Reservoir storage across Essex is in a positive position ahead of summer.
Storage levels across the Hanningfield and Abberton reservoirs are currently at 86% combined, and although slightly below the average for this time of year, the water company is confident levels are at a healthy position ahead of summer.
2025 was one of the driest years on record and the country saw four nation-wide heatwaves, the driest ever spring on record and very limited rainfall in some areas until late November.
Many areas across the country saw drought conditions lead to restrictions placed on water supply, while Essex & Suffolk Water avoided this.
Increased rainfall at the end of 2025 and during the early months of 2026 helped recovery but it left Essex as one of the last three UK areas to recover from dry conditions.
Going into spring this year the current reservoir levels reflect a combination of long-term weather patterns, geography and demand increases and forecasts show reservoir levels will return to near normal, although slightly later than usual.
Kieran Ingram, Water Director at Essex & Suffolk Water, said: “Given the challenges we faced last year, and how hard our operational teams have worked to recover, we’re in a good place going into spring.
“Although the reservoirs are slightly lower than we would like them to be, we’re very experienced at managing this and we’re on track to return to near-normal levels.
“We’re fortunate to have fantastic teams made up of industry experts, doing everything they can to carefully manage our supplies. And while we do everything that we can, we need our customers to help us by doing the same.”
Essex is relatively flat, so when it rains, there is limited natural run-off into the reservoirs and only small gains from rain falling directly onto the reservoir itself. Most water is pumped in from nearby rivers.
The amount of river water the company can take is limited to protect wildlife habitats and water quality, and pumping capacity is also finite.
Sudden heavy rain can increase nitrates in river water due to run-off from roads and fields, meaning our abstraction approach needs to alter and supplies may need blending with reservoir stores to maintain water quality.
Peoples’ demand for water impacts our reservoir stock significantly too and this demand was unusually high at the beginning of the year, although this has evened out recently.
Typical daily use at this time of year is around 400 million litres across the Essex region, rising to 435 million litres on high demand or hotter weather days.
Demand levels are influenced by the weather, when it’s warm and dry, people need more water to stay hydrated and stay cool and also use more water for leisure, particularly in the garden.
Kieran added: “From finding and fixing leaks quickly to prioritising essential work on our networks, we’re doing everything to maximise how much we can refill the reservoirs.
“But we all have a part to play. Small changes, like turning off the tap while brushing your teeth, can make a real difference to the levels of demand on our water network and keeps water in the environment where it belongs.”
Actions already under way by the water company include:
- Finding and fixing leaks: 1,933 leaks were repaired across supply areas in Essex and Suffolk in January, February and March. Customers can report leaks via the website leakage portal.
- Replacing ageing pipes to make the network more resilient. Essex & Suffolk is investing £1 billion in network improvements and resilience between 2025 and 2030
- Asking customers to use water wisely, as small changes add up – one minute less in the shower every day can save up to 40 glasses of water per shower.
- Reminding customers to check for leaks at home— if you have a leaky loo it can waste 78,500 litres of water a year – that’s the equivalent of 52,300 kettles of water!
Essex & Suffolk Water is launching a monthly infographic for customers, so they can see key information at a glance about rainfall, reservoir levels, leakage repair and demand, for the previous month.
In the meantime there is a host of information on the Essex & Suffolk Water website including water saving tips and information about reservoir levels online: Water Resources.