RESERVOIR levels have risen for the seventh week running – but remain well below the average for the time of year, says Yorkshire Water.

Following recent rainfall, stocks now stand at 57 per cent; still someway off the expected 74 per cent for the end of October.

The hosepipe ban, introduced in July remains in place, and drought permits have allowed Yorkshire Water to hold more water in the depleted reservoirs.

Dave Kaye, director of water services at Yorkshire Water, said: “Our reservoirs, groundwater sources, and rivers, are in recovery following the extremely dry weather we experienced in the spring and summer.

“However, stocks are still much lower than they should be for this time of year, and we need significant increases over the autumn and winter so that we are in a strong position heading into spring 2026.

“This means making use of the drought permits and orders we have been issued around the region to make use of more river and groundwater, helping us to hold water in the reservoir and allowing them to top up via the rainfall we’ve seen so far in autumn.”

Yorkshire Water has hired an additional 10 task teams to focus on finding and fixing leaks across the region which it hopes will help reservoirs recover as much as possible.

Mr Kaye added; “We’ve repaired over 11,000 leaks since the beginning of April this year, and we’ve been repairing those leaks an average of 36 per cent faster than usual – leakage has reduced by 34 million litres per day since the start of April.

“However, we know there is more to do and with cold weather comes more leakage as the ground moves, and as water freezes and puts pressure on the pipes.

“We’re making sure we’re prepared for this by bringing additional colleagues into the business to find and fix leaks quicker.

“We’re also progressing with our £406m mains replacement scheme at pace. We’ve replaced 100km of water mains across the region so far, focusing on those that were more likely to burst or leak.”

With more wet weather predicted, Yorkshire Water is encouraging customers to support reservoir recovery efforts by continuing to conserve water resources where they can, using water butts to capture rainwater, and checking their homes for leaks.

The hosepipe restrictions remain in place and will be lifted as soon as reservoirs have sufficiently recovered, says the water company.