Southern Water has set out how much it has spent over the last four years since spring 2020 on planned water and waste infrastructure projects, broken down county-by-county.

The water company has revealed the details against the following backdrop:

• the 2024/5 financial year marks the final stretch for the water companies’ in England and Wales current five-year spending period
• the 2024/5 financial year also marks the final stretch Southern Water’s own Turnaround Plan – designed to deliver fast-tracked performance improvements across the board
• the prospect of a General Election, as the various challenges facing our industry raise debate among politicians and voters.

Southern Water say that almost £1 billion has now been invested in its water and waste networks through this funding stream over four years, with plans to pass the £1.5 billion mark by this time next year.

The expenditure by county is:

Hampshire - £251 million has already been spent in Hampshire - including £97 million so far on the Water for Life Hampshire scheme which through initiatives like building the UK’s first major reservoir since the 1980s, will secure a stable water supply in the county for generations to come - with a further £179 million allocated for the next year

Isle of Wight - £5.6 million has been spent on the Isle of Wight since 2020 - including £3m on improving the resilience of water supply sites so they better withstand extreme weather events such as the recent Storm Ciaran - with £15.9 million more planned by this time next year

Sussex - £333 million has been spent over four years in Sussex - including £157m on improving our wastewater treatment processes to improve the quality of final effluent discharge at 37 sites, reducing any impact on the local environment - and £137 million still allocated for the year ahead

Kent - £276 million has been spent in Kent since 2020 - including £30m on increasing stormwater storage at 16 sites to reduce the use of storm overflows during heavy rainfall - with £151 million more allocated for the 2024/25 financial year.

The water company said that this spending accounts only for planned construction projects relating to its water and wastewater infrastructure. It does not include regular reactive projects and workstreams, the £45 million innovative approaches of the Clean Rivers and Seas Task Force to cutting storm overflows, or the money being spent above and beyond what was agreed with regulators before 2020 to drive forward the Turnaround Plan, particularly in combatting pollution and flooding incidents.

John Penicud, Southern Water’s Director for Wastewater Operations, said:

“As we enter an absolutely crucial year for Southern Water and the wider water industry, it is right that we are open with our customers about what we are spending on improving our performance and where the money is going.

“Contrary to some claims aired in the media and among the public, I’d like to reassure you that we are spending our bill payers’ and our shareholders’ money in an ambitious, targeted and evidence-based way to fix the issues we know we face. These figures on planned infrastructure projects demonstrate that very clearly, and we will keep pushing ahead to achieve the results everyone wants to see.”

Southern Water explained that many of these schemes, initiatives and programmes will not stop in spring 2025. They will continue under the company’s future business plan, with final approval by Ofwat due in December 2024.

Describing the £7.8 billion AMP8 plan as its largest and most ambitious plan ever, the plan is double the size of Southern Water’s previous programme and will deliver the single biggest enhancement investment in the environment of £3.3 billion in the firm’s history.