THAMES Water is set to announce a temporary hosepipe ban ‘in the coming weeks’ due to the current hot weather forecast.

Timings have not been confirmed by the utility company ‘due to a number of operational and legal procedural requirements’, however customers will be updated at the earliest time possible.

According to the Met Office, temperatures in Oxford are set to hit 32 degrees on Friday and over the weekend.

An amber warning for extreme heat has already been issued by the Met Office.

With these forecasts in mind, Thames Water is to look at introducing a temporary hosepipe ban ‘in the coming weeks’.

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A spokesperson for Thames Water said: “We have a dedicated team of analysts and scientists monitoring our water resource levels at all times.

“The team takes into consideration a number of factors including Met office forecasts, reservoir storage levels and expected customer demand.

“When considering implementing a temporary use ban, we have to balance the impact on our customers and the environment. To inform our decision making we work to our Drought Plan.”

The spokesperson added that reservoirs in London have been filled, in preparation for the hot weather this summer.

“We have been preparing for summer since the winter, making good use of abstractions earlier in the year to fill our reservoirs in London,” the Thames Water spokesperson said. 

“We accelerated maintenance work on the QE2 reservoir in London which has provided more storage over the past dry months.

“We then launched the first phase of our media campaign urging customers to use water efficiently, this was followed up in July with a second phase providing customers with lots of water saving tips.

“We have recently started supporting our supplies in other ways, including drawing water from our North London Aquifer Recharge System (NLARS) which means we need to take less water from our reservoirs.

“Our aim is always to ensure that we will have enough water to supply our customers, regardless of the weather.”

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Outlining the hosepipe ban, the spokesperson said: “Given the long-term forecast of dry weather and another forecast of very hot temperatures coming this week, we are planning to announce a temporary use ban in the coming weeks.

“We have written to the Environment Agency to update them on our approach and informed Ofwat. 

“The timing is not confirmed due to a number of operational and legal procedural requirements, but we will be updating our customers, partners, regulators and stakeholders at the earliest time to ensure a coordinated approach.

“In the meantime, we continue to urge our customers to only use what they need for their essential use.”

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This story was written by Liam Rice, he joined the team in 2019 as a multimedia reporter.

Liam covers politics, travel and transport. He occasionally covers Oxford United.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Liam.rice@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter @OxMailLiamRice