Yorkshire reservoir levels increase - very slightly - for the first time since January
It follows an extraordinarily dry year which has seen a drought and a hosepipe ban declared across Yorkshire.
Last updated 16th Sep 2025
Reservoir levels across Yorkshire have risen - very slightly - after days of persistent rain across the region.
Stocks now stand at 30.8%, around 0.2% up on last week but still far lower than levels usually seen at this time of year.
It follows an extraordinarily dry year which has seen a drought and a hosepipe ban declared across Yorkshire.
This is the first time since January that level in local reservoirs have increased.
However a hosepipe ban is likely to remain in place for now.
Dave Kaye, Yorkshire Water’s Director of Water Services, said: “With the start of autumn, we’ve seen a lot more rain."
"It’s incredibly welcome, and it has had a positive impact on our reservoirs and river levels. Further heavy rain earlier this week will still be making its way through the catchments, which will also contribute to improvements in reservoir and groundwater levels over the coming days.
“While this is positive, we still have a long way to go to get our reservoir levels back to where they need to be. Reservoirs are still the lowest they have ever been for this time of year, and we need this wet weather to continue throughout the autumn and winter.
“We were recently granted a number of drought orders and permits which allow us to abstract more water from the Ouse and the Wharfe and to reduce the flows out of reservoirs in the south and north-west of the region.
"This will lower the burden on our reservoirs, allowing them to recover during periods of rainfall like we have been seeing.
“We’re also asking customers to continue doing what they can to save water so that our reservoirs can benefit as much as possible during periods of rainfall – they've been doing a brilliant job so far, with demand down 10%."