Sussex Water Ban Update, Roof Safety Lessons and Training Changes

Mark Cave

This is your SoftWash UK news flash for Monday 5 October 2026. I'm Mark Cave. Three items today, and the first one is time critical if you work in Sussex. Check before you clean.

Mark Cave

From Friday 9 October, South East Water is removing the exemption that let commercial contractors use hosepipes for cleaning at domestic properties in Sussex. Window cleaners, pressure washers, softwashers, all of us. If you've been turning up, connecting to the customer's outside tap and topping up your van tanks, that is the thing that changes.

Mark Cave

Why is this happening? The hosepipe ban was introduced in July, and South East Water says the extension is down to lower rainfall than expected. The Environment Agency has granted a drought permit allowing less water to be returned to local rivers from Ardingly Reservoir in West Sussex. That reservoir serves 280,000 customers, and the company describes its levels as exceptionally low for this time of year. It said the reservoir is only 23 percent full. So this isn't a paperwork exercise. It's a supply problem.

Mark Cave

Now, what does stay? An exemption remains for health and safety reasons and for animal welfare. Please hear me on this. Routine exterior cleaning of walls, roofs, patios and windows does not automatically qualify. Don't stretch the wording to suit your diary.

Mark Cave

There's a second part to this, and it's not in force yet. South East Water has separately applied to Defra for a ban on some non essential commercial water use. If approved, it would cover things like mechanical car washes and businesses using hosepipes. I want to be clear: it has been applied for. It is not approved, and it is not in force. Objections can be submitted to Defra until 9 October. If that affects your business, that's your window to be heard, and it's this week.

Mark Cave

One window cleaner in Haywards Heath told the BBC this would be a real hardship, because his business relies on hosepipes to fill the water tanks in his vans. He said he's got about two tonnes of pure water ready, but once that's gone, it's gone. I'd say plenty of you will recognise that position. The company's own line is that it understands the impact on businesses, and that this is part of its drought plan.

Mark Cave

So here's what I'd do before your next job. First, check who supplies the water at that property, and check the current restrictions. Don't guess from the postcode. Second, do not assume your contractor exemption still applies. It's gone for domestic jobs in Sussex from 9 October, so if you've been working on habit, stop. Third, if you believe a job falls under a health, safety or welfare exemption, get written confirmation from South East Water, and record your justification. Write down the hazard, why the work is needed, and why it can't wait. Put it in your risk assessment. If somebody questions you later, you want paper, not a memory.

Mark Cave

And practically, plan your water. Fill up outside the restricted area where that's allowed, and check your supply before you load the van, not when you're standing on the drive.

Mark Cave

Item two. Roof cleaning: planning saves lives.

Mark Cave

The Health and Safety Executive has highlighted a £120,000 fine following a fatal fall from a roof. I'll be straight about the detail, because it matters. This wasn't a cleaning job. It was an electrical contractor fitting a lightning protection system at an office block in Warrington that was being converted into flats. Dennis Vincent, 36, was lowering access equipment from the roof on a rope attached to a frame, and both he and the frame fell to the ground. That was on 24 February 2021. The company, PTSG Electrical Services, pleaded guilty and was fined £120,000 at Wirral Magistrates' Court on 9 February 2023, with costs of £5,448.51.

Mark Cave

Why does it matter to us? Because of what the HSE found. It said the company failed to adequately assess the risks and gave little consideration to the work at height hierarchy of control. It chose personal protection over collective protection, such as scaffolding or a mobile elevating work platform. And it hadn't planned for getting the rope access equipment onto, and off, the roof safely. The HSE inspector, Sara Andrews, said the incident could easily have been avoided by better planning of the work.

Mark Cave

Now think about your own roof jobs. Have you planned the access and the way down? Have you thought about who's supervising, and what protection is actually in place, not what you hope will hold? And can the job be done from the ground? Where practicable, use ground based methods. That's why systems that let you apply from the ground exist. If the plan says you have to walk an unprotected roof, the plan needs another look.

Mark Cave

Item three. Training.

Mark Cave

The Scottish Cleaning and Support Services SVQs at levels 4 and 5 closed on 30 September. Qualifications Scotland lists them as withdrawn, finishing on that date. These were broad cleaning qualifications, aimed at people in jobs like hotels, hospitals, offices and domestic services. They covered things like reducing health and safety risks, customer service and following procedures. They weren't built around softwashing chemistry, sodium hypochlorite or work at height.

Mark Cave

So where does that leave you? Let me be honest about it. Specialist CPD training supports your professional development, but it does not replace an SVQ. Don't present it as one. What it can do is keep your knowledge current in the areas where our trade carries real risk.

Mark Cave

That's what the SoftWash UK Approved Applicator Programme is for. It covers safer methods, chemical knowledge and professional practice, including surface science, chemical calculations, COSHH, and preventing runoff. If you want to explore it, head to SoftWash UK.

Mark Cave

To recap: Sussex, check your supplier, drop the exemption assumption, and get written confirmation if you're relying on health and safety. Object to Defra by 9 October if it affects you. Plan every roof job before you set foot near it. And keep learning. I'm Mark Cave, and this has been your SoftWash UK news flash.