No, if you are on our Priority Services register for medical reasons.

We are writing to all affected Priority Services customers proactively to tell them that we would really like their help and if they can refrain from using their hosepipe that would be great but if they do need to use them, they – along with Blue Badge holders – would be exempt.

If we don’t have your email address or phone number, we will have sent you a letter via post. If this hasn’t arrived within ten days, please contact us on 0800 389 10 11 and we’ll check your registration status.

Yes. Pools or ornamental fountains within places of worship can be filled when they are used as part of a religious ceremony.

You may not use a hosepipe on a vegetable garden, or an allotment if it is for personal use.
If you have an allotment that is used to provide food that is sold, this is classed as 'crops', and a hosepipe can be used.
Where possible we’d encourage you to think about using water wisely and use a watering can, if you’re able to. 

You can still use a paddling pool, but using a watering can or bucket to add water.

There are a few alternative ways to cool down in the hot weather, including:

Target key cooling points

Use small amounts of water on areas where blood flows close to the skin - wrists, back of neck, temples, inside elbows and behind knees.

These spots help to cool your whole body faster than soaking yourself.

Drip, don't drench. A few drops will go a long way.

You can also use anything that's cool, such as a shaded stone, on your pulse points for the same effect.

Efficient evaporative cooling

Lightly dampen a cloth, scarf - even your shirt or a t-shirt. Place it on your neck or head. Sit in a breeze or, if you have one handy, use a fan.

As water evaporates, it pulls heat away from your body.

Cool your extremities

If you have a small container to hand, dip hands or feet briefly in water, then let them air dry.

This uses less water than full-body splashing but still provides cooling.

If you still wish to use a paddling pool, please cover it overnight. When you've finished with it, the water can be used on your garden.

Absolutely. The hosepipe restrictions apply only to the clean, potable water provided by Cambridge Water.

A hosepipe can be used to water standard trees, whips, saplings and hedging planted in the last three years where they cannot be hand-watered or watered with non-potable water. 

Under the terms of the hosepipe restrictions, you can water newly laid turf for 28 days with a hosepipe. However, we would hope that anyone who needs to do so would respect the spirit of the restrictions and consider how you can use water wisely whilst doing so.

You can water your grass seed for the first 28 days with a hosepipe, after that you’ll need to use a watering can.

Please use the hosepipe sparingly and try to use it for a short amount of time. If it rains, think about whether you still need to use your hose that day.

If it is a drip-fed system, then you can continue to use this. If the system is not like this then it cannot be used when connected to mains water.

However, irrigation systems may be used when connected to a grey water or rainwater recycling system (i.e. not attached to the mains system).

The restrictions apply to all customers whether they are on a meter or not. 

Being on a meter puts you in the valuable position that any water saving you make will mean that you will save money on your bills. We are asking our customers to be conscious of the water that may be wasted on a daily basis - for example, leaving the tap running while cleaning your teeth.

The more you save, the more you should notice a difference in the bills you receive.

No, they can’t use a hosepipe on domestic or non-commercial gardens or plants. The only exception is for newly laid/sown lawns and new planting, which they can water with a hose for the first 28 days.

You cannot fill these with a hosepipe. The only time you could use a hosepipe to fill a private pool is if:

• the pool is used for a medical reason,
• the pool is used for veterinary treatment,
• fish or aquatic animals are kept in the pool, or
• the pool is used in a place or worship or as part of a religious ceremony.

No, there are exemptions for agricultural land.

This includes land used to grow crops, fruit, vegetables or plants as part of a business.

Yes, you can. 

Yes, as a ‘garden’ is defined as an area of grass used for sport or recreation and watering a garden with a hosepipe is restricted.

However, there is an exemption that allows you to use a hosepipe to water an area of grass or outdoor artificial surfaces used for sport or recreation (on the active strip/playing area only – not the whole ground), for health and safety reasons, to protect the safety of the players. 

Public swimming pools are not affected by the restrictions.

As a business, you will be allowed to use a hosepipe if this is directly related to the use of water for your commercial purposes.

There are restrictions on business customers using a hosepipe if not for those essential needs – so using a hosepipe to clean a path outside your business property, for example, would be included in the restrictions. There are more specific examples in the questions below and further information on our website. 

Many commercial car washes recycle and reuse water. We need to strike the right balance between water efficiency and ensuring that businesses are not severely impacted.

There are some good water efficient products out there which use much less water than a traditional hosepipe. We’re working closely with our non-household retailers to encourage businesses to reduce their usage where they can. 

We’re continually monitoring the situation. We're not planning to impose further water use restrictions at the moment. 

Clearly, if the dry weather continues for a prolonged period, we may reach the point where further restrictions could be required. We would need a statutory order to put this in place. This is set out in our statutory drought plan.

We have some specific FAQs related to businesses and non-household properties.

You can also contact your retailer for additional information – this is the company who manages your day-to-day relationship and who you pay your bills to. If you’re unsure of who your retailer is, just check your latest bill.

TUB stands for Temporary Use Ban, which is the phrase that is used in legislation for the water sector when referring to what most of us would call a hosepipe ban.

So, when we are communicating formally to customers about this – for example, advertising it in the press – we may have to refer to TUBs. But to make things simple, we’ll be calling it hosepipe restrictions.

It is put in place to help preserve water and ensure there’s enough water to go around during periods where there is a long period of low rainfall.

We are granted the power under Section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991, as amended by the Flood and Water Management Act 2010.  

Further definitions may be found in the Water Use (Temporary Bans) Order 2010, which is available at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/2231/contents/made 

Hosepipe restrictions are based on long-term water levels, not just short-term weather. It takes a lot of consistent rainfall to fill reservoirs and top up underground supplies after a dry spell.

Even after a period of rain, the overall supply is still too low to lift the hosepipe ban. We continue to monitor this closely and will lift the ban as soon as we are able.

We have a Drought Plan which we write every five years, and this outlines what actions we will take and when in times of prolonged dry weather or drought. These are based on historical drought data and impacts as well as future predictions.

We have been undertaking actions detailed in our drought plan since the beginning of April to help reduce the demand for water and increase the amount of water available for supply.

We do not impose restrictions on our customers lightly – we have been working hard to do what we can to prevent the need to do this. But, as we have seen, the hot dry weather continues and the demand for water remains high. We have reached a level in our water resources where we need to take the next stage of action, and that’s why we’re looking to do this now. 

We haven’t needed to apply hosepipe restrictions since 1995 in the Cambridge region, but several other water companies did in 2022 and 2025.

We know from their experience that the restrictions did save water and did make an impact, and for our region that could be up to five million litres of water a day saved, the same amount of water as there is in two Olympic sized swimming pools. 

For essential water quality reasons, we sometimes need to flush some pipework - for example, after a leak is repaired. 

We sometimes also need to use small amounts of water in the laying and commissioning of new water mains. We have reviewed our current work programme and are reducing this as much as possible right now, except for where it is important to ensure the continued high quality of the water.

At this stage we can’t say for certain, but the restrictions will need to be in place until we receive prolonged significant rainfall, and our groundwater levels return to a situation much closer to normal. 

We will not have the restrictions in place any longer than is absolutely necessary. We will be closely monitoring this and will keep everyone updated. 

No - the actions we are taking now are designed to protect water supplies so that all our customers have the water they need when they need it.

By introducing hosepipe restrictions, we’re hoping to reduce water usage which will help to conserve the water in our reservoirs and also help them to top back up when we do have some rain. 

It’s not just about this summer – we need to prepare in case we have a dry autumn and winter where we may not get the top up we normally would do before we get to next summer. Taking steps now will help to put us in a better place for next year too. 

We understand that most of our customers want to do the right thing and we will focus on helping people comply before considering any formal action.

If a customer is found to be repeatedly using water in a way that is prohibited under the ban, we will normally take the following steps:

• Stage one: explain that the Temporary Use Ban is in place and what activities are restricted.
• Stage two: highlight the specific breach and asks the customer to stop.
• Stage three: visit the customer to discuss the issue directly and explain the potential consequences of continued non-compliance.
• Formal review: if the breach continues, the case is reviewed by the Temporary Use Ban team and may be referred for prosecution.

Many customers have already voluntarily been cutting back to do their bit and we are really grateful for that. 

Yes. Under the Water Industry Act 1991, anyone who fails to comply with a temporary use ban could be prosecuted and fined up to £1,000 by a Magistrates' Court.

Prosecution would generally only be considered where:

• Customers continue to ignore requests to comply.
• Informal approaches (letters, calls, visits) have not worked.
• The breach is serious, deliberate, persistent or repeated.
• Action is needed to protect water supplies, the environment or the wider public interest.

Cambridge Water is committed to enforcing the ban fairly, consistently and proportionately. Each case will be considered on its own circumstances, and prosecution will only be pursued where there is sufficient evidence and where it is in the public interest to do so.

Our priority is to help customers comply with the temporary use ban and conserve water. Legal action is a last resort and would usually only be taken after multiple attempts to resolve the issue informally.

Our colleagues are regularly out and about as part of their day-to-day work. If they spot people breaching the restrictions as they go about their day-to-day jobs, they may speak to them, or we may send them a letter reminding them of their obligations.