Tabitha Hannam Master of International Planning and Spatial Design

Achieving Drinking Water Security in the Thames River Basin: Polycentric Governance and Coordination

This study investigates drinking water security in the Thames River Basin. Using an adapted Ostrom Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework, it compares English water governance with the transboundary, quasi-polycentric Scheldt River Basin. It diagnoses the Thames Basin’s structural coordination deficits – exacerbated by fragmented regulators and privatised utility data silos – and highlights three transferable lessons from the Scheldt: strengthening regional coordination bodies, eliminating information asymmetries through shared data systems, and mandating cross-sectoral planning linkages