WESSEX Water says it is hopeful that flooding problems in Wick Lane, Devizes, will be solved with the building of a new sewer.

Many residents in Wick Lane have suffered in recent years when raw sewage has flooded out of the sewer into their homes.

Wessex Water has been investigating why Wick Lane has suffered flooding problems and on Tuesday water company officials spoke at a town council meeting.

Nick Buller, the company's sewerage manager for the Devizes area, said they had found a lot of tree roots growing into the sewer pipe. They had had to remove them regularly.

In May, the company relined the existing sewer in a bid to stop roots growing into the pipe.

He said they were now considering putting in another sewer pipe alongside the existing one to solve the problem in the long term.

The existing pipe would be used to serve the Wick Lane area while a new pipe would serve new housing developments in the future.

He said if funding for the scheme was agreed a new pipe could be installed by May 2003.

Councillors were told there would not be a capacity problem if new homes were built in the area in the future.