A WATER company has pledged thousands of pounds to help reduce the risk of flooding in a town.

Northumbrian Water will invest £280,000 to upgrade and increase capacity of the sewer network in the Tame Bridge area, near Stokesley.

The work, which will reduce the risk of flooding to four properties and surrounding land, begins this week, and will take up to four months to complete.

Project manager for the improvement scheme Ian Davison said: "We appreciate that some customers in the Tame Bridge area of Stokesley have suffered flooding in times of heavy rainfall, and that this does cause distress.

"Flooding in this location is a result of several factors, including incapacity in this section of the sewage network, overland run-off and inadequate highway drainage. We are working closely with the other relevant agencies to resolve the flooding issues. Northumbrian Water's improvement work will involve upgrading 630 metres of sewer pipe and will increase capacity within the sewage network."

Traffic management on Tame Bridge Road will be in place while the work is carried out.

Water company bosses said it was unlikely anyone from the company would need to gain access to homes while the work was being carried out.

If customers are in any doubt about a caller claiming to be from the water company, they should not let them in.

Instead, they should ring the company's customer centre on 0845-717-1100 to confirm the caller's identity or for more information.