Water resources planning guideline
Publication Year
2026
Document Status
Current
Abstract
Mainly relevant to water companies for preparing Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) but also applicable to those producing regional plans. Covers: planning for a secure, sustainable supply of water; national, regional and local planning; how to form and maintain a WRMP; basis of planning; developing the supply forecast; developing the demand forecast; allowing for uncertainty; identifying possible options; aspects to consider in compiling a best value plan; and how to compile the best value plan.
Document History
Last updated: 2 April 2026 - Updated to include changes to process, approaches and updated links to associated guidance, research and documents. Sourced from: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/water-resources-planning-guideline/water-resources-planning-guideline and converted to pdf. Whilst we endeavour to capture all updates it is subject to receiving alerts from the publisher and there may be formatting or punctuation changes applied to the html version that do not affect the text. Document type: guidance. First published: 24 February 2021. Published in conjunction with: Natural Resources Wales and Water Services Regulation Authority
Publisher Information
Environment Agency
The Environment Agency is responsible for protecting and improving the environment in England and Wales. They publish a range of technical guidance, reports, policies and research material to promote a cleaner and healthier place to live in.
