More than half of England officially in drought, Environment Agency says

Drought has been declared across more than half of England as hot, dry weather takes its toll on the country's water supplies.

The Environment Agency (EA) has said that seven regions – covering large parts of central, eastern and southern England – are now in official drought conditions.

It added that the impacts are already being felt, including low river flows, early harvests and high risk of wildfires. Millions of people are already under hosepipe bans.

North Wales and the Upper Severn river basin entered drought conditions last week, Natural Resources Wales said.

Scotland does not declare drought but monitors "water scarcity". Some parts of eastern Scotland are in the most extreme category of "significant scarcity", according to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

"The hot and dry weather means we are currently using water faster than nature can replenish it," said Helen Wakeham, director of water at the Environment Agency and chair of the National Drought Group.

The full list of English regions in drought conditions are:

• East Anglia
• Hertfordshire and the whole of London
• Thames Valley
• Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
• Devon and Cornwall
• the West Midlands
• Wessex, covering Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, and South Gloucestershire

There is no single definition of drought, but it usually refers to a period of prolonged unusually dry weather that can have impacts on people, nature and the environment.

The EA considers all of these factors before deciding whether to declare a drought.

The declaration is a public sign that the EA is stepping up its response to the dry conditions, including increased monitoring and controls on how much water can be taken from rivers and groundwater.

It can mean hosepipe bans being introduced if they are not already in place.

This year has been unusual because January and February were very wet for much of the UK, helping to replenish reservoirs and groundwater.

But late spring and summer have been exceptionally hot and dry. In particular, July saw 7% of the expected levels of rainfall in England, with just 1% across southern England.

"The warm and exceptionally dry conditions experienced across much of England over recent months are continuing to have a significant impact," said Will Lang, chief meteorologist at the Met Office.

The combination of low rainfall and prolonged high temperatures - meaning greater evaporation of moisture - has quickly depleted water reserves in soils, vegetation and rivers.

This has led to a "flash drought", the EA says. This is where drought conditions begin quite suddenly rather than over many months or years.

Today's announcement means there have been three droughts in the past five years – 2022, 2025 and now 2026.

While droughts happen naturally, scientists say that climate change is raising the risks, with higher summer temperatures drying out soils more quickly.

This can lead to more severe and longer-lasting droughts, which are having noticeable effects on wildlife and farming.

Paul Tompkins, deputy president of the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales (NFU), said: "Farmers and growers have always had to contend with the weather, but what they are experiencing now is climate change in action. More extreme conditions [are] making it harder, riskier and more costly to produce the nation's food."

He added the issue of drought is something that "should matter to everyone" as it affects the country's food security.

Some areas of the country are now entering their fourth heatwave of the year.

And on Wednesday, the Met Office announced that the new June temperature record set last month, was even higher than previously thought, following verification processes.

The previously-reported figure of 37.7C in Lingwood, Norfolk, on 26 June 2026 has been updated to 38.0C – smashing the UK's previous June high of 35.6C.

Additional reporting by Jess Carr

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