Action in Norfolk's most exclusive village after a stink over sewage

But that doesn't stop twee Burnham Market from suffering from a far less picture postcard problem during heavy rains, with locals reporting issues with sewage and overflowing drains.

Now, Anglian Water has unveiled a £1.5m investment in improvements at a local water works which it hopes could provide a solution.

In one particularly wet spell, in February 2021, some households were left unable to flush their toilets while others had waste bubbling up in their gardens.

Basements were flooded and roads were closed after the Goose Beck, an ancient and usually dry water course through the centre of the village, began flowing again after downpours.

Anglian Water said its sewers were not designed to cope with the amount of rain which had fallen, which was said to be the highest in a century, and the resulting high groundwater levels around the village.

In addition to that incident, figures also show that raw sewage was discharged into the River Burn on 65 days during 2021.

Anglian Water's water recycling works at Burnham Market, where ?1.5m has been invested in improvments (Image: Chris Bishop)

Anglian Water said a new storm tank at its water works would increase storm water storage capacity, to help it cope during extreme weather and flooding.

Excess water would then be treated to a high standard before being returned to nearby water courses.

A spokesman added: "There was also further work completed last year at Burnham to help protect local watercourses like the River Burn, with a CCTV investigation into the condition of the sewers to help detect blockages, followed by an end-to-end jet clean of the pipes."

Sewage discharge figures for this year will be available in March, 2023.

The outfall into the River Burn from Anglian Water's treatment works at Burnham Market (Image: Chris Bishop)

The spokesman added: "This summer has been very dry so CSO (combined sewer overflow) spills have dropped right down. So 2021 data is now fairly historic and probably not very reflective of what we’ve seen this year."