Pensioner forced to cough up five-figure sum to maintain stream outside home after council invokes centuries-old law

James Saunders
Thu, 23 Apr 2026 05:17:14 +0000

A 76-year-old homeowner could be facing a five-figure bill after his local council invoked centuries-old laws to make him responsible for a nearby stream.

Graham Ottaway purchased his semi-detached property in St Neots with his wife around nine years ago, believing his boundary ended at the garden fence.

Weeks ago, Cambridgeshire County Council told him and his neighbours they must maintain the waterway and surrounding vegetation under "riparian law".

Riparian rights and responsibilities are legal obligations attached to land bordering watercourses such as rivers, streams, lakes, ditches or brooks.

Landowners with such duties must maintain the waterway, address blockages, prevent flooding and pollution, and protect local wildlife.

These obligations stem from common law dating back to ancient Rome.

Failure to comply can result in prosecution under modern legislation including the Public Health Act 1936, the Land Drainage Acts 1991 and 1994, and the Environment Agency Land Drainage Bylaws 1981.

Mr Ottaway maintains he was never told of his responsibilities, stating they appeared neither in the property deeds nor through his conveyancer.

"When we did the searches on the property, if something had come back saying we're responsible for thousands of pounds worth of upkeep for the land beyond our fence, we probably wouldn't have bought the house," he told the Daily Mail.

Conveyancers, solicitors and sellers should disclose riparian responsibilities, though buyers bear ultimate responsibility for due diligence.

Mr Ottaway claims the council has applied the law inconsistently across the area.

He pointed out homeowners on the opposite side of the brook face no such requirements, and the council even cuts their grass.

COUNCIL FURY - READ MORE:

Fury as historic street 'turned into Disney theme park' by slew of 'tacky Harry Potter shops'

Furious locals fight back as 1,000-year-old community to be split in half in 'council land grab'

Seaside town in revolt at plans for new homes amid fears 'people from Birmingham' would swarm in

"Surely if it applies to us, it applies to everybody along the length of the stream. [But] it seems to only apply to certain houses," he added.

"Now, on the other side of the brook, there are houses. What they're saying is, that doesn't count."

The pensioner questions why he should maintain land beyond his property boundary, noting mature oak trees hundreds of years old could cost thousands if they fell.

"It seems silly to me, they're holding us responsible for something that we have to go down a bank, across a stream, and up the bank on the other side for - something that's not actually in our property."

A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesman said: 'Following a report from a member of the public, we inspected Duloe Brook and found it to be in a poor state of repair.'

The council stated that maintaining watercourses generally falls to adjacent landowners, though specific duties can vary according to leases and legal agreements.

Officers wrote to residents along Duloe Brook reminding them to keep the channel and banks clear to prevent flooding risk.

Council staff met with affected homeowners in November 2025 and March 2026 to address their concerns.