Foudry Brook

Foudry Brook
Foudry Brook near Whitley, Berkshire
Location
Country	England
Counties	Hampshire, Berkshire
Towns	Reading, Whitley, Baughurst, Tadley, Stratfield Mortimer
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Baughurst, Hampshire, United Kingdom
• coordinates	51°20′00″N 1°09′45″W / 51.333249°N 1.162603°W / 51.333249; -1.162603
• elevation	93 m (305 ft)
Mouth	River Kennet
• location	Whitley, near Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom
• coordinates	51°26′06″N 0°58′39″W / 51.43511°N 0.977381°W / 51.43511; -0.977381
• elevation	40 m (130 ft)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Beaumonts Stream or Brook, Bishop's Wood Stream, West End Brook, near Mortimer, Burghfield Brook (Lockram Brook)

Foudry Brook is a small stream in southern England. It rises from a number of springs near the Hampshire village of Baughurst, and flows to the east and then the north, to join the River Kennet to the south of Reading.^[1] The upper section is called Silchester Brook, and beyond that, Bishop's Wood Stream. The underlying geology is chalk, covered by a layer of clay, and so it has the characteristics of a clay stream, experiencing rapid increases in level after heavy rain due to run-off from the surrounding land. It passes a number of listed buildings and scheduled monuments, including the site of the Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum or Silchester.

The natural flow of the river is supplemented by treated effluent from two major sewage treatment works, which contribute to the poor quality of the water. Water quality is also affected by physical modification of the channel, which restricts the free movement of fish around the system.