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The head of South East Water has acknowledged the company’s over-reliance on specific facilities, following a six-day supply disruption that impacted thousands of residents in Kent.
Approximately 24,000 properties in and around Tunbridge Wells experienced either no tap water or low water pressure from November 29 until supplies were largely restored on December 4. For the subsequent nine days, residents were advised to boil their tap water before consumption.
South East Water attributed the disruption to a disinfection issue at the Pembury Water Treatment Works, stating that there was no evidence of contamination in the supply.
Chief Executive Officer David Hinton stated that the company was “just too reliant in some areas on one asset”.
Speaking to the BBC earlier this week, Mr. Hinton indicated the company’s intention to “do more” at the Bewl Water reservoir near Wadhurst in East Sussex, with plans to invest £30 million in expanding output capacity.
According to Mr. Hinton, this proposal would enable the company to “rapidly fill the area of Tunbridge Wells, for example, as soon as we see any issue”.
He stated that this would provide “extra resilience should any other challenges hit any other treatment works” without further depleting the reservoir.
“It’s not only for Tunbridge Wells, it’s for the wider parts of Kent as well,” the chief executive added, who has faced calls for his resignation in light of the supply issues.
South East Water was among five companies contesting the most recent price controls set by regulator Ofwat, which already permitted an increase in the average annual bill from £232 to £274 by 2030.
The firms argued that the average 36% price increase for customers in England over the next five years was insufficient to facilitate improved infrastructure.
The Competition and Markets Authority has provisionally agreed that South East Water can raise bills by an additional 4%, pending a final decision in 2026.
Mr. Hinton identified the Bewl Water proposal as a key justification for the company’s request to the competition regulator to authorize increased customer charges.
South East Water suspects that “something to do with the level” of water at its Pembury reservoir may have contributed to the supply failure, but the firm intends to “do a full investigation,” he stated.
The company implemented hosepipe restrictions in July for customers in Kent and Sussex, following a period of dry weather earlier in 2025.
The Drinking Water Inspectorate has announced an investigation into the Tunbridge Wells supply disruption incident.
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