'USE water wisely'.

That's the plea to householders from Yorkshire Water, which says usage traditionally soars in the period between now and the start of the school summer holidays.

Emma Rattigan, the company's water efficiency manager, said: "Not only does saving water help the environment, it also means there is more to go around.

"As a result of climate change we are likely to have a lot less rainfall during summer months. Paired with population growth, that means we’ll have more people using water, but less water actually in supply.

"Although it hasn’t always been hot, the last few months have been particularly dry. It's important that customers save water where they can."

For further information and a range of water-saving tips, go to yorkshirewater.com/save.