FLOOD victim Mary Dhonau has been sharing her experiences of flooding in Worcester at a national conference.

Mrs Dhonau, chairwoman of Worcester Action Against Floods, spoke about taking on Severn Trent Water, and winning, in front of 200 delegates at the National Flood Forum conference in York.

She shared the stage with Phil Gelder, sewage control manager for Severn Trent.

Mrs Dhonau lives in Waverley Street, which was one of the worst-hit areas during the floods of 2000.

Her home was blighted with raw sewage for months, but it was not until Mrs Dhonau and other stricken property owners put together a factfile and took it to Downing Street, that Severn Trent admitted there was a problem.

"I talked about what happened in our street and all we did to make Severn Trent listen to us," said Mrs Dhonau.

"If people believe they are right, they should go for it. They should jump up and down and cause a fuss. People will listen."

The conference - the first of its kind - was also attended by Floods Minister Elliot Morley and Baroness Barbara Young, chief executive of the Environment Agency.