London practice hit by water mains work

A Notting Hill practice has seen its turnover halved since January when Thames Water began a programme to replace 500 metres of Victorian water mains in Westbourne Grove.

Large wooden hoardings block shops from passing trade, causing shoppers to avoid the area. Optometrist Ishrat Khaku, who runs Optichic, explained: 'It's so dark, people are afraid to come down here.' After complaints from shopkeepers, Thames Water erected lights on the hoardings, 'but rarely turn them on', she said.

Having campaigned with local residents for Thames Water to begin the work, Khaku added: 'Each year the drains would overflow, causing damage to premises. Everybody was worried about flooding and none of us could get insurance.' Khaku now regrets the work having started and claims she could have been better off being 'flooded once a year and dealing with that cost rather than suffering month after month of bad takings.'