A WATER company has confirmed there are no plans to impose a hosepipe ban in the North East.

In the face of the prolonged dry conditions, both South East Water and Southern Water have announced hosepipe bans, which will come into force in the coming days.

Other firms have also said they may need to implement bans if the dry weather continues.

But Northumbrian Water has said it is "not anticipating the need for any restrictions".

A spokeswoman for the company said: “Over the past seven months we have seen below-average rainfall.

“We are continuing to experience periods of high demand for water and this means that our reservoir levels are lower than they would normally be at this point in the year.

“We are not anticipating the need for any restrictions this summer and as an environmentally-responsible company, we are monitoring and carefully managing the resources we take from the environment.

“To help with this we are encouraging our customers to use water wisely and minimise usage where they can.

“Our teams are working hard to make sure that our reservoirs can recover over the autumn period and this will help us to ensure that we can keep the water flowing for customers throughout winter and into next year.

“For advice and ideas on how to use water wisely, visit www.nwl.co.uk/summer, or follow our social media accounts.”