Drought Plan

This initial consultation gives you an opportunity to have your say at an early stage in the development of our Drought Plan 2027. Our non-technical summary sets out how we would deal with a drought in Sussex, Kent, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. It outlines the steps we may take to maintain the supply of drinking water to our customers during a drought while minimising the impact on our rivers and the environment. 

To protect Hampshire’s rare chalk stream rivers, the River Itchen and River Test, we may need to implement water-saving measures, such as hosepipe bans, even when there isn’t an official drought. This helps us take less water from these rivers during drier periods, so more can stay in the environment where it’s needed most. We’ll need to do this until our major water resource projects, Havant Thicket Reservoir and Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling Project, are up and running. Due to be completed by 2035, they’ll provide a significantly more resilient water supply. They’ll also help protect Hampshire’s chalk streams by reducing how much water we take from them during the summer during periods of drought. 

Between 28 May and 6 August 2026, we’re inviting you to have your say on key elements of our draft Drought Plan 2027. We want to make sure the plan represents your interests, the local community and the environment.  

To help you understand the work we’ve done so far, we’ve provided a summary of our progress in our working draft. This can be found at the start of each report section in the main technical report and at the start of each annex. We’ve also identified the key elements of our plan that are still outstanding and the timetable for completion.  

You’ll see that several sections or annexes are incomplete. This is while we’re carrying out important external studies and working closely with the Environment Agency, Natural England and Defra to shape how we respond to drought in the future, including how we protect Hampshire’s chalk streams and rivers. 

Please look at our  Draft Drought Plan 2027 Consultation documents below.