Drought worsens across England despite a wetter week

The drought in England has continued to worsen, despite some rain last week, according to the Environment Agency's latest weekly report.

The report, covering 9 to 15 October, says October as a whole remains much drier than normal. England has had only 26% of its long-term average October rainfall so far, and reservoir storage across the country is at 54% of capacity, about 21% below average for the time of year.

More areas in drought

Yorkshire moved into drought status on 9 October, joining the region that includes Birmingham and nine other areas. On 15 October the government declared severe drought in parts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex and West Sussex.

A wetter week, but not enough

Rainfall last week ranged from 10mm in central and south-east England to 33mm in the north west. River flows rose at most sites compared with the week before, but most remain below normal or lower for the time of year. Groundwater levels are falling, as they usually do in autumn.

"Further significant rainfall is needed to return to normal water resource conditions for many water companies," the agency said.

Severn Trent

Severn Trent remains at drought level 2 in its North Staffordshire water resource zone and at level 1 in its Strategic Grid North zone. Its Dove group of reservoirs is classed as exceptionally low, which the agency says is partly because winter refilling was affected by water quality and operational problems and by a planned outage.

Severn Trent has not introduced a hosepipe ban. Temporary use bans are in place for customers of Affinity Water, Anglian Water, South West Water and several other companies, mainly in the south and east.

Concern for next year

The agency says there are growing concerns that farmers may not be able to refill their own storage reservoirs over the winter, which could affect water for crops in 2027. It changed its rules on 1 October to let licence holders take water outside their usual periods to fill those reservoirs, under conditions.

The Canal & River Trust has seen some improvement in reservoirs feeding northern canals and fewer closures, but most canals have seen no significant recovery.

What you can do

Water companies and the Environment Agency are asking everyone to keep using water wisely. Simple steps include taking shorter showers, turning off the tap while brushing teeth, only running full loads in washing machines and dishwashers, and fixing dripping taps and leaking toilets, which can waste a surprising amount of water.

The agency's national drought group is meeting weekly, and each area's status is under constant review. Its next report is due next week.