Watergate secures Government funding to transform water efficiency across Cambridgeshire schools

Watergate has been awarded almost £100,000 through the Water Efficiency Cambridgeshire Fund (weCB Fund) to lead an ambitious new project helping schools reduce water waste, lower costs and better understand how they use water.

The project, Sorting Water in Schools, will see Watergate work alongside Aqualogic and WRc to deploy smart water monitoring technology across ten schools within the Cambridge Water Resource Zone. Alongside the schools programme, the partnership will also begin working with the University of Cambridge, starting at its award-winning Entopia Building, home to the University’s Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

The funding comes from the weCB Fund, which is 100% funded by the UK Government through the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

Tackling one of Cambridgeshire’s biggest challenges

Cambridgeshire is one of the UK’s fastest-growing regions, but water scarcity is becoming one of its biggest barriers to future growth^[1].

The Environment Agency has identified Greater Cambridge as being seriously water stressed, with climate change and increasing demand placing growing pressure on limited water resources.

The weCB Fund was established to help tackle this challenge by supporting projects that reduce non-household demand for potable water across the Cambridge Water Resource Zone. Its ambition is to free up 2–3 megalitres of water every day by 2032, creating the headroom needed for thousands of new homes, businesses and jobs.

Why schools?

Schools consume significant volumes of water every day, yet most have very little visibility of where it is being used or wasted.

Across England, an estimated 74 million litres of water are wasted in schools every day, often through hidden leaks, inefficient fixtures and ageing infrastructure^[2]. Problems can go unnoticed for weeks or even months, leading to higher bills, disruption to learning, unnecessary carbon emissions, and costly repairs.

Watergate believes that water should be managed with the same visibility and intelligence that organisations already expect for energy.

Making water visible

The aim of Sorting Water in Schools is simple: Find it. Fix it. Save it.

Every participating site will receive a fully funded programme that includes:

• A detailed water efficiency survey

• Installation of Watergate Sonic smart water sensors

• Continuous monitoring to identify hidden leaks and unusual water use

• Automatic protection against major water leaks

• Engineering support from Aqualogic to investigate alerts and repair priority issues

• Training for facilities teams to use the Watergate monitoring platform

• Water-saving assemblies designed to inspire pupils to value water and use it more wisely

Rather than simply reporting how much water a building used last month, the system provides real-time insight into where water is being consumed, enabling facilities teams to identify issues early and take targeted action.

Building evidence for wider adoption

While the project will deliver immediate benefits for participating schools, its ambition is much bigger.

The partnership aims to create a proven, evidence-based delivery model that combines smart monitoring, engineering support, education and data to reduce water demand at scale.

The programme is expected to reduce water consumption at participating sites by around 35%. For a typical secondary school, that could mean saving almost two million litres of water every year, reducing annual water bills by more than £8,000, avoiding costly leak repairs and protecting valuable buildings and equipment.

The inclusion of the University of Cambridge’s Entopia Building will also demonstrate how the same approach can be applied beyond schools, helping other complex public buildings manage water more intelligently.

A collaborative approach

The project brings together three organisations with complementary expertise.

Watergate will provide the smart water monitoring technology, digital platform and performance insights.

Aqualogic will install the sensors, investigate alerts and carry out targeted repairs to reduce water waste quickly and effectively.

WRc will independently evaluate the programme, helping quantify its impact and identify opportunities to scale the approach across the region and beyond.

Installation work will begin over the coming months, starting with the first schools and the University of Cambridge’s Entopia Building.

Register your interest

Schools located within the Cambridge Water Resource Zone are invited to register their interest in joining the programme.

Participating schools will receive:

• Smart water monitoring technology

• Installation and commissioning

• Ongoing monitoring and reporting

• Engineering support to identify and repair priority leaks

• Training for facilities teams

• Water-saving education sessions for pupils

All of this is provided completely free of charge thanks to funding from the Water Efficiency Cambridgeshire Fund. There are a select number of places for schools and applying does not guarantee your school will participate.