Blocked drains in Christchurch, Highcliffe and Mudeford

A Christchurch drainage company with engineers close by

Christchurch is one of the three places our engineers are based (Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch). Calls from the town, Highcliffe, Mudeford and Burton are mostly reached usually within 60 minutes, and every job gets a fixed price agreed before any work starts.

My Local Drainage is part of the OneFlow Drainage group, and the visit itself is made by engineers from OneFlow Drainage.

Where the Stour meets the Avon: floods, tides and slow drains

The Environment Agency runs a flood alert area for Christchurch Harbour covering Mudeford, Stanpit and the Quomps. Council flood studies put Purewell and Stanpit at risk from both the Avon and the sea, and parts of Burton from the Clockhouse stream and Burton Brook. In January 2026 the town council reported flooding around the harbour after heavy rain and high tides, and the Agency has a separate flood warning area for homes near Jumpers Common and the A35 at Iford Bridge.

When rivers or the tide are high, three things can pass for a blocked drain:

• a toilet that empties slowly because the sewer further down is full
• a yard gully that won't clear because its outlet is under water
• groundwater seeping into old pipes through cracked joints

Rods and jetting fix none of these. If that's what we find, we tell you, and you report sewer flooding to Wessex Water on 0345 600 4 600, day or night.

Bungalows, terraces and flats: Christchurch homes and their drains

Bungalow country

A 2008 housing survey of the old borough counted 23% of homes as detached bungalows, rising to about a third in Highcliffe and Walkford and in Mudeford and West Highcliffe. St Catherine's Hill has a whole estate of them around Hillside Drive. A bungalow's drains are short and shallow, so they're quick to reach, but the toilet, bath and kitchen often feed one run, and one blockage stops everything.

About 31% of Christchurch residents are over 65, against 18% across England. If you'd rather a son, daughter or neighbour dealt with us, they can call or request a callback for you, and we'll tell you both who is coming.

Somerford, Burton, Purewell and Stanpit

The former Somerford council estate, north of Somerford Road, dates from the 1950s and 60s: substantial semi-detached houses with generous gardens. That's the era of pitch fibre drains, which can flatten or blister as they age, so a camera check is worth it before any repair.

Burton grew from a village along Salisbury Road into a much larger place in the 1970s. In the 2021 Census, 28.9% of households in the Burton and Grange ward lived in a terraced house, the highest share of any Christchurch ward. Purewell has short terraces along its old main street, and Stanpit keeps its 19th-century buildings along Stanpit Lane. In terraces, shared runs are common, so a neighbour's blockage can surface in your gully.

Highcliffe flats

Central Highcliffe had the highest proportion of flats in the old borough, 51.7% in 2008. In a block, the drain usually belongs to everyone, and the managing agent is the first call.

Holiday lets and park homes

Holiday parks between Mudeford and Highcliffe and lets across the town bring guests who don't know the house, and changeover days bring wipes and cooking fat. If you own or manage a let, we can clear it between bookings and share what the camera found.

Recent drainage jobs in Christchurch

Real Christchurch jobs with the street area, the date, the fault and the fix.

Drain unblocking and repairs in Christchurch

• Drain unblocking: If we can't clear it, you don't pay. If the same drain blocks again within 30 days, we come back free.
• Emergency drain unblocking: for an overflowing toilet or gully at night or at the weekend. The same price day, night, weekends and bank holidays.
• CCTV drain survey: finds out why a drain keeps blocking, or whether it's river water rather than a fault.
• Drain relining: seals cracked joints that let groundwater in, without digging up a garden. 10-year guarantee on relining and repairs.

Wessex Water, Southern Water and the Hampshire border

Christchurch's public sewers belong to Wessex Water, which runs a water recycling centre in the town. Your drinking water comes from Bournemouth Water. Cross into Hampshire and that changes: in New Milton, a few miles east, the sewers are Southern Water's. A BH23 postcode doesn't settle it either, because Bransgore shares it but sits in Hampshire's New Forest district.

Since October 2011, a drain you share with a neighbour, and your own pipe once it leaves your boundary, has been the water company's responsibility. The part serving only your home, inside your boundary, is yours. Road gullies in Christchurch, Highcliffe, Mudeford and Burton are looked after by BCP Council (report online or on 01202 123 123); in Bransgore they're Hampshire County Council's.

Christchurch prices

Areas we cover in and around Christchurch

The town centre and Quay, Purewell, Stanpit, Mudeford, Friars Cliff, Highcliffe, Walkford, Somerford, Jumpers, St Catherine's Hill, Fairmile, Burton, Winkton, Iford and Hurn. Over the border we also cover Bransgore, New Milton and the rest of west Hampshire. West of the town, we cover Bournemouth and Poole, and the rest of Dorset.

Reviews from Christchurch customers

Reviews come from the group, not from us alone: 4.9 stars from 325+ Google reviews of OneFlow Drainage. These were left by customers in and around Christchurch.

Christchurch drainage FAQs