Youlgrave Waterworks
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| Company type | Private company limited by guarantee |
|---|---|
| Industry | Utility |
| Founded | 1829 |
| Headquarters | Youlgreave, Derbyshire, England |
Youlgrave Waterworks is a small water supply company in the village of Youlgreave (also spelt Youlgrave), Derbyshire. Established by a public subscription in 1829 the Waterworks provided a single conduit head outlet for the village. It was expanded by a second subscription in 1869 which added more public taps and private connections. The company now supplies around 500 homes and businesses in the village.
It is unusual in being a private water supply company in an industry dominated by statutory undertakers. Because of this Youlgrave Waterworks is not regulated by Ofwat but by the environmental health arm of the local authority. The company narrowly escaped closure in 2002 when its insurer refused to renew its cover.
The village of Youlgreave (also spelt Youlgrave), is situated in the Derbyshire portion of the Peak District. Villagers had traditionally collected water from springs and watercourses in the nearby Lathkill and Bradford dales. In the summer months the lower water quantity in these sources concentrated toxins, causing elevated levels of infant mortality. Because of this July-August in Youlgrave was known as "fever season".[1]
In 1827 local woman Hannah Bowman (1758-1842) established the Women’s Friendly Society of Youlgrave. Bowman, an elderly spinster, belonged to a farming family that claimed a lineage back to the Norman conquest and whose Quaker parents had instilled in her the importance of charity. The Society soon decided that the reliable supply of clean water was a priority for the village. A public subscription was begun towards this aim. Bowman contributed £100 and the lord of the manor, John Manners, 5th Duke of Rutland, subscribed £50.[1]
A Youlgrave resident and surveyor designed a system that would run a 2-inch (51 mm) diameter pipe over 1,100 yards (1,000 m) from a spring at Mawstone, south of the village, to a 1,500-imperial-gallon (6,800 L; 1,800 US gal) tank, known as a conduit.[2][1] The conduit provided a point for villagers to collect water and was sited in the market place, on the location of the village's Saxon cross. The works were completed in July 1829 and cost £252 13s 10.5d (equivalent to £28,087 in 2023).[1]
The conduit stood 9 feet (2.7 m) tall and became known locally as "the fountain". Access was controlled with a water keeper unlocking the conduit at 6 o'clock every morning; the conduit was allowed to fill overnight and was capable of supplying 10,000 imperial gallons (45,000 L; 12,000 US gal) per day. It soon became a hub of village life as villagers congregated while waiting to fill buckets with water.[1] The gritstone conduit has been a grade II listed building since 12 July 1967.[3] It has not been uniformly praised with architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner describing it as a "big plain lumpy circular conduit head".[1]
The Youlgrave Waterworks Company was formed to manage the water supply and villagers were charged six pence per day to access it.[1]
Expansion
By 1869 the original pipework was suffering from corrosion, threatening the supply.[2] A new subscription was raised to repair the pipe, connect an additional spring (Bleakly), install ten public taps across the village and provide private connections to some houses.[2][1] In addition to the subscription every able-bodied man in the village was asked to provide three days labour or funds to pay for the equivalent. The works were completed in November 1869 at the cost of £381 (equivalent to £44,455 in 2023). To mark the occasion the ancient Peak District tradition of well dressing was revived in the village.[2]
By 1926 the system was suffering from low pressure and increased demand so another series of upgrade works was carried out.[2]