Hosepipe ban on the horizon for some after driest-ever spring

• Southern Water has advised customers in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight to conserve water due to a prolonged dry spell following the UK's driest spring on record.
• The company is urging residents to adopt water-saving measures such as letting lawns go brown and taking shorter showers to reduce demand on dwindling water supplies in the Test and Itchen rivers.
• Southern Water's director, Tim McMahon, said that water supplies are under increasing pressure and that restrictions on water usage may be necessary to protect chalk streams and ecosystems.
• The company has fixed nearly 21,000 leaks in the past year.
• The warning comes as heat health alerts have been issued across England, with temperatures expected to reach as high as 32C.

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Water firm tells customers to let lawns go brown in hosepipe ban warning