Aldenham Reservoir is situated in the parish of
Elstree and Borehamwood in
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...
, England, about one mile (1.6 km) to the west of the village of
Elstree
Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of t ...
.
It is the source of the stream,
Tykes Water, that runs north through
Radlett
Radlett is a village in Hertfordshire, England, between Elstree and St Albans on Watling Street, with a population of 8,042. It is in the council district of Hertsmere in the south of the county, and is covered by two wards; Aldenham East an ...
.
History
It was built between 1795 and 1797 by the Grand Junction Canal Company, to control the water levels in the
River Colne following the construction of the
Grand Junction Canal
The Grand Junction Canal is a canal in England from Braunston in Northamptonshire to the River Thames at Brentford, with a number of branches. The mainline was built between 1793 and 1805, to improve the route from the Midlands to London, b ...
, and was hand dug by French prisoners of war.
An inspection report on the condition of the reservoir's dam in September 2019 revealed it to be a stable structure and in good condition, but requiring longer-term repair.
Originally, the reservoir was in extent, but following repairs to the dam its surface area was reduced to .
Since 1973 the reservoir has no longer been required for drinking water.
Access
The reservoir has been used for recreational purposes, including fishing and sailing. However, following an inspection of the dam in 2019, the current owners dropped the water level to reduce pressure on the structure. The sailing club was, as a result, no longer able to sail, handed back its lease in 2020 and departed. This also raised questions about the future use of the reservoir.
There have also been suggestions that public access will be reduced with the reservoir fenced off from
Aldenham Country Park.
See also
Nearby is the much larger
Hilfield Park Reservoir
Hilfield Park Reservoir is a 76.3 ha (189 acres) construction built in 1953 between Bushey and Elstree in Hertfordshire, and owned by Affinity Water. Declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR) in 1969, it is managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlif ...
, a nature reserve owned by
Affinity Water.
References
Reservoirs in Hertfordshire
Canal reservoirs in England
Dams in Hertfordshire
Hertsmere
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