Permission to build over sewers and drains

[anyoneforbingo]

Hi,

I'm in process of getting ready for my extension to be built. We have a man hole cover that we will need moving. I've lifted it and it looks like a drain just for our house. I goes off under the current conservatory towards the neighbours garden.

I know I need to get permission to move it and build but the form just talks about if we have a sewer.

I'm confused, is the drain a sewer? How do I know if I've got a sewer? The man hold is a rectangle shape , I've attached a photo.

Is this a sewer?

That looks more like your own private drain that will connect at some point to a public drain, possibly running through your garden or road. To be sure you will need the drains diagram so if you don't have it you can apply to the water who will probably charge a fee.

If they are your drains then you can move them. What my architect and builder both said was not to interfere with the connection to main public drain as that then heaps down on you issues of permissions, inspections and costs. So my new drains did a loop of my garden as they connected in prior to where they connected originally to the main public drain