South East Water expands hosepipe ban and asks for business restriction
It requires approval from the Environment Secretary
Last updated 2nd Oct 2026
South East Water has announced an expansion to its current hosepipe ban to cover all customers, including vulnerable people and has applied to the government, to impose non-essential use restrictions on businesses.
A temporary hosepipe ban was introduced by the company for most of its 2.4 million customers across south-east England this Summer.
But it is now removing the exemption for remaining customers, which includes vulnerable people on its register, starting from Friday October 9.
The firm said the move comes as part of efforts “to protect water supplies and the environment in Sussex”.
An exemption will remain in place for health and safety reasons as well as animal welfare, although other exemptions will be removed, such as for domestic window cleaning firms.
South East Water also announced that it has applied to the government for a so-called “non-essential use ban” (NEUB).
This marks a step beyond a hosepipe ban and requires approval from the Environment Secretary to implement, which can take a few weeks.
While a standard hosepipe ban targets households, this ban addresses commercial and non-household water use, by restricting business activities, such as dust suppression on construction and industrial sites, commercial car washing or window cleaning, as well as businesses watering lawns, sports fields or filling up pools, ponds or fountains.
It comes after a dry September has compounded the impacts of the UK’s record hot Summer, which saw prolonged dry periods and successive heatwaves plunge large areas of the country into drought.
Last month was the sixth this year to see lower-than average rainfalls, averaging 65% across England, officials said.
Meanwhile, the South East was among the drought-hit areas of England that again saw the least amount of rain in September, getting 57% of the average rainfall for the month.
South East Water’s Ardingly Reservoir in West Sussex, which serves 228,000 customers in Haywards Heath and the surrounding areas, is currently only 23% full, updated figures on Friday showed.
Regulators said they would expect overall reservoir storage in England to be almost three-quarters (74.3%) full at this time of year.
The shortage at Ardingly has triggered the next level of the company’s statutory drought plan, meaning further steps need to be taken to protect both public water supplies and the environment.
Head of water resources at South East Water, Nick Price, said: “The prolonged period of warm and dry weather we have experienced during the Spring and Summer has made the ground very dry and reduced flows in local streams and rivers.
“We need more rain to moisten the ground, filter deep down into the underground aquifers, and boost the rivers and reservoirs that supply customers’ drinking water.
“These conditions have resulted in the water levels of our Sussex reservoirs becoming extremely low, especially Ardingly, which has moved further into drought.
“This is why we need to take these extra steps now.”
Mr Price acknowledged that restrictions can “cause some concern” for some customers, but added that the firm’s priority is to restore long-term resilience to break this cycle.
He said: “We are focused on delivering our long-term business plan, designed to build a more stable supply for customers and secure water resources for the future.”
He also thanked customers who have already taken steps to try and reduce their overall water use.
South East Water applied for a drought permit in Sussex in August, which was granted by the Environment Agency on Tuesday.
This allows the drinking water company to reduce the amount of additional water that is released from Ardingly Reservoir into the Shell Brook tributary of the River Ouse and reduce the minimum flow of water that must remain in the river at Barcombe Mills, after water has been taken from it for customers.