On Thursday 24 October, Waterwise, the independent water conservation group is encouraging people across the UK to turn off their taps for five hours to help highlight the importance of water in our daily lives and why it needs conserving.

Water is an essential part of everyday life and as a society, we use a lot more water than we did 50 years ago.

The average person in the UK uses 136 litres of water per day. Here in our region, customers use an average of 120 litres.

From preparing food and washing up, to showering and flushing the toilet, water is used in many different ways around our homes.

Why does water need to be conserved? 

Even though we get a lot of rain here in the UK, the water that comes into your homes still needs to be treated to a high standard to make it safe to drink.

We supply around 86 million litres of water to homes and business across our region every day.

With our population ever increasing, and with more extremes of weather predicted as a result of climate change, the pressure on the amount of water we need to treat to fulfil demand will increase and this could lead to shortages.

Whilst we are making efforts to reduce leaks in our network and find new sources of water, changing the way we all think about the water we use will help keep more water available for future generations and keep more in the environment.

What is Water Night? 

Now in its second year, Water Night is an annual event that asks households to turn off their non-essential taps between 5pm – 10pm. This year’s event is happening on Thursday 24 October.

Put simply, households are encouraged to not run any water out of their taps between these hours except for essential tasks such as flushing the toilet and washing hands. So, delay your shower and pre-fill any water bottles and kettles.

This event isn’t about depriving households of water, but about raising awareness of how much we need water in our daily lives.

Win a £100 Love2Shop voucher for getting involved

If you pledge to take part in this year’s event, you could win one of two £100 Love2Shop vouchers.

To sign up, fill in their form here.

For more information on Waterwise’s Water Night, click here.