Private Water Supplies
What is a private water supply?
A private water supply is any water supply which not provided by a statutory water company such as Southern Water. The source of private water supplies is normally a borehole, well or spring. The supply may serve just one property or several properties.
What is the law relating to private water supplies?
The Private Water Supplies (England) Regulations 2016 require local authorities to monitor the quality of private water supplies to ensure compliance with the UK drinking water standards. If you are on a private water supply which is shared with others then the supply owner should already be in contact with us for regular testing.
Keeping your private water supply safe
If you wish to be assured that your private water supply is safe to drink, we will sample it for you on request. A charge will however be made to cover our sampling costs. We would also be happy to carry out a risk assessment for you and offer advice on ways to protect your supply and/or treatment methods. See table below to find out what our sampling and related charges are.
|
Sampling & Related Charges (April 2023 - March 2024) |
|
|---|---|
|
Activity |
Our Charge |
|
Sampling |
£78.30 + Analysis Costs |
|
Analysis Costs |
Laboratory costs up to the maximum permissible charge |
|
Risk Assessment |
No Charge |
|
Investigation of a water quality failure |
No charge unless sampling is carried out, in which case sampling analysis costs up to a maximum of £100. |
|
Granting an Authorisation |
No charge |
| Activity | Our Charge |
|---|---|
| Sampling | £74.60 + Analysis Costs |
| Analysis Costs | Laboratory costs up to the maximum permissible charge |
| Risk Assessment | No Charge |
| Investigation of a water quality failure | No charge unless sampling is carried out, in which case sampling analysis costs up to a maximum of £100. |
| Granting an Authorisation | No charge |
Additionally, there are various things you can do to protect your water supply from contaminations. These are outlined in an advisory leaflet produced by the Drinking Water Inspectorate (see link below).
Further Information?
If you require any further information, please contact:
Environmental Protection Team
Telephone: 01264 368000
Email: envhealth@testvalley.gov.uk