Research and analysis

Dry weather and drought in England: 28 August to 3 September 2026

Updated 4 September 2026

Applies to England

1. Summary

It was the wettest week since early February, with rainfall improving river flows, soil moisture deficits and environmental conditions across much of England. August rainfall reached 78% of the long-term average (LTA) nationally, although south-east England received only 54%. Despite these improvements, groundwater levels continue their seasonal decline. Reservoir storage has fallen to 58% nationally, remaining significantly below average, with 11 reservoirs now less than half full.

There has been no change to Environment Agency Area drought status this week, with 10 areas in drought status and the remainder in prolonged dry weather status.

Despite recent rainfall, reservoir storage continues to decline at most public water supply reservoirs as demand exceeds recharge and remains significantly below average nationally. Temporary use bans (TUBs) remain in place across large parts of England and water companies continue to submit requests for drought powers, including drought permits and orders.

Recent rainfall has eased some drought pressures on the agriculture sector, although this varies depending on where rain has fallen across the country. There are reduced abstraction restrictions, with over 50% fewer restrictions than last week.

The water resource position for navigation remains poor. Recent rainfall has had a variable impact with some more reactive reservoirs in northern canal sections seeing some improvements. However, despite the rain, most canals have not seen any noticeable improvements.

The Environment Agency continues its drought response, including activated incident management arrangements and increased environmental monitoring. The National Drought Group continues to meet weekly to coordinate action and monitor risks.

2 . Active temporary use bans (TUBs)

The following companies have implemented TUBs, in all or part of their supply areas:

• Affinity Water – Central and East regions, covering Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Surrey, and parts of London and Essex
• Anglian Water – whole company area, excluding Hartlepool
• Bristol Water – whole company area
• Cambridge Water – whole company area
• Essex and Suffolk Water – whole company area
• Southern Water – Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
• South East Water – whole company area
• South West Water – whole company area, excluding Bournemouth
• Thames Water – whole company area
• Wessex Water – whole company area

3. Area drought status

There have been no changes in area drought status this week.

Figure 1 – Environment Agency drought status

3.1 Areas in drought

• East Anglia
• Hertfordshire and North London
• Thames
• Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
• West Midlands
• Wessex
• Kent and South London
• Solent and South Downs
• East Midlands
• Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire

3.2 Areas in prolonged dry weather

• Northeast
• Yorkshire
• Cumbria and Lancashire
• Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire

3.3 How the stages of drought response work

Each area is reviewing its status depending on the triggers they have outlined in their drought plan.

More detail of how we manage drought, including our 4 stages of drought response, is available in Drought: how it is managed in England.

4. Current water situation

It was the wettest week since early February for England, with rainfall totals ranging from 26mm in the south-east to 48mm in central England. For August, rainfall in the final weeks meant that most regions received more than 80% of the LTA for the month. In south-east England, just 54% of the LTA was received, and England as a whole received 78%.

River flows increased at almost all sites that we report on when compared to the previous week, although the majority are still classed as normal or lower for the time of year. Fourteen sites (25%) were classed as below normal for the time of year. Eleven sites (20%) were notably low and one site (2%) was exceptionally low.

Groundwater levels at all sites in England decreased, as they continue their seasonal recession. Half of chalk sites are classed as normal for the time of year, including those in south-east and east England. However, some sites in the Wessex Downs, Yorkshire Wolds, and North and South Downs are classed as below normal or lower. This includes Tilshead in the Upper Hampshire Avon Chalk, which is exceptionally low. In south-east England, Jackaments Bottom in the oolite limestone of the Cotswolds is classed as exceptionally low for the time of year. Groundwater levels were below normal at Skirwith in the Carlisle Basin and Eden Valley Sandstone in north-west England.

Despite a wet week for much of England, reservoir storage continued to decline at most reservoirs. For the week ending 1 September, storage for England was 58%, after decreasing 1.8%, and is now 19.2% below average for the time of year. Eleven reservoirs are now less than 50% full. All except one reservoir are now classed as below normal or lower, with 9 classed as exceptionally low for the time of year (Figure 2):

• Ardingly reservoir operated by South East Water
• Clatworthy reservoir operated by Wessex Water
• Clywedog operated by Hafren Dyfrdwy under direction of Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales
• Dove Group operated by Severn Trent Water – winter refill was impacted by water quality and operational issues
• Grafham Water and Rutland Water operated by Anglian Water
• Hanningfield reservoir operated by Essex and Suffolk Water
• Haweswater and Thirlmere operated by United Utilities
• Wimbleball reservoir operated by South West Water

More details are available in our water situation reports for England.

Figure 2 - Reservoir stocks at key individual and groups of reservoirs for week ending 1 September 2026 as a percentage of total capacity and classed relative to an analysis of historic values.

Classes shown may not necessarily relate to control curves or triggers for drought actions. As well as for public water supply, some reservoirs are drawn down to provide flood storage, river compensation flows or for reservoir safety inspections. In some cases, current reservoir operating rules may differ from historic ones.  

Kielder reservoir levels are lower than historic levels due to a new flood alleviation control curve in use. The Dee System, Elan Valley Group, Clywedog and Vyrnwy reservoirs provide water resources to central and north-west England. Teesdale Group is impacted by planned maintenance and safety works. The Dove Group and Lower Thames Group are impacted by a previously planned outage.

5. Public water supply

Continuing cooling temperatures and rainfall across the country mean demand for water has decreased but remains high for some water companies, particularly in the South East. Public water supply reservoir and groundwater storage continue to decline for several water companies. Further significant rainfall is needed to return to normal water resource conditions for many water companies.

Water companies report their drought response using operational drought levels, from drought level (DL) 1 escalating to level 4. We expect water companies to follow their drought plans and act early to ensure there are sufficient supplies. 

We are regularly engaging with all water companies. The companies not included here are in business as usual (BAU). Further information on the situation can be found on each water company’s website.

5.1 Affinity Water

The company remains in BAU in terms of its drought levels but is at its environmental trigger in its East region. TUBs remain in place for customers in its Central region and East region, driven by high demand.

5.2 Anglian Water

The company remains at DL2 in its Fenland and Norfolk, Norwich and in its Broads water resource zones (WRZ), and is at DL1 in Ruthamford, Lincolnshire and Suffolk. TUBs remain in place across the whole company area, except for Hartlepool.

5.3 Bristol Water

The company remains in BAU. TUBs remain in place for all customers to help protect flows on the River Severn, after an application for a drought order by the Environment Agency.

5.4 Cambridge Water

The company remains at DL1. TUBs remain in place for all its customers. Demand has reduced but is still above average for the time of year.

5.5 Essex and Suffolk Water

The company remains at DL2 in all WRZs. TUBs remain in place for all its customers. Demand in its Essex WRZ remains higher than this time last year.

5.6 Northumbrian Water

The company remains at DL1 in all its WRZs.

5.7 Severn Trent Water

The company remains at DL1 in its North Staffs WRZ. Reservoir storage at Tittesworth reservoir continues to decline.

5.8 Southern Water

The company is at DL1 in its Hampshire and Isle of Wight WRZs. Other WRZs remain in BAU. TUBs are still in force for customers in the Hampshire and the Isle of Wight area. The company applied to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for a drought order on the River Test and a non-essential drought order on 31 July. A public hearing was held on 25 August and additional information submitted on 27 August.

5.9 South East Water

The company remains at DL2 in its Eastbourne and Haywards Heath WRZs. All other WRZs remain at DL1. Company-wide TUBs remain in force. On 28 August, the company applied to the Environment Agency for a drought permit on the River Ouse. Details about the drought permit proposal can be found on South East Water’s website.

5.10 South Staffordshire Water

The company remains at DL1. Reservoir storage at Blithfield reservoir has declined from last week.

5.11 Thames Water

The company remains at DL2 in all its WRZs. Company-wide TUBs remain in force.

5.12 United Utilities

Strategic Resource Zone (SRZ) remains at DL1. Carlisle WRZ remains in Enhanced Monitoring and Operations (EMO).

5.13 Veolia Water

The company remains at DL1.

5.14 Wessex Water

The company has moved into DL1b. Reservoir storage continues to decline. Company-wide TUBs remain in force.

5.15 Yorkshire Water

The company remains at DL1 in its Grid WRZ. Reservoir storage continues to decline.

6. Agriculture

Recent rainfall eased some drought pressures on the agriculture sector due to lower demands for irrigation, although this varies depending on where rain has fallen across the country. There is now a focus on lifting root crops for harvesting. Farmers face challenging conditions due to hard soil, especially where some abstraction restrictions remain that limit the availability of water to soften ground. To protect rivers from pollution, farmers are advised to assess ground and weather conditions before spreading organic manures, including slurries.

Latest information on the harvest this year suggests that yields are highly variable, with wheat and spring barley crops below the 5-year national average. The availability of fodder for winter livestock feeding continues to be a concern with the use of winter resources to support animal condition.

There are 608 restrictions on abstraction licences. This is over a 50% decrease from last week due to increased river flows in some catchments. Formal section 57 restrictions remain in place affecting 302 licences in parts of East Anglia until 31 October. 

In total there are 1,123 voluntary abstraction restrictions spread across East Anglia, Thames, Wye and Severn catchments. Potential voluntary restrictions may be requested in other areas such as Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire and Cheshire if the dry weather continues. We have received 30 flexible abstraction requests from the agriculture sector to date. The Environment Agency continues to work closely with abstractors and partners regarding the implementation of any formal restrictions.

7. Environment

Confirmed incidents caused by drought and dry weather have continued to rise, with a total of 291 incidents recorded since the start of 2026. This is slightly above the equivalent confirmed total for 2025 (275 incidents as of 31 August 2025), and the 2026 figure is expected to increase further due to reporting lags. Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire, Hertfordshire and North London, Solent and South Downs, West Midlands, Thames, and Kent and South London areas have reported relatively high numbers of drought and dry weather incidents in recent weeks. However, some areas, including the Northeast, are reporting no new environmental incidents.

There have been 28 confirmed algae incidents and 51 confirmed fish death incidents so far this year attributed to drought and dry weather. Confirmed algae incidents are above the equivalent 2025 total and confirmed fish death incidents are lower. However, reports of fish deaths have increased sharply in recent weeks and figures may rise as incidents are confirmed. Notable local incidents include native crayfish populations threatened by low water levels at 2 sites in the West Midlands, and a 900m reach of the Cut Off Channel near Mildenhall in East Anglia drying out, resulting in fish deaths.

If you see fish in distress, contact the Environment Agency’s 24-hour hotline on 0800 80 70 60.

To date, there have been 148 confirmed abstraction or low-flow incidents, with the highest numbers recorded in West Midlands, Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly, Hertfordshire and North London, and Thames areas. Confirmed abstraction or low-flow incidents are now similar to equivalent totals from 2025. Reported incidents continue to increase rapidly, suggesting that the final number of confirmed incidents may exceed last year.

8. Navigation

The Canal and River Trust water resource position remains poor. Reservoir-fed canals are particularly affected with reservoir feeds being restricted and compensation flows reduced. Recent rainfall has had a variable impact with some more reactive reservoirs in northern canal sections seeing some improvements. However, despite the rain, most canals have not seen any noticeable improvements.

Environment Agency navigation closures are in place in parts of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire and North London and the lower Thames. In Kent, fish and canoe passes have been closed on the River Medway. There are issues maintaining the published navigation depth at several locations on the Medway and low-level alarm thresholds have been reached at 2 of the 10 monitoring sites in the area.

9. Weather forecast

Rain will clear to the south-east through Friday morning, leaving a mostly dry day for many with sunny spells. Dry and sunny conditions will continue on Saturday. Sunday will bring heavy rain to the far north, while the rest of England will be drier and warmer. Monday will be bright but with a chance of showers. Unsettled conditions are expected to continue into the following week, with some longer spells of rain, particularly in the north and west areas.

10. Drought readiness actions

The Environment Agency has activated its incident response arrangements, with Gold Command structures in place and drought plans being implemented to support early intervention and coordinated action.

Enhanced communications activity being taken includes:

• issuing press notices and holding media briefings
• increasing engagement with stakeholders, local partners and MPs
• publishing a weekly drought update on GOV.UK

The Environment Agency has strengthened environmental monitoring, increasing both surveillance and operational interventions to identify, assess and mitigate potential environmental impacts as drought conditions develop.

The National Drought Group continues to meet weekly to monitor risks, preparation and impacts of the ongoing drought. The next meeting will be held on 10 September.

11. Contact us

Contact drought.national@environment-agency.gov.uk if you have questions about this report.