2025 Water Reuse Round Up
What a year it has been for water reuse here in the UK! We have had some very exciting announcements, industry reports and standards all launched throughout 2025. There sure has been a lot to keep updated with, so in this month’s article, we’ll be giving you a ‘water reuse round up’ of all the latest announcements.
In 2025, rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling and SuDs were certainly top of the agenda and we’re hoping the momentum will continue throughout 2026 and, ultimately, until we achieve that all-important ambition to introduce mandatory water reuse in the UK. At this stage, water reuse simply isn’t a luxury, and every home and commercial and residential property built without this technology adds to the issue of water scarcity.
January 2025 – The Case For Water Smart Housing
An argument commonly heard in the water reuse industry is that the public do not want to recycle rainwater or greywater due to the so-called ‘ick’ factor. However, this report from Public First and Enabling Water Smart Communities confirmed that public acceptance of recycled water is high. Here is just a snapshot of the report and the key statistics associated with water reuse…
- 75% of respondents would be willing to flush with recycled rainwater.
- 61,600 could go unbuilt due to a lack of water supplies.
- Water scarcity will cost the economy up to £25 billion over the next 5 years.
- Water efficiency offers the opportunity to grow the economy by £20 billion by the end of the parliament.
June 2025 – National Standard for SuDs
This saw the UK Government launch the new National Standard for SuDs for England. This is a big deal – the report details how developers should manage rainwater on their new developments by providing a refreshed hierarchy on how this water should be handled. At the very top of the hierarchy – non-potable water reuse! Essentially, this means that developers must consider water reuse first.
What’s happened since the launch earlier this year…
- Many local authorities have chosen to adopt the standard as part of their local authority plans.
- Lead Local Flood Authorities have reached out for more information on rainwater harvesting to upskill their knowledge – and the Minister for Housing for Local Government and Communities is working with local authorities to upskill on water reuse.
- More interest from developers working on future projects as they now need to recycle rainwater as part of their wider drainage strategy.
- An overall win-win for ensuring water reuse is installed on every new build!
- All very positive! But the above changes highlight the clear need for a joined-up narrative on supply and drainage.
July 2025 – Cunliffe Review
The sector-wide review of the water industry by the Independent Water Commission was launched in July. The report was highly supportive of water reuse and the necessary role it plays in the future of water efficiency. Here are the key recommendations which are relevant to water reuse…
- Recommendation 40: The UK and Welsh Governments should develop new policies and regulations to drive the adoption of water reuse in household and non-household developments
- Recommendation 37: Introduction of mandatory smart metering across the board.
- Recommendation 38: Reform tariffs to incentivise water efficiency.
Since launching, the government has accepted all 88 recommendations!
September 2025 – Part G Consultation
This was the big one! The launch of the Part G Consultation was significant for water reuse! For the first time, the government used the consultation to call for evidence on rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling. The consultation asked if water reuse should be included in new buildings and why, whilst also asking about the barriers to widescale implementation.
In the consultation, we are calling for mandatory water reuse in the below scenarios…
- Housing developments with 100 homes or more.
- Apartment-style developments of 60 units or more.
- Non-household developments with a roof area of 500 m2.
Evidence from both the 2017 Ricardo Report and works by Enabling Water Smart Communities highlight that from these scales, rainwater harvesting becomes financially effective.
Overall, we believe the government needs to be much more ambitious on water efficiency and water reuse.
December 2025 – Revised Environmental Improvement Plan
Having last been updated in 2023, under the previous government, the new government has updated the Environmental Improvement Plan with more detail on how they plan to handle water reuse…
- The government will work with local authorities to upskill their knowledge on water reuse, enabling Local Flood Engineers to properly assess SuDs on planning applications – watch this space for more in 2026!
- Investigate dual pipework water reuse systems for new housing.
- Explore water reuse options for new non-household buildings.
From our perspective, this year ended the year on a high. The revised plan showed the government’s commitment to exploring the potential for water reuse. Rest assured, we at Stormsaver will be pushing an evidence-based campaign for water reuse throughout 2026!
Find a Water Reuse Solution for You in 2026
What a year it has been for water reuse! All these launches and publications represent real traction for the technology. It’s not just limited to documents either, we have attended many events this year where the hot topic has been focused on water reuse. Events like the Future Homes Conference, the Northumbria Water Developer Day, and various events from the Society of Public Health Engineers all had a real ‘buzz’ for recycling rainwater and greywater.
Here’s to even more traction on water reuse throughout 2026!
We cover all these latest changes in more detail through our dedicated CPDs for rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling. These have recently been updated with the latest reports and best practice information from the field – book here now to stay updated!
