Waterwise Conference 2026: The year water became everyone’s business
After two inspiring days, one thing is clear: Water efficiency is finally moving up the agenda.
Following another spell of hot weather across the UK, and in the summer marking 50 years since the 1976 drought, the conversations at this year’s Waterwise Conference: Water Resilience: Everyone’s Businesses couldn’t have been more timely. Half a century after one of the UK’s most defining droughts, climate change, population growth and increasing pressure on our water supplies mean the challenge is even greater and the need to act has never been more urgent.
Sponsored by headline sponsor South East Water, and day sponsors The Water Efficiency Campaign and Wave, the conference brought together government, regulators, businesses, researchers, local authorities, charities and the wider water sector, showing just how far the conversation has evolved. Water efficiency is no longer just an environmental issue. It’s a business issue. A resilience issue. A leadership issue.
From urgency to opportunity
Opening the conference, Emma Hardy MP, Minister for Water and Flooding, left delegates with a clear challenge:
“Share learning faster, scale what works… Water resilience is national resilience.”
That sense of urgency continued throughout both days.
A changing climate demands a different conversation
One of the conference’s most thought-provoking keynote speeches came from Simon Brown, Managing Director of Products and Services (and interim CEO) at the Met Office, who set out the scale of the challenge facing the UK.
“For every one degree of warming, the atmosphere holds seven per cent more water.”
This intensifies the water cycle, bringing both heavier rainfall and longer periods of drought, driving a compounding mix of risks including heatwaves, wildfires and flooding, all of which place increasing pressure on our water resources, communities and economy.
Simon challenged delegates to rethink how we talk about drought, explaining that it’s not simply the result of a hot summer. A dry winter can leave groundwater and reservoirs under pressure, a dry spring limits recovery, and a hot summer rapidly increases demand. Preparing for water scarcity therefore requires year round planning, not seasonal responses.
“The water sector must plan for short term extremes and long term climate change.”
The discussions that followed, with contributions from the Climate Change Committee, Water UK, Natural Resources Wales, Scottish Water and South West Water, reinforced that resilience depends on action across every level. From national policy and regulation to smarter demand forecasting, customer engagement and educating the next generation, the message was clear: building water resilience requires an interconnected response from government, regulators, businesses and communities.
For organisations of every kind, water now deserves the same strategic attention as energy. Supported by better data, smarter technology and transparent communication, the opportunity is not only to strengthen resilience but also to rebuild trust and empower people to make lasting changes in how they use and value water.
The message was echoed across discussions on policy, regulation, behaviour change and innovation. Water resilience can only be achieved through collective action.
Water has reached the boardroom
If there was one quote delegates were still talking about at the end of Day Two, it came from Jen Cassidy, Chief Executive of Bristan.
“Water resilience has quietly and suddenly become a board level business issue.”
Water is no longer a future risk. It is affecting supply chains, business continuity and long term growth today.
Jen challenged organisations to stop treating water efficiency as an optional sustainability initiative and instead embed it into everyday decision making.
Her message was simple:
“Innovation only matters if it changes outcomes.”
Innovation, collaboration and new ideas
The conference celebrated exciting examples of innovation already making a difference.
We welcomed the launch of the Let’s Save Water campaign, heard about the Water Efficiency Lab Fund Round One winners, including four projects we’re involved in at Waterwise, and looked ahead to the next competition focused on reducing customer side leakage, demonstrating how fresh ideas and new technologies are helping tackle some of our biggest water efficiency challenges.
Chris Philpot (The Water Conservancy) also showcased Smart Drop UK, highlighting how innovation should focus on making water saving easier by giving people practical tools and smarter ways to understand and manage their water use.
Innovation was also at the heart of discussions on data and technology. Tom Andrewartha (Artesia) demonstrated how demand fingerprinting is helping build a clearer picture of how, when and where people use water, creating opportunities for more targeted water efficiency interventions. These insights were echoed by the Environment Agency, which stressed that better data, demand management and collective action will all be essential to shaping a more water resilient future.
Looking ahead, one of the conference’s most eye-opening discussions explored the growth of AI and data centres. Harriet Dingle (WRc) highlighted that water use by data centres in England has doubled since 2022, reflecting the extraordinary pace of digital growth. As she noted, “The rate of change is so rapid,” reinforcing that understanding the water footprint of emerging industries will be essential if we’re to build resilience for the decades ahead.
We also celebrated Oli Shelley’s announcement of the launch of Water Efficiency Services, providing new support for organisations looking to reduce water use, cut costs and build resilience.
Collaboration was a recurring theme. From schools and local authorities to manufacturers, retailers and businesses, speakers demonstrated that partnerships are already delivering real change across the UK.
People at the heart of water efficiency
Technology matters. Data matters. Innovation matters.
But perhaps the strongest message from the conference was that people matter just as much.
The Water Literacy Programme is already proving this, with its pilot helping save around 900,000 litres of water every day. Water Literate Organisations such as Nottinghamshire County Council shared how they are embedding water literacy into their culture, helping colleagues understand why water matters and how small actions can make a real difference.
As Chennour Wright reminded us:
“Without water, what do we have?”
Meanwhile, research highlighted that showers now account for around 25% of household water use, reminding us that everyday habits remain one of the biggest opportunities to reduce demand.
The National Trust shared how changing the way it manages gardens and landscapes is opening conversations with visitors about drought, climate adaptation and the value of water, proving that storytelling can be just as powerful as technology.
Looking ahead
Jo Osborn reflected on the extraordinary diversity of the conversations shared, from smart technology and school programmes to tourism and visitor attractions. Water touches every part of our lives, and that diversity of voices gives real hope that water efficiency is becoming everyone’s concern.
Closing the conference, Nicci Russell, CEO of Waterwise, thanked everyone for contributing to two inspiring days that brought together voices from both across and well beyond the water sector – reflecting Waterwise’s vision that water is used wisely every day, everywhere, by everyone. A special thank you also goes to our brilliant session chairs, Prof. (Dr) Anusha Shah, Mumin Islam, Emma McCabe, Jo Osborn, Saima Rasool, Rachel Dyson, Karma Loveday and Tamara Walters, whose insight, energy and expert facilitation kept the conversations flowing throughout the conference. Nicci’s closing message was perhaps the most important of all: success won’t be measured by the conversations we’ve had, but by what happens next and the litres of water we save together.
From conversation to action
The momentum doesn’t stop here.
If these discussions have inspired you, now is the perfect time to take the next step.
Become Water Literate through one of our upcoming training courses and help build a culture of water stewardship in your organisation.
Or join the growing Waterwise community as a Water Guardian or Waterwise Affiliate, helping accelerate water efficiency across the UK.
Because as this year’s conference showed us, protecting water is no longer just the responsibility of the water sector. It belongs to all of us.
