Car washes and swimming pools could face a water ban as the record-breaking drought worsens with no rain in sight and a sixth heatwave of the year this week.
Some 27million people across England and Wales are already under a hosepipe ban as reservoir levels plunge amid an extraordinarily hot and dry spring and summer.
Nine water companies have brought in restrictions which mean customers are legally banned from using hosepipes to water gardens or wash cars, patios or boats.
Southern Water is among them, having imposed a ban in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight on July 10 – but it could now go further by applying to the Government for a Drought Order and Non-Essential Use Ban (NEUB), which would affect businesses.
A NEUB would prevent companies from washing cars and windows with hosepipes or other mechanical devices, or filling non-domestic swimming or paddling pools.
The pool ban would cover facilities restricted to members of a private club, gym or association rather than general walk-in users. It would include pools at hotels, holiday parks or private health clubs if they do not meet open public access criteria.
An NEUB would also force businesses to stop watering outdoor plants on commercial premises; fill or maintain a pond; clean any vehicle, boat, aircraft or train; clean industrial plants; suppress dust; or operate cisterns on unoccupied buildings.
If Southern Water’s application is granted, it would be the first NEUB since one was given to Sutton and East Surrey Water in 2006 – which was itself the first since 1995.
A drone view shows parched grassland around Stonehenge in Wiltshire on July 31
A green square surrounded by dry grass at Maidenhead and Bray Cricket Club on July 25
A sunbather reads while relaxing on the scorched grass of Hyde Park in London yesterday
If the separate Drought Order application is successful, it would allow Southern Water to take the same amount of water from the River Test even if river flows are lower.
A Southern Water spokesman said: ‘Due to the ongoing dry weather, and following the declaration of drought in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, we have reached the trigger level requiring us to apply to Defra for a Drought Order and Non-Essential Use Ban in these areas.
‘These are precautionary measures and making an application does not mean they will be introduced. However, we must follow the regulatory process to protect water supplies and the environment if dry conditions persist.
‘Protecting the River Test remains a priority, and any future drought measures would be subject to strict environmental monitoring and controls.’
Eight other companies have brought in hosepipe bans so far – Affinity Water, Anglian Water, Cambridge Water, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, Essex and Suffolk Water, South East Water, South West Water and Thames Water.
The latest of these was South West Water which announced restrictions last Friday for all 1.8million customers across Devon, Cornwall, parts of Dorset and Somerset and the Isles of Scilly.
This week, parts of the UK are set to see their sixth heatwave of the summer with temperatures expected to reach 36C (97F) or higher.
The Met Office has warned of possible impacts to railway lines and power networks as forecasters consider issuing rare amber or red extreme heat warnings.
Today will be slightly cooler before temperatures rise again tomorrow.
Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said: ‘We’ll probably see highs reaching the mid-30s quite widely on Wednesday, and indeed on Thursday too for England and Wales.
‘On Wednesday, probably the Midlands, maybe a little bit further south, the M4 corridor, west of London, up towards the Midlands, is where we might have a small chance of reaching 36C in one or two spots.
‘But Thursday at this stage looks the most likely hottest day of the week. So 36C is a fairly reasonable probability locally on Thursday and there’s a small chance it could get even higher than that.’
Drought was declared last month for all of Wales and more than half of England – covering parts of the South East including London, West Midlands and all of the South West.
The Environment Agency has said several further unspecified areas could be moved from ‘dry weather’ to drought status when officials meet at the National Drought Group today.
People walk on parched earth and sun-damaged grass near Tower Bridge in London yesterday
Parched land around Bratton Camp Iron Age hillfort and the White Horse of Westbury yesterday
Parched grass at St James’s Park in London yesterday as the extremely dry weather continues
People look at the Thames Estuary in Allhallows, Kent, yesterday ahead of the new heatwave
Beachgoers at St Anthony Head in Cornwall yesterday as fresh heat health alerts began
The Wisley Golf Club in Woking, Surrey, has the odd area of green among otherwise dry ground
Beaverbrook Golf Club in Leatherhead, Surrey, is very dry apart from a few patches of green
Around 16million people could move into drought status as public water supplies ‘remain under increasing pressure with continued dry weather and high demand’.
Mr Morgan said: ‘If it wasn’t for this incredible summer that we’re currently seeing, then we’d be talking about these temperatures as being really, very unusual. But of course, we’ve had such an exceptional summer, people have become a bit used to it.
‘There is a potential for impacts, so impacts to infrastructure, things like railway lines and power networks, impacts to vulnerable people as well.’
Health officials have warned of the effect on vulnerable people in the upcoming hot weather, with significant impacts possible in health and social care settings and a potential rise in deaths because of the heat.
Yellow heat health alerts issued by the UK Health Security Agency are in place for the East Midlands, West Midlands, South East, South West, East of England, Yorkshire and the Humber, and London.
The alerts continue until 9pm tomorrow, but could be extended as the hot weather continues.
Meanwhile, the Met Office is considering issuing rare extreme heat warnings ahead of the scorching temperatures forecast later in the week.
‘We sometimes issue extreme heat warnings, amber and red warnings, which we did back in June, so that’s under consideration at the moment,’ Mr Morgan said.
Another record is set to tumble this week after yesterday was the 34th day so far this year when temperatures exceeded 30C (86F) somewhere in the UK, equalling the record from 1995.
So far, the extreme weather of summer 2026 has included two record-breaking heatwaves in May and June that led to more than 2,800 excess deaths.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued yellow heat health alerts across England
A UK heatwave is official when a location records at least three consecutive days of daily maximum temperatures which meet or exceed a specified threshold – which varies by region
Two more heatwaves in July, the driest July in England and Wales since records began in 1836, have fuelled drought and wildfires.
The fifth heatwave of the year was confirmed on Monday last week.
Much of southern England is now close to two months without any meaningful rainfall – with Wisley in Surrey having had more than 50 consecutive dry days.
The exceptional weather resulted in a record number of wildfires for England and Wales last month – with firefighters attending 395 blazes in the three weeks to July 31 amid fears the ‘whole country is like one giant tinderbox’, reported The Times.
On the A31 near the New Forest in Hampshire yesterday, police told drivers to leave their cars ‘if you want to stay alive’ as a van fire sparked a wildfire.
Fears are also growing over more water-related deaths, after a 19-year-old died on Saturday after getting into difficulty in the water at Grasmere in the Lake District.
The European Union’s earth observation programme Copernicus said average temperatures across western Europe reached 21.61C (70.92F) for June to July, breaking the record set in 2022.
Globally, this year is just behind 2024 and 2025 as the third hottest year on record.
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