This film by Coulthard Productions shows the history, design stage and the construction of the Don Valley Scheme in relation to the water systems around Sheffield, including the construction of the pumping station building and tunnel shaft at Blackburn Meadows Sewage Treatment Works. Towards the end of the film, Phase I of the Don Valley Scheme is shown being officially declared open by Giles Shaw MP on 5th July, 1983. The Yorkshire Water rose logo appears. Landscapes of fields and the sky...

This film by Coulthard Productions shows the history, design stage and the construction of the Don Valley Scheme in relation to the water systems around Sheffield, including the construction of the pumping station building and tunnel shaft at Blackburn Meadows Sewage Treatment Works. Towards the end of the film, Phase I of the Don Valley Scheme is shown being officially declared open by Giles Shaw MP on 5th July, 1983. The Yorkshire Water rose logo appears. Landscapes of fields and the sky are shown. Rain droplets are seen hitting the surface of water. Water is seen in the hills. A close-up of water in a stream is shown. A river in a woodland is shown. A group of people walk on a path next to it. A large reservoir is shown from a distance. Close-ups of water pouring down steps-like structure. Title – Don Valley – Replacing a Victorian Legacy Water is shown going down a drain. Water is shown on a windscreen. A man runs across a busy, dark road in the rain; the road is wet and the cars have headlights on. A toilet flushes. Someone washes their hands in a sink full of water. Soapy water is shown in a washing machine. Water from a pipe is shown going down a drain. Water is shown pouring from a pipe at the side of a building. A river is shown with industrial buildings in the background. A view of the city of Sheffield is shown. The Cholera Monument in Clay Wood, Sheffield is shown from a distance. A panning shot shows woodland. A close-up shot of a gravestone reveals the name ‘Blake’ who died of cholera. Archive photos show images of Sheffield during the cholera outbreak of 1832: people stood in the street near houses, rotting debris-filled windows, horse and cart. An archive image is shown of a hand-drawn diagram of a drainage system, which was introduced. An archive image is shown of the initial treatment plant. An image is shown of a handwritten document titled ‘City of Sheffield Duplication of Outfall Sewer – Plan showing existing main sewers and alternative routes for proposed additional outfall sewer’ stamped with ‘City Surveyor’s Office – Sheffield’. Possibly from 1890s. A panning shot of the plans shows the proposed waterworks system of the time. Old images of a brick sewer system are shown. Archive images of flooding on the roads of Sheffield are shown. A man is presenting an image to a room full of men in suits/business attire (c. 1960s). This is representative of the City Council talking through plans with the Yorkshire Water Authority. Hand-drawn plans are shown for Don Valley intercepting sewer, including areas labelled for storm sewage, the flow for treatment and connection from the existing sewer, the flow for treatment, and the River Don. Some locations at street level are also labelled, including Workhouse Lane and Alfred Road. At the sewage works on the plans (labelled Blackburn Meadows S.T.W.) a pump is shown that lifts water from the sewer to the treatment works. Another diagram of the River Don shows a more detailed section of the proposed sewage scheme. Then men in suits from the City Council and Yorkshire Water Authority are sat in the boardroom. One of them men is pointing at things on a chart. Another man is talking whilst looking at a map. A room full of people making hand-drawn plans of the project is shown. The Tinsley cooling towers of Blackburn Meadows Power Station are shown next to Tinsley Viaduct. In the foreground, two men in hard hats are stood next to a large pipe. Construction work for a pumping station tunnel shaft has been started (1979). Workers are seen moving/directing metal work for the structure. A digger pours debris into a container. Workers are lowered down into the pit of the shaft in a large metal hoisting bucket, to where the construction work is taking place. A worker is shown doing welding work. An aerial shot of the bit is shown; diggers and cranes can be seen. Workers are shown at ground level looking down into the pit/shaft at the work going on below. A container full of debris is shown being hoisted up on chains by a crane. Workers are shown working on the exterior structure above ground. A crane moves around the necessary pieces of construction. A panning shot shows the full excavation site where the storm channel is being built. Steel structures as part of the storm channel are shown. Workers continue their labour on the structures. One man uses a tool (possibly a wrench) on top of the structure, and one man uses a hammer to reinforce the sides of the structure. A driver in a crane is shown moving levers. A cement mixer is shown in operation, which then distributes the cement. A panning shot reveals the tunnel construction area. Large concrete rings in the ground are shown. Workers build a concrete lining with the cement. A worker is seen welding. An aerial view shows the concrete ring segments complete. Workers seen on a platform at a higher level direct a container being moved on a crane. A panning shot shows work going on around the edge of the structure. Workers are shown smoothing out concrete to line the edge of the shaft. Workers are shown operating a machine that releases the cement. A panning aerial shot reveals the newly-built central core. A worker is seen operating a drill. A worker is seen climbing a ladder. Workers are seen focussing on a new section of weir. Scaffolding is shown on a tower at the site. The interior ‘shell’ of the pumping station building is shown. A man in a hard hat and a suit is talking, followed by another man also doing the same. The steel framework on the roof of the pumping station is shown. The exterior steel ‘skeleton’ of the pumping station is shown. Underground, a man empties a sack into a container whilst other workers carry out tasks in the room. A hose pouring water is shown. Water dripping and droplets are shown. Containers are seen moving (on a conveyor belt or possibly a track). Large drills are shown drilling into the ground to make tunnels. A group of people at surface level look down to see what is going on. The floor of the pit of the pumping station is shown. Workers are shown smoothing out cement at the near-complete overflow shaft. Workers are seen chatting. An exterior shot shows the pumping station now has full cladding/reinforced plastic sheeting. An interior shot shows that new computer technology has arrived at the pumping station; two workers in hard hats and suits are inspecting it. Vehicles are shown outside, including a crane and a cement mixer. Concrete is poured out of the mixer as workers supervise it. A worker is shown pouring a sack-worth of concrete into the cement mixer. Pumps and steel supply lines are shown. Concrete is delivered to the men in the tunnel via crane. Workers in the tunnel are shown shovelling. Workers are shown directing the pour of concrete. A panning shot reveals the complete concrete lining in the tunnel. A man in the tunnel is seen operating some controls. A worker is seen walking through some water in the tunnel. A large bucket is seen being lowered. Workers are seen shovelling. A man is seen chatting. The bucket is being hoisted up full of debris. A man continues to shovel. A large works vehicle is shown parked in the middle of a busy road, surrounded by traffic cones. Workers are seen digging at a site. Sewage water is shown. A large flume pipe is shown being lowered; a worker directs the pipe down. Several workers together then direct the pipe into the right place in the ground. Sewage is seen travelling through a pipe. An aerial shot shows a worker walking around at the bottom of the shaft. A worker is shown using a wrench to tighten something. A worker is seen welding in a confined space. A worker is seen drilling into a wall. A man is seen walking down the tunnel. Workers are shown looking down the shaft. A shot of the inside of the shaft pans up to the sky. Men in suits with clipboards point to something in the distance. A train speeds past the site. Beside the M1, the Tinsley Towers are shown, followed by the new pumping station site. Interior shots of the new pumping station (1982) show the new pumps installed. Sewage water pre-treatment is shown. A man flicks a switch and stands by the monitoring circuits system with headphones on. A worker in the top of the pumping station is shown doing checks on the computer systems/circuits/machines. Computer screens are shown with information appearing on them. An exterior shot shows men in suits, including Giles Shaw MP and the Chairman of the Yorkshire Water Authority) entering the pumping station building for its opening in 1983. Interior shots show the men touring the building. A group of men in suits are sat down looking towards the men stood up at the front announcing the opening of the pumping station. As it is declared open, Giles Shaw MP pulls a cord to open some small curtains on the wall, revealing a plaque underneath. The plaque reads ‘Don Valley Scheme – This plaque commemorates the inauguration of Phase I of the Don Valley Scheme by Giles Shaw MP. 5th July 1983’. The men in the room all clap. Giles Shaw MP and the Chairman of Yorkshire Water Authority pose with a framed picture. The men continue to tour the building. Interior and exterior shots are shown of the pumping station. The sky is shown. Title – Coulthard Productions (with a logo)