More than 20 million people across England will be living under hosepipe bans by the end of this week, as eight regions are declared in “prolonged dry weather” – the stage before drought – according to the National Drought Group. The announcement, made on Tuesday, covers East Anglia, the West Midlands, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire and London, Wessex, Thames, Solent and the South Downs. The group (which includes the Met Office, the National Farmers’ Union, and water companies) warned that river flows have decreased and that agriculture and wildlife are already suffering consequences.
Thames Water added a further 10.1 million customers to the bans from Thursday, pushing the total above 20 million. The company cited “prolonged dry weather” and said demand on the hottest July days had risen by up to 30%. A hosepipe can use a thousand litres of water an hour – more than a family of four uses in a day.
“Eight areas declared stage before drought as hosepipe bans spread to 20 million people.”
Farmers are feeling the strain. Paul Tompkins, deputy president of the National Farmers’ Union, said growers are “working around the clock to harvest crops which have come early, keep fruit and vegetables watered, and care for their livestock.” He added: “Parts of the country, particularly in the east and south, have seen exceptionally low rainfall this spring and summer,” which could mean “another difficult and expensive harvest after extreme weather impacts in both 2024 and 2025.”
The heat, however, is about to break. The Met Office has identified 22 regions that will experience heavy rainfall this weekend as a band of low pressure sweeps eastwards. Temperatures, which hit 28.6C in Pershore, Worcestershire, on Monday, are expected to fall to 16C or 17C by Sunday lunchtime. The downpours will be heaviest across northern England during Sunday daytime, lingering over the East of England in the evening.
These climate extremes are becoming “the new normal,” according to Mike Kendon, a Met Office climate information scientist. He noted that 2025 was the UK’s warmest year on record – the sixth time this century the record has been broken. “With warming at around 0.25°C per decade since the 1980s, it seems likely this record will be broken again in a matter of years,” he said.
