Next generation long-baseline neutrino experiments require precision measurements of neutrino interactions in near detectors The Intermediate Water Cherenkov Detector (IWCD) will operate as a near detector for Hyper-K, and a similar sized near detector is considered for ESSnuSB. The Water Cherenkov Test Experiment (WCTE) is a 40-ton test experiment that will operate in CERN's recently upgraded T9 test beam line. WCTE will be used to test the photon detectors, calibration techniques and event reconstruction algorithms necessary to realize precision measurements in water Cherenkov detectors with particle energies up to 1 GeV. WCTE will also allow for the measurement of physics processes important for modelling neutrino interactions in water Cherenkov detectors, such as pion absorption and scattering, lepton scattering and secondary neutron production. We present the status and plans of the WCTE and discuss the potential impacts of its measurements.