Long Term Plan for Housing - impacts for water!
Date published:
July 26, 2023

- The government will also take definitive action to unblock development where it has stalled, providing £500,000 of funding to assist with planning capacity. Cambridge City Council, Anglian Water, Land Securities PLC and Homes England will work together to accelerate the relocation of water treatment works in Northeast Cambridge (subject to planning permission), unlocking an entire new City quarter – delivering approaching 6,000 sustainable well-designed homes in thriving neighbourhoods – as well as schools, parks and over 1 million square feet of much needed commercial life science research space.
- There are plans for convening a Water Scarcity Working Group with the Environment Agency, Ofwat, central and local government and innovators across industries to identify and accelerate plans to address water constraints. The Group will include all relevant partners to understand what it would take to accelerate building the proposed new Fens Reservoir and enabling Cambridge to reach its economic potential.
- Full details of the announcement can be found here
More from the water sector
Find out how the UK water sector is informing, innovating, and influencing change
Future Water Awards 2026 – Nominations now open
Celebrate excellence in the UK water sector by nominating outstanding individuals and organisations for the 2026 Future Water Awards, recognising emerging talent, people, and above-and-beyond contributions.
Drive to tackle I&I with “high fidelity” data
New Environment Agency requirements on sewer overflow reporting are placing urgent pressure on water companies to better quantify and reduce groundwater infiltration in wastewater networks. In this article, Ryan Pearson, Head of Strategy at Metasphere (a Grundfos company), explains how high-quality data and advanced monitoring can help utilities meet new compliance requirements, reduce pollution events, and support lower-carbon, nature-based infrastructure solutions.
New Environment Agency guidance on sewer overflow reporting is pushing water companies to better quantify groundwater infiltration and reduce wastewater network overflows.
Reg 4 and Reg 31 — More Than Just Specification Language
Regulation 4 and Regulation 31 are often referenced in UK water industry specifications, but their impact on manufacturers and the supply chain is far-reaching. In this article, Groundbreaker Systems explores how approvals such as WRAS, KIWA and NSF shape product design, testing and compliance. While rigorous and costly to achieve, these approvals provide vital assurance that materials and products used in water networks will protect drinking water quality and perform reliably for decades. Ultimately, compliance is not just about certification, it is about safeguarding the safety and resilience of the UK’s water infrastructure.
How Regulation 4 and Regulation 31 approvals shape product testing, compliance and trust across the UK water supply chain.
