Innovation

In Water Resources West, innovation is at the heart of how we tackle the challenges of water scarcity, climate resilience, and sustainable growth. We work with regional stakeholders, and academic partners to develop and test new approaches that transform water management across our region.

River Severn Partnership: Advanced Wireless Innovation Region

Water Resources West leads the Water Workstream within the River Severn Partnership Advanced Wireless Innovation Region (AWIR) – a £4 million initiative funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. This programme accelerates the adoption of advanced wireless technologies to improve water management, agri-tech, and public services across the Severn catchment.

This offers:

  • Real-time data for smarter water abstraction and irrigation.

  • Enhanced flood forecasting and drought resilience.

  • Improved water quality monitoring for environmental and public health.

This innovation partnership was recognised with the New Initiative Award, at the 2025 Environmental Monitoring Awards.

Our Water Use Case Portfolio

We are delivering pioneering projects that demonstrate how connectivity can transform water management:

  1. Smart Abstraction
    Partners: Cranfield University, Harper Adams University, Kisters
    Deploying wireless sensors to monitor flows and optimize water storage and release strategies.

  2. Precision Irrigation
    Partners: PDM Produce, University of Cordoba
    Using soil and crop sensors to deliver water and nutrients with pinpoint accuracy.

  3. Network as a Sensor
    Partners: Vodafone
    Leveraging telecom infrastructure to generate rainfall data for improved flood response.

  4. Water Quality Monitoring

    • Nutrient Monitoring: Real-time data to protect sensitive catchments.

    • Bacteria Monitoring: Supporting safe bathing waters in Ludlow and Shrewsbury.

  5. Peatland Water Levels
    Wireless monitoring to support peat restoration and flood management.

Academic partnership

Water Resources West is proud to have supported doctoral research by Ali Leonard at Newcastle University, which completed in 2025.

Ali’s work explores collaborative multiscale water resources planning in England. This work examines the implementation of the National Framework for Water Resources, introduced in 2020, and its role in embedding strategic cooperation across a privatized industry to meet higher resilience standards.

Key insights from Ali’s research include:

  • How regional planning groups like WRW navigate complex governance structures.

  • Lessons learned from stakeholder engagement between 2020–2024.

  • Recommendations for adaptive, integrated planning to address England’s water crisis.

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