As we launch the inaugural Water Efficiency Lab (WEL 1) competition, Jude Noro, Policy Lead on Water Efficiency at Ofwat, reflects on the urgent challenge of reducing water use. And the Ofwat Innovation Fund delivery team presents key learnings and resources from the transformative work that past Ofwat Innovation Fund winners are already championing, providing a blueprint for future innovation.
The UK may be famous for rain, but it’s running out of water. Most of England is already classed as “water-stressed” by the Environment Agency, and by 2055 we could face a shortfall of 5 billion litres a day – plus another billion for food, energy, and tech. Water scarcity has also affected parts of Wales and Scotland this summer.
Climate change is making rainfall less predictable, heatwaves more frequent, and droughts more severe. Meanwhile, our cities, farms, and industries keep demanding more.
If we don’t act, chalk streams could vanish, forests will suffer, and biodiversity will decline. Water scarcity will limit housing and business growth, disrupt industries, and may even lead to intermittent supplies during dry spells.
This does not need to be our future though. Reducing our individual water use is possible and will be key in coming years: from today’s 137 litres per person per day to under 125 by 2038 – and below 110 by 2050.
This is why for its first year, the WEL focuses on Actionable Insights: giving all consumers in England and Wales the tools to understand their water use and act to reduce it. It’s all about building on what’s already there and bridging the gap in knowledge to use water in a more mindful and optimised way.
Inspiring new innovators
To inspire a new cohort of innovators to get involved in the water efficiency challenge ahead, the Ofwat Innovation Fund delivery team provide the latest news below on four innovation projects previously funded through the Ofwat Innovation Fund. All four projects demonstrate the power of collaboration in driving a measurable reduction in water demand across England and Wales.
- Hydro Powered smart meter
- Water Literacy
- Reducing water demand through behaviour incentivisation
- Water efficiency in faith and diverse communities
Hydro-Powered Smart Meter
The challenge of water scarcity in England and Wales demands a transformational shift in how we manage water, and smarter technology is key to this. Led by Northumbrian Water alongside partners including Suez, Hydrao and Synthotech, the Hydro-powered Smart Meter project tackled battery life – a critical barrier to this transformation as current smart meters are limited by battery power, meaning they can only provide basic consumption data a few times a day.
The goal was ambitious: to use the flow of water to create limitless power for the next generation of smart meters. The project successfully proved that power generation in a concentric meter format is technically feasible. While completely eliminating batteries wasn't possible, the team successfully transitioned to a rechargeable cell, effectively harnessing hydro-power to significantly extend the meter's lifespan and capability. This breakthrough creates enough power for the meter to provide real-time, detailed data to both customers and utilities.
The impacts of this enabling technology are significant:
- The additional power enables the integration of sensors (such as pressure sensors) to gather new data, which utilities can use to target leakage reduction more effectively.
- This self-powered approach allows for more frequent and detailed data logging, which is vital for monitoring network health and enables utilities to predict and manage demand during periods of high network load.
- By providing high-resolution consumption data, this technology creates a platform for future services and incentivisation schemes to help customers actively manage and reduce their personal per capita consumption.
Dive deeper into the project's outcomes and impact on the dedicated winner page.
Water Literacy
To overcome the challenge of water scarcity, we also need a sector-wide commitment to understanding the true value of water. The Water Literacy programme, led by Northumbrian Water alongside partners including Waterwise and Groundwork East, is working to inspire, motivate, and educate professionals to take action and drive change.
This initiative provides an accredited, action-oriented learning course that empowers participants to embed water efficiency in their organisation, at home, and in their community. By increasing knowledge about the value of water, this work directly contributes to lower consumption and helps water companies meet their regulatory requirements.
The project team is actively sharing this crucial learning to drive transformation. Right now, there is a fantastic opportunity to take part: the programme is offering 2,000 free places to anyone looking to gain a Water Literacy accreditation – with 1000 participants already completing the training successfully in October 2025!
Participants will get a chance to deepen their expertise, gain a recognised professional qualification, and become agents of change in improving customer engagement and building a shared understanding across the water sector.
Find upcoming dates or contact the Water Literacy team for any questions about the course.
Reducing Water Demand through Behavioural Incentivisation
Achieving lasting water efficiency relies on changing deeply ingrained customer habits. This is a tough challenge, but the Reducing Water Demand through Behavioural Incentivisation project is tackling it head-on by exploring the power of commercial partnerships and incentives in a collaboration led by Severn Trent alongside partners including Nectar and Consumer Council for Water.
This innovative, industry-first trial rewards customers with Nectar points for reducing their water usage, directly linking smart meter data to tangible, non-financial rewards to drive long-term behavioural change.
Early results from the trial, which has nearly 5,000 enrolled households and is growing fast, are highly promising. Smart-meter customers can access a self-serve portal to easily track their progress and visualise their water-saving goals and Nectar rewards.
Many participants are consistently meeting their water-saving goals, even achieving impressive 'winning streaks', which signals a genuine shift in behaviour.
The project's commitment to social purpose and applying data innovation has also been recognised through a joint nomination for the DataiQ's Data & AI for Good Hero Organisation Award.
Water Efficiency in Faith and Diverse Communities
To make lasting, sustainable change in how we use water, the sector must start from an understanding that water is valued differently across cultures and communities.
The Water Efficiency in Faith and Diverse Communities project, led by South Staffs Water, worked to establish a deeper understanding of how water is used and valued in different faiths and cultures. Their work opened new channels of communication, which is vital for reducing water use and helping support hard-to-reach customers.
By bringing together water companies, academics, and faith groups, including Cambridge University’s Faculty of Divinity, Cambridge Central Mosque and Hindu Climate Action, the project developed an evidence-based water efficiency engagement and support framework. They then distilled this into a toolkit to help the sector design effective water efficiency campaigns across different geographies and communities. This is a fantastic step forward, helping us move beyond fragmentation to a coherent, human-centred approach.
For a powerful example of this engagement in action, take a look at the compelling video series showing how to save water while washing rice - a simple, daily action that resonates deeply within specific cultural practices, which can a great impact on water efficiency.
If you have any questions about Water Efficiency in Faith and Diverse Communities, email the project directly at InnovationTeam@south-staffs-water.co.uk.
Get involved in solving the water efficiency challenge
The success stories above, from engaging diverse communities to revolutionising smart meters, prove the power of targeted, collaborative innovation in tackling the UK’s water efficiency challenge.
To drive this even further, the inaugural Water Efficiency Lab (WEL 1) competition is launching today, 25 November 2025. As part of Ofwat’s new Water Efficiency Fund, WEL is an annual competition designed to accelerate innovation in water efficiency. The first competition will focus on the theme of actionable insights that help customers truly understand and reduce their water use.
Find out more about the competition now on the WEL webpage. To receive WEL news straight to your inbox, sign up for the Newsletter.
Do you have an existing technology you’re looking to introduce to the water sector? Reach out to the team at Spring – the water sector's innovation hub.
The WEL is part of Ofwat’s new £100 million Water Efficiency Fund (WEF). Further WEL competitions will be launched annually, with a total of £25 million available between 2025-30.
More on the projects featured
Three of these projects were originally included in the Supporting water-efficient communities learning report, but have updates to share or have since completed and have publicly-available resources for others to learn from, since the report’s original publication in August 2024. Our learning report provides insights on running water efficiency innovation projects – so dive in today!
