A water company which saw customer complaints spiral last year has been praised after showing signs of improvement.

Earlier this year, Cambridge Water, which supplies homes in Ramsey, St Ives, Papworth Everard, Bluntisham and Earith, was warned by the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) it had to “get to grips with the causes of customers’ dissatisfaction”.

The warning came after it was revealed that the company had seen a 250 per cent rise in the number of written complaints made against it during 2016/17.

There was also a 37 per cent rise in the number of customers who had to pick up the phone in an attempt to resolve an issue with the water company.

However, new figures reported to CCWater by Cambridge Water reveal that complaints made in writing to the company during the first six months of 2017/18 fell by 33 per cent, compared to the same period last year.

Professor Bernard Crump, central and eastern chairman for CCWater, said: “It appears Cambridge Water has turned a corner and we’re encouraged by this marked improvement.

“However, the company is still a long way from being in the strong position it was two years ago when it was one of the industry’s best performers. We want to see further reductions in complaints over the next six months to reassure us that it is back on track.”

Cambridge Water had attributed a large part of the increase in complaints during 2016/17 to teething problems caused by the transfer of its customer service operations to the offices of its parent company South Staffs Water.

The company has taken steps to address these concerns but CCWater has requested a further update from the company at the end of January 2018.

Cambridge Water could not be reached for comment.