by Nicci Russell, Waterwise CEO

Heatwave!

Well crikey, it’s been hot hot hot, hasn’t it? This month the Met Office told us that climate extremes are becoming the new normal for the UK. A few weeks ago, the Climate Change Committee told us that drought is one of the three top climate risks for the whole of the UK; that the British way of life is under threat from heat, flooding and drought – and that our UK water systems aren’t even fit for the current climate.

And can’t we feel it?!

In 2025 we had the driest spring in England for 100 years, and the hottest UK summer ever. We had numerous droughts and hosepipe bans – and water scarcity challenges right across the UK. The first region to tip into hosepipe bans last year was Yorkshire – an area we might commonly consider as wet. This is a ‘whole of the UK’ issue – and it is a ‘now’ issue. It’s not just a few areas, or for the future.

The water companies needed greater than average rainfall last winter, to recharge after the challenging 2025. This was a worry, and was not expected. In the end we did have a very wet winter, including flooding in some areas. But then we had a supremely dry May – and in June, numerous heatwaves and ‘hottest day ever’ after ‘hottest day ever’. July has been very dry and hot, and as I write this, 7 of the 16 wholesale water companies in England, plus Welsh Water, have hosepipe bans in place – and all the water companies across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are asking their customers to use water wisely during the heatwave.

What’s going on? The UK is wet! Why do we have hosepipe bans?!

If you want the longer version, you can watch my TEDx talk here.

Basically, we’re running out of water, and it’s all to do with people – you and me.

Problem 1 – there are more of us than ever before. Since I was born almost 55 years ago, there are an extra 12 million people in the UK. 12 million! And they all need water to live.

Problem 2 – we’re all using more water than we used to. We’re using roughly double the amount of water per person at home that we used 60 years ago. This is an average – some of us are doing much better than that, but that also means others are doing worse!

Problem 3 – we’ve caused a climate emergency, so the water isn’t always where we need it.

We’re drinking the same water the dinosaurs drank. There is no magic new water.

Most of England is officially categorised as seriously water-stressed – that assessment was done 5 years ago. I bet the whole map would look red now. In May my Waterwise Chair, who has lived in Wales her whole life, told me the reservoirs in Brecon were the lowest she had EVER seen them, and this month Dwr Cymru Welsh Water put in place a hosepipe ban for parts of west Wales. Northern Ireland Water have been asking their customers this month to waste less water, and in 2018 had their first ever hosepipe ban in 23 years. A couple of years ago, the Scottish Minister said ‘We face periods of drought and have seen recent instances of water scarcity with risks of more, affecting our food producers, households and nature’. Scotland! Last year Scotland had the hottest March to August since records began in 1884.

Do hosepipe bans even work?

Thank you for asking, ha ha! I was asked this by Naga Munchetty on the BBC Breakfast sofa the other day and it is a fab opportunity for me to say – YES, they do!

At Waterwise, we fully support hosepipe bans as a legitimate way to manage water scarcity. A sprinkler can use 1,000 litres of water an hour – that’s almost as much as 2 families of four in the UK would use in a whole day. And generally speaking (hosepipe bans do have exceptions, e.g. for new lawns, and vulnerable customers, and animal welfare), I would ask, is this really essential use….? Let your lawn go golden, and wear it as a badge of pride! As soon as it rains, your grass will go green again. If you step away from your hosepipe for a few weeks, you could save 100,000 litres of water!

Thames Water, the biggest water company in England, tells us that in 2022, its customers in London were using 50% more water than usual during the heatwave. Cambridge Water have said that they’ve brought in their first hosepipe ban in 30 years this month because after very low rainfall, during the heatwave water use has gone up by 30%, ‘for activities including gardening, car washing and pool filling’. And Anglian Water have said that within a few days of introducing their hosepipe ban this month, water demand had fallen by 9%.

Waterwise is not the water police. We want people to enjoy water outside during a heatwave. But we are asking people to waste less, and to pause, and think. Is it essential that I use this much purified drinking water on my garden or car or patio right now?! Why wouldn’t I knock one minute off my shower time?!

Why is it down to us to do something about it?

The water companies all have big water efficiency programmes in place to support their customers. And we know of course that water company pipes leaking puts people off saving water themselves. But the Environment Agency tells us that England will have a 5 billion litre daily gap by 2055 between the water we have, and the water we need – that gap is more than a third of the daily water we use now – and that even if the water companies fixed all the leaks, that wouldn’t be enough. All of us wasting less water, at home and at work, is going to have to fill half of that daily gap!

There is a role for water companies, governments, and big business. But verily, from Waterwise as the UK’s independent voice for water efficiency, I tell thee that we won’t fix this challenge unless we all step up.

Can you imagine trying to function without water? If your taps ran dry or your toilet wouldn’t flush? The human body needs water! And the entire UK society and economy needs water. There’s no way a school, hospital, factory, train network etc could function without water, is there? It would all have to close down.  And the environment, which is precious in its own right, as well as helping sustain us, also needs water. So as there are more of us than ever before, using the same amount of water, and with the Met Office and the Climate Change Committee telling us we have a very real climate problem here, it makes sense that we all waste less water.

OK, sold! What CAN I do?

Imagine if you cut in half the amount of water you use each day – and then imagine if the other 68m people in the UK did the same.

There are so many ways you can make a difference – whether you have a hosepipe ban in your area or not.

• You can knock a minute off your shower time – it sounds like a drop in the ocean but it could save you 15 litres of water every time. Check out our Waterwise Shower Playlist on Spotify for 4 minute bangers to help you time your shower
• Knock an inch off your bath
• Only wash clothes when they’re actually dirty – one washing machine load can use about 60 litres of water
• Turn that sprinkler off! Let your lawn go golden – it’ll go green when it rains again
• Let your car stay dirty – if you must wash it, use a bucket and sponge
• Cover your paddling pool at night so you don’t have to refill it every day – and when you do empty it, use the water on the plants
• Keep a jug of cold water in the fridge – so you don’t need to waste tap water waiting for it to go really cold
• Check whether you have a leaky loo, and get it fixed – having one of these could be the same as having an extra family living in your house and using water
• Turn the tap off when you’re brushing your teeth or shaving

Simples – and they won’t add drama to your life! You’ll be doing a good thing – and saving money on your water and energy bills while you do it.

Also – contact us if you would like your workplace to become more water-efficient! You can DM me on LinkedIn or find my email address on our website. We’d love to help!

Parting thought?

I’d love us all to remember, as we live our lives, that water is not infinite. Yes, we have the water cycle, but the water going round that cycle is finite, and there are more of us than ever before, and we are using so much more than we used to, and we have caused a climate emergency. Think of it this way – we are running out of water in the UK, and we all have a role to play in making sure the water we do have, gets where it needs to. Because water is life, for all of us, all of the time.

Please do check out the Waterwise website – not only for lots of simple tips to save water – but also to learn more about how to become Water Literate, become a Water Guardian, or sign up to our campaigns and events – so you can help us achieve our vision that water is used wisely every day, everywhere, by everyone, right across the UK.