Around one million residents in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight will face a hosepipe ban from next week as water supplies come under increasing pressure ahead of a possible third UK heatwave in 2026.
Southern Water confirmed the restrictions will come into force on 10 July, marking the second consecutive year the company has introduced a temporary use ban in the region.
Customers will be prohibited from using hosepipes for activities such as watering gardens, washing cars and filling paddling pools. However, the water provider is urging households to stop using hosepipes immediately to help ease pressure on the network.
The restrictions are expected to remain in place until autumn unless the region experiences prolonged and significant rainfall.
A similar ban is already in force for customers served by South East Water in Kent.
The move follows a record-breaking heatwave that pushed temperatures in the UK to 37C and placed additional strain on water resources.
The River Test, which supplies most households in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, has fallen to critically low levels.
Tania Flasck, Southern Water’s director of water operations, said: “In June, we’ve actually seen a third of the flow and so the models have just not necessarily predicted that.”
She added: “When we’ve actually measured the levels we’ve seen it’s dropped down a lot, a lot further and faster than we’ve anticipated.”
Last week’s heatwave shattered temperature records on three consecutive days and caused widespread disruption across transport networks, including delays at Heathrow and Gatwick airports.
The extreme heat was particularly intense in urban areas such as London and Paris, where dense development and poor insulation intensified temperatures.
More than 1,300 excess deaths have been linked to the recent heatwave across Europe, while at least seven people drowned in open water incidents in the UK.
Forecasters are now warning that another spell of hot weather could arrive over the weekend and continue into next week, increasing the likelihood of a third heatwave being declared this year.
For now, temperatures remain below 25C in most parts of the country, including London and the South East, where an extreme heat warning was recently in place.
Rain is forecast for northern England and Scotland in the coming days, but southern areas most in need of rainfall are expected to remain largely dry.
British Weather Services founder Jim Dale warned that drought conditions could worsen, potentially leading to further restrictions or an extension of the existing hosepipe ban in Kent.