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The chief executive of South East Water, David Hinton, acknowledged that the company has been overly dependent on a limited number of key facilities following a significant water supply disruption that impacted thousands of residents in Kent. From 29 November to 4 December, approximately 24,000 homes in and around Tunbridge Wells experienced either no water or very low water pressure. After water service was largely restored on 4 December, customers were advised to boil the tap water before use for an additional nine days. The root cause was identified as a disinfection issue at the Pembury Water Treatment Works, although South East Water indicated no evidence of contamination during the outage.
Speaking earlier in the week, Mr. Hinton explained that the company plans to enhance its infrastructure by expanding capacity at Bewl Water reservoir near Wadhurst, East Sussex. The investment, valued at around £30 million, aims to improve the company’s ability to quickly supply water to Tunbridge Wells and surrounding areas if similar problems arise in the future. He emphasized that this strategy is intended to build increased resilience not just for Tunbridge Wells but for broader areas across Kent, covering multiple treatment plants and reducing dependence on single points of failure. Despite these efforts, Mr. Hinton has faced public pressure and calls for his resignation following the disruption.
South East Water was among five water companies that challenged the regulator Ofwat’s latest price control framework. The initial plan allowed an average household bill increase from £232 to £274 by 2030. However, the firms argued that the proposed 36% average rise over five years would still be insufficient to fund necessary infrastructure improvements. The Competition and Markets Authority has since provisionally approved an additional 4% increase, with a final decision expected in 2026. Mr. Hinton linked the Bewl Water expansion project to the company’s case for higher funding through increased customer charges.
In terms of investigating the outage, South East Water suspects that the level of water at Pembury reservoir played a role in the failure, but the company is committed to conducting a thorough inquiry to understand all contributing factors. Earlier in the year, the company had already introduced hosepipe bans across Kent and Sussex due to dry weather conditions in 2025. The incident has also drawn the attention of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, which is currently looking into the Tunbridge Wells supply failure
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