A LONGSTANDING Oxford print works is facing a £10,000 bill to protect its damaged building.

But, despite months of wrangling, no one will accept responsibility for problems which threaten tio wash away the foundations ofits factory.

Parchments of Oxford owns its building and land in Crescent Road. The plot, where its been based for 35 years, has Boundary Brook running along the back of it.

Owners Mary Parchment and Kevin Tomes said the brook had been prone to occasional winter floods.

But they say a new grille installed across the brook to collect rubbish and debris has caused more incidents of flooding.

And now a large section of the bank, that extended eight feet from the rear wall of the building, has eroded away, exposing the factory’s foundations.

Despite months of emails and letters, neither Oxfordshire County Council, Thames Water or the Environment Agency will take responsibility for the damage, leaving £10,000 repair work still to be started.

The firm said it believes the grille is responsible for causing the damage and says it should not have to pay for the bank to be rebuilt.

Mrs Parchment said: “The county say it’s Thames Water because they put in the original grille, but Thames Water has said it is not their responsibility.

“Our insurance won’t pay because our land has been damaged by a third party.”

She said the county council had replaced the original grille last year but the damage had already been done. Her partner Kevin Tomes added: “The danger is it will subside – that could happen this winter.

“It has to be fixed and we are running out of time.

“It is £10,000 and that’s hard, we’re a small commercial printers.”

Oxfordshire County Council said Thames Water was responsible for the brook and had installed the original grille.

The council said it had replaced the grille to tackle the flooding problem, but it was not responsible for the damage.

Spokesman Owen Moreton said: “The county council installed the replacement grille in partnership with the city council and with approval from the Environment Agency.”

He added: “The work also included widening the entrance to the culvert to allow greater flow through the culvert and reduce the risk of flooding.

“This action has improved the situation and the council does not accept that it has accelerated the erosion of the bank.”

A Thames Water spokesman told the Oxford Mail it had no involvement and was not responsible for the issue.

The Environment Agency said it had been involved in the issue but was not responsible for the repair work.

Spokesman Hayley Willoughby said: “We are working with riparian owners to ensure that the riverbank remains in a good condition.

“Owners of land adjoining rivers have responsibility to maintain riverbanks and allow free passage of water.

“The Environment Agency, together with other partners has been working with one owner since November 2009 to repair damage in one area of the Boundary Brook.”