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Home › Rivers › River Wensum

River Wensum water levels

Live levels from 3 monitoring stations across Norfolk, updated every 15 minutes.

3stations
0above typical high

Gauges

Monitoring stations, source to mouth

StationTownLevel nowStatusTrend
FakenhamFakenham0.38 mASD 1h agoNormal—
21.5 km by river
Swanton MorleySwanton Morley0.10 m 8h agoNormal
30.0 km by river
Costessey Mill—0.24 mASD 1h agoLow—

Stations are listed from source to mouth as the water flows, traced on the river map (OS Open Rivers) and the Environment Agency’s own links between its gauges. A distance “by river” is along the river, and is shown only where the map traces the path.

Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

Gauged tributaries

Streams and rivers with a gauge whose water joins the Wensum above one of its gauges, from the source down. Named streams without a gauge that have a page here are listed at the end.

1 gauged tributary, 1 gauge

Wending Beck name from the river map

Joins the Wensum between Fakenham and Swanton Morley, no more than 15.9 km by river above Swanton Morley.

Wendling Beck0.14 mASD 1h agoNormal

Its water passes Swanton Morley and every gauge below it on the Wensum. It does not pass Fakenham or the gauges above it.

Where the Wensum goes

Below Costessey Mill, its water next reaches Brundall, a gauge on River Yare, 26.0 km by river downstream.

Tributaries and where they join are traced on the river map (OS Open Rivers, edition 2026-04) and the Environment Agency’s links between its gauges. The map holds distances between gauges, not the junctions themselves, so a junction is placed between two gauges, and no further up than the tributary’s own lowest gauge. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

Streams without a gauge

Named streams on the river map that flow into the Wensum and have no gauge of their own. Each has a page with what is known about it: the next gauge downstream, and any storm overflows or water-sampling points placed on it.

Storm overflows upstream

7 storm overflows are traced upstream of Costessey Mill, the Wensum’s lowest gauge on the river map: on the Wensum itself, on its gauged tributaries, and on smaller streams that join above there.

  • 0 report discharging now
  • 7 not discharging
  • 0 offline or silent: 0 monitor offline, 0 status unknown, 0 no live feed

Official figures for 2025, for the overflows traced upstream of Costessey Mill: 12 spills over 56 hours in total, across all 7.

Each overflow is listed in the stretch above the first gauge its water reaches, from the source down, as on the Gauges tab. A stretch of the Wensum includes the smaller streams that join it there.

Above Fakenham, the Wensum’s highest gauge1 overflow
  • East Rudham Pumping Station Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into Rudham Stream, Trib R. Wensum · 11.7 km by river above Fakenham · 2025: 2 spills, 3.3 h
Between Fakenham and Swanton Morley4 overflows
  • Fakenham Norwich Road CSO Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into River Wensum · 21.3 km by river above Swanton Morley · 2025: 1 spill, 0.8 h
  • Fakenham (Old And New) Wrc Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into River Wensum · 21.2 km by river above Swanton Morley · 2025: 0 spills, 0 h
  • Foulsham Water Recycling Centre Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into Foulsham Beck River Wensum · 13.4 km by river above Swanton Morley · 2025: 2 spills, 4.0 h · placed on the river by its position alone
  • North Elmham STW Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into River Wensum Nt · 5.3 km by river above Swanton Morley · 2025: 3 spills, 22 h
Between Swanton Morley and Costessey Mill2 overflows
  • Bylaugh Water Recycling Centre Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into River Wensum Nt · 27.3 km by river above Costessey Mill · 2025: 3 spills, 25 h
  • Reepham Water Recycling Centre Not discharging
    Anglian Water · into The Blackwater Drain · 22.3 km by river above Costessey Mill · 2025: 1 spill, 1.0 h · placed on the river by its position alone

A status is the water company’s own monitor: it says whether an overflow is discharging, never how much or why, and a spill does not by itself explain a change in a river level. A status older than two hours is shown as unknown. Annual figures are the official returns: 12/24-hour spills for England and Wales, overflow events for Scotland (Scottish Water counts differently, so the two cannot be compared). “No data” means the monitor produced no usable data that year, not zero. Overflows are placed on OS Open Rivers (edition 2026-04), which leaves out many small channels: an overflow the map cannot place may still drain here. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026. Sewage in Britain’s rivers →

Live status: © Anglian Water storm overflow activity data, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Annual figures for England: Environment Agency Event Duration Monitoring return, © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Water samples

Dated samples taken by the Environment Agency, not live readings. Results are published days to months after the sample is taken, and many points are sampled only a few times a year, or have not been sampled for years.

36 sampling points on the River Wensum and the streams that join it above Costessey Mill, and below it. 21 have a sample from the last 12 months; 23 have any sample banked. Listed from the source down, grouped by the next gauge each one's water reaches.

Above Fakenham River Wensum 9 points, 5 with samples
Sampling pointWatercourse (map)Above the gaugeLast sampleLatest results (river water)
River Wensum Pear Tree Corner BridgeRiver Wensum13 kmLast sampled 29 Jan 2013, before the imported period
East Rudham Stream Eye Road Bridgeunnamed stream12 kmLast sampled 27 Mar 2019, before the imported period
River Tat A148 Road Bridge Coxford (River Wensum)River Tat11 km11 Sep 2026 · 27 days agoOxygen 81.1% Jul 2026Temp 14.9 °C Jul 2026pH 7.6 Jul 2026Ammonia 0.18 mg/l Jul 2026
East Rudham Stream upstream of Broomsthorpe Hallunnamed stream11 kmLast sampled 6 Dec 2022, before the imported period
River Wensum Helhoughton BridgeRiver Wensum8.8 km7 Sep 2026 · 31 days agoOxygen 103.3% Aug 2026Temp 15.5 °CpH 8.14 Aug 2026Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Tat Tatterford Common (River Wensum)River Tat7.9 km7 Sep 2026 · 31 days agoOxygen 85% Aug 2026Temp 15.5 °CpH 8.04 Aug 2026Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Sculthorpe MillRiver Wensum3.4 km7 Sep 2026 · 31 days agoOxygen 93% Aug 2026Temp 15.1 °CpH 8.01 Aug 2026Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Night Common near HemptonRiver Wensum1.1 kmLast sampled 6 Dec 2022, before the imported period
River Wensum Goggs Mill Road Bridge HemptonRiver Wensum0.7 km14 Aug 2026 · 55 days agoOxygen 73.2%Temp 17.4 °CpH 7.74Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
Above Swanton Morley River Wensum 11 points, 7 with samples
Sampling pointWatercourse (map)Above the gaugeLast sampleLatest results (river water)
Tributary of Wendling Beck upstream of Scarning Fenunnamed stream17 km14 Apr 2026 · 6 months agoOxygen 91.4%Temp 9.6 °CpH 7.94Ammonia 0.11 mg/l
Tributary of Wendling Beck Potter's Fen Toftwood Testunnamed stream17 km4 Dec 2024 · 22 months agoOxygen 81.7%Temp 7.1 °CpH 7.8Ammonia 0.15 mg/l
River Wensum Great Ryburgh BridgeRiver Wensum16 km11 Sep 2026 · 27 days agoOxygen 98.9% Mar 2025Temp 7 °C Mar 2025pH 8.19 Mar 2025Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l Mar 2025
Wendling Beck Gressenhall Bridge (River Wensum)Wending Beck11 km7 Sep 2026 · 31 days ago
River Wensum Bintry MillRiver Wensum9.9 kmLast sampled 25 Oct 2006, before the imported period
River Wensum County School BridgeRiver Wensum7.1 kmLast sampled 2 Dec 2021, before the imported period
Black Water Spong Bridge tributary of River WhitewaterBlack Water6.4 kmLast sampled 2 Oct 2006, before the imported period
Black Water downstream of Spong BridgeBlack Water5.4 km4 Aug 2026 · 2 months agoOxygen 95.6% Feb 2024Temp 8.9 °C Feb 2024pH 8.1 Feb 2024Phosphate 0.043 mg/l Feb 2024
River Wensum Billingford BridgeRiver Wensum3.3 kmLast sampled 3 Feb 2011, before the imported period
River Wensum Back Lane WorthingRiver Wensum2.1 km12 Feb 2024 · 2.7 years agoOxygen 89.5%Temp 7 °CpH 8.21Phosphate 0.07 mg/l
River Wensum Swanton Morley BridgeRiver Wensum0.1 km16 Sep 2026 · 22 days agoOxygen 93.4%Temp 16.2 °CpH 8.1Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
Above Costessey Mill River Wensum 11 points, 7 with samples
Sampling pointWatercourse (map)Above the gaugeLast sampleLatest results (river water)
Tributary of River Wensum upstream of Elsing Hallunnamed stream29 km14 Aug 2026 · 55 days agoOxygen 84.1%Temp 17.3 °CpH 7.97Ammonia 0.059 mg/l
River Wensum Lyng Road BridgeRiver Wensum22 km14 Aug 2026 · 55 days agoOxygen 82.9%Temp 20.1 °CpH 7.92Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
Swannington Beck Upgate Commonunnamed stream18 km2 Dec 2025 · 10 months agoOxygen 87.6%Temp 8.6 °CpH 7.74Ammonia 0.031 mg/l
River Wensum Lenwade Pre Dredging SurveyRiver Wensum17 kmLast sampled 19 Dec 2012, before the imported period
River Wensum Great Witchingham BridgeRiver Wensum16 km16 Sep 2026 · 22 days agoOxygen 95.4% Sep 2026Temp 16.9 °CpH 8.21 Sep 2026Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Swannington BridgeTrout Stream16 km7 Sep 2026 · 31 days agoOxygen 70.4%Temp 16 °CpH 7.86Ammonia 0.033 mg/l
River Wensum Alderford off Marriott WayRiver Wensum14 km11 Mar 2026 · 7 months agoOxygen 97.4%Temp 9.3 °CpH 8.11Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Great Witchingham WQMSRiver Wensum13 kmLast sampled 13 Jun 2005, before the imported period
River Wensum downstream of AttlebridgeRiver Wensum12 kmLast sampled 1 Jun 2021, before the imported period
River Wensum Ringland BridgeRiver Wensum8.2 kmLast sampled 13 Jun 2005, before the imported period
River Wensum Taverham BridgeRiver Wensum3.9 km27 Aug 2026 · 42 days agoOxygen 89.7% Apr 2025Temp 9 °C Apr 2025pH 8.25 Apr 2025Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l Apr 2025
Below Costessey Mill 5 points, 4 with samples
Sampling pointWatercourse (map)Below the gaugeLast sampleLatest results (river water)
River Wensum Hellesdon MillRiver Wensum5.0 kmLast sampled 1 May 2014, before the imported period
River Wensum Hellesdon MeadowRiver Wensum6.2 km2 Mar 2026 · 7 months agoOxygen 96%Temp 10.1 °CpH 8.08Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Sweet Briar Road BridgeRiver Wensum6.5 km16 Sep 2026 · 22 days agoOxygen 84.8%Temp 17.1 °CpH 7.9Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum Dolphin Concrete BridgeRiver Wensum8.2 km2 Mar 2026 · 7 months agoOxygen 98.2%Temp 10 °CpH 8.18Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l
River Wensum New MillsRiver Wensum9.3 km5 Mar 2026 · 7 months agoOxygen 96.9%Temp 7.8 °CpH 8.25Ammonia below 0.03 mg/l

Distances are along the river to the gauge named. England's samples only.

FloodRadar does not grade these results: there is no overall score, and official river classifications are a separate dataset. A sample taken downstream of an overflow does not by itself show where anything in it came from. River connections and distances are traced on OS Open Rivers (edition 2026-04), which leaves out many small channels.

Water samples: Environment Agency Water Quality Archive, © Environment Agency and/or database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database rights 2026.

Wave tracker for this river → Norfolk rivers → All UK rivers