04 Jun 2026

Photo by Jonathan Cooper on Unsplash   Communication, not supply, was the breakdown A new report jointly commissioned by Ofwat and the Consumer Council for Water has concluded that communication, rather than supply failure itself, was the clearest and most consistent breakdown in South East Water’s response to two major disruptions last winter. Fewer than one in […]

28 May 2026

Image description: An outdoor water tap in sharp focus, with a blurred green background. Photo by Luis Tosta on Unsplash   Record heat, record demand  Across the UK’s  hottest May bank holiday on record, temperatures hit 35°C at Heathrow and South East Water in Kent and Sussex found its system pushed beyond capacity. Demand peaked at 670 […]

27 Jan 2025

As part of its commitment to “getting Britain building again”, the government is publishing a series of working papers on different aspects of planning reform, designed to inform further policy development in collaboration with the wider sector. The latest paper invites views on how the government could reform the process for consenting Nationally Significant Infrastructure […]

16 Jan 2025

The Guardian reports water shortage fears as Labour’s first AI growth zone is to be sited just seven miles from Abingdon reservoir planned for water-stressed south-east England. Labour’s first artificial intelligence growth zone will be sited close to the UK’s first new reservoir in 30 years, sparking fears that the AI push will add to […]

31 Dec 2024

The boss of Southern Water has apologised after parts of Southampton and Eastleigh experienced either low pressure or a loss of water supply The company blamed a technical issue at the Testwood Water Supply Works, which left customers dependent on bottled water. CEO Lawrence Gosden said that “it was the single biggest water supply incident […]

27 Nov 2024

The Environment Agency has published the outputs of a project exploring new approaches for examining the impact of droughts on English catchments and water supply systems, with the aim of increasing preparedness and understanding the range of interventions to take in different droughts.   Photo credit: Tom Fisk   Background This project explored new approaches […]

16 Oct 2024

According to the Guardian, Small companies in Suffolk that manufacture drinks have been told to keep a lid on their water usage for most of the next decade, amid concerns at their supplier that it will be unable to meet rising demand. Essex and Suffolk Water has imposed a “moratorium” on new mains-water connections for non-domestic use […]