Newly laid turf during a hosepipe ban
Most current notices let you hosepipe-water newly laid turf for a limited period after laying, commonly 28 days, because new turf dies permanently without it. The window and the conditions are set by each company, and Southern Water requires permission to be requested first.
Using the exemption safely
Keep the delivery note or invoice: it dates the laying, which dates the window. Water within your company’s stated period only, and switch to a can afterwards. If your company is Southern Water, request the permission first and keep the reply.
If your company’s concessions do not mention turf at all, do not infer the common 28-day rule into a notice that does not contain it; ask the company. The table below shows exactly what each company with a live ban publishes.
What each company allows
The statutory list is the floor. Each company publishes its own concessions on top, and they differ, so this table is driven by each company’s published exemptions rather than a single national answer.
No company currently has a ban in force, so no concessions are operative right now. This table populates automatically when a ban is declared.
Common questions
How long does the new-turf exemption last?
It is set by each company's notice. 28 days from laying is the common figure in current notices, and 'a limited period after laying' is the usual wording. The clock runs from laying, not purchase.
Does it cover seeded lawns too?
Usually not: the concessions are written for laid turf. Some notices extend to newly seeded areas; if yours does not say so, water a new seeded lawn with a can or ask the company.
Southern Water asks for permission first. What does that mean?
Southern Water's current concession requires you to request permission before hosepipe-watering newly laid turf, rather than the exemption applying automatically. Keep the confirmation; it is your basis if anyone asks.
Can I lay turf during a ban at all?
Yes, nothing prohibits laying it. The question is watering it in. If your company exempts new turf you can use a hosepipe for the stated window; otherwise it is watering cans, or delay the laying: turf laid into a drought without hosepipe support fails more often than not.
Does the exemption cover an established lawn that is dying?
No. There is no company that exempts established lawns; a brown lawn is the expected cost of a ban and recovers with autumn rain. The exemption exists because newly laid turf dies permanently without water in its first weeks.
Temporary Use Bans are made under section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991. The uses a ban can restrict are specified by the Water Use (Temporary Bans) Order 2010 (SI 2010/2231).We are an independent tracker, not a water company or a regulator; your supplier’s own notice is the version that legally applies to you.