Southern Water’s 2024 Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP24) is a long-term strategic framework that explains how the company will maintain reliable and sustainable water supplies for millions of customers across South East England. The plan is typically updated every five years and is designed to ensure resilience against drought, climate change, and population growth.

A key focus of the WRMP is balancing future water demand with available supply over a 50-year planning horizon (2025–2075). The company uses forecasting models to estimate future consumption and identifies potential gaps that must be addressed through new infrastructure and efficiency measures.

The plan includes multiple strategies such as reducing leakage in distribution networks, improving customer water efficiency, and expanding supply options like reservoirs, water recycling systems, and water transfers between regions. These solutions aim to reduce pressure on sensitive natural sources such as rivers and aquifers.

Environmental protection is a central theme, especially reducing abstraction from vulnerable ecosystems like chalk streams. The plan also integrates collaboration with regional water planning groups to ensure coordinated management across neighboring water companies.

Overall, Southern Water’s WRMP represents a large-scale infrastructure and sustainability roadmap designed to secure long-term water resilience while prot