!
If no reply is received, the resident will escalate to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
🕵️♂️ “Curiously, while STW asset maps appear to show nothing, it’s possible the full SOCOTEC report — the one Yorkshire Water’s Timothy Ip seems reluctant to disclose — contains exactly what the public deserves to see: the truth.”
What began as a line on a map has led to evasions, contradictions, and now official silence.
This is no longer just about a drain.
It’s about accountability, transparency, and how easily the paper trail vanishes when people start asking the wrong questions.
📢 We’ll keep pressing. You keep watching.
📚 Read the full archive at mickeyjoe1.substack.com
✍️ Sign & share the petition here
📽️ Video archive of the ongoing situation: https://youtube.com/@MickeyJoe-z6r
👉 If you feel strongly about the issues raised in this article, then consider sending an e-mail to Crowle Town Council (clerk@crowleandealandcouncil.org) or North Lincolnshire Council (customerservice@northlincs.gov.uk) or even Councillor Julie Reed, (Cllr.juliereed@northlincs.gov.uk), and ask them why are residents being silenced?
📢 Please share this petition and ask others to sign. Help amplify the message:
Local voices should be heard, not silenced!