Water affordability
Ensuring affordability of water supplies for households in one of the Government's key social goals for water policy.
Cross-Government review of water affordability
To review the way in which assistance was offered a cross-Government steering group was set up, led by Defra and involving Ofwat, Treasury, Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Trade and Industry, and the Welsh Assembly. Views were also sought from interested parties outside Government.
The 2004 Water Affordability Report sets out Ministers' decisions on water affordability following a review of the way in which lower income households are helped with their water and sewerage charges.
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Cross-Government Review of Water Affordability Report (PDF 300 KB)- updated February 2005
South West Water affordability pilot study
One of the recommendations of the review of water affordability was to undertake a pilot study that would look at a combination of benefit entitlement checks, installing meters and water efficient devices on water affordability.
The final report from the contractors undertaking the benefit entitlement checks and water efficiency audits explaining their methodology is available below:
- South West pilot scheme on water affordability (PDF 1.2 MB)
An analysis of the pilot is available below:
If you want further information about the pilot, or copies of the full reports, contact the Defra Helpline
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Page last modified:
20 December 2007
Page published: 2 December 2004