New water connections for houses

Find out how to get a new water connection for your home and make sure your private pipework is installed correctly ahead of connecting it to our water main.

How to get a new water connection for a house

Before you begin, make sure you know who supplies your water and wastewater services. You can check this easily on the Water UK website.

Submit your application (including supporting documents) and pay the application fee. You’ll need to show us:

In this video, we'll walk you through each step, ensuring you understand exactly what needs to be done to get you connected.

Once we’ve got your application, we’ll complete checks on our network to make sure we’re able to supply water to your desired location.

If we have everything, your application will be progressed to the next stage, and you’ll be assigned a dedicated Customer Connection Manager – they’ll be your point of contact from this point onwards.

If we need extra information to progress your application – we’ll be in touch.

Your dedicated Customer Connection Manager will call you to arrange a date and time for us to visit your site.

Whilst we’re on site, we’ll assess the work needed to get you connected. Once the visit is completed, we’ll provide you with a sketch and supporting guidance, so you know exactly where and how to lay your private supply pipe.

As well as a sketch and supporting guidance, we’ll send you a tailored quote for making the water connection. Your quote comes with an acceptance form that you’ll need to sign when you’re ready for us to inspect the private supply pipe once laid.

You can now lay your private supply pipe from your home to the boundary of your property in line with the plans and supporting guidance we gave you following our visit to your site.

Read our guidance on how to install a private water supply pipe on a domestic property.

After you’ve laid your supply pipe you can now pay your quote and send us your signed acceptance form. This tells us that you’re ready for an inspection and want us to make the water connection for you.

Once we’ve received your signed acceptance form and you make your payment, we’ll call you to book a suitable date and time to inspect the pipework you’ve laid.

Our Connection Project Manager will visit on the date agreed to check your pipework has been laid correctly.

How to pass a private water supply pipe inspection

Inspections ensure that the private supply pipe laid from your home to the property boundary meets legal and safety standards before we make the connection to our water main.

This video explains in detail how to pass an inspection by laying your private supply pipe the right way.

We’ll make the connection to our network and the new water supply can be used.

Use an approved plumber

A Water Industry Approved Plumber (WIAPS) is fully qualified and trusted by UK water companies to work to the highest standards. They are trained to meet water regulations, carry the necessary insurance, and can certify their own work - saving you time and hassle.

Choosing a WIAPS plumber means your installation is safe, legal, and done right first time.

Instead of physical site inspection, you'll just need to provide evidence of your contractor's accreditation and photos showing that the private supply pipe has been laid to the agreed point outline when we visited your site.

Find an approved plumber

Things to consider before you apply

It’s important to check the location of our water mains before applying.

Knowing this upfront helps you plan the most cost-effective way to make the new connection. Keep in mind: the further away the main is, the higher the cost for materials and labour.

If you’d like to know where our water and wastewater pipes are, you can request a map of our network.

Request a water or sewer map

Book a map viewing appointment

If you need to connect to our sewer, you’ll need to hire your own contractor to lay the private sewer pipe.

Once that’s done, you must apply for approval before making the connection to the public sewer - it's against the law to connect to our sewers without permission.

You can apply for approval to connect to our sewer at the same time as applying for a new water connection.

Learn more about sewer connections

Before we can make the new connection, you’ll need to show us that you have permission to work on land that’s owned by someone else.

You can choose who carries out the water connection works for you.

Here are your options:

Using a Self-lay provider

Most water connections for houses are 25mm to 32mm – this is more than enough to meet the needs of typical domestic use.

You’ll only need a bigger connection if your water needs are much higher than usual.

If you’re unsure of your connection requirements, get in touch – we’ll be happy to help.

Contact our team

You could receive financial incentives by building new homes to specified qualifying criteria through our Environmental Incentive Scheme.

You need to tell us beforehand if you intend to apply for the scheme and send us your completed application form within 12 weeks of making your new connection

Environmental Incentive Scheme