Affinity Water is proud to return as headline sponsor for the eighth consecutive year at Groundswell 2025, the UK’s premier regenerative agriculture festival. Taking place on 2–3 July at Lannock Manor Farm in Hertfordshire, the event brings together farmers, land managers, policymakers, and environmental advocates to explore sustainable land management practices that benefit both agriculture and water.
Showcasing collaborative initiatives and innovations
At this year's festival, Affinity Water will highlight its ongoing commitment to supporting farmers in adopting practices that improve soil health and protect water resources. Since 2020, we have funded and supported farmers to grow a total of 11,000 hectares of cover and companion crops across our priority catchments. Cover and companion cropping are key elements of regenerative farming that enhance soil structure, boost biodiversity, and help retain moisture.
In addition, we have co-funded an extra 2,000 hectares of catchment and nature-based solutions, including arable reversion to species-rich grassland, spring crops that require fewer pesticides, and intercropping to harvest multiple cash crops.
Our Soil and Water Innovation Fund has contributed to innovative projects on agricultural land designed to protect soil and water quality. These include agroforestry initiatives, purchase of no-till machinery, installation of temporary tracks to reduce soil compaction, and modifications to existing farm machinery, such as conversions to low disturbance subsoilers.
Currently open for applications, our new Water in the Landscape Grant fund focuses on building more resilient chalk catchments by supporting projects that use nature to slow water flow across land. These projects help reduce flooding and erosion, improve soil health to enhance water infiltration, and reduce runoff into watercourses, aiming to create lasting landscape-level change. To find out more, farmers are encouraged to visit the Affinity Water stand at Groundswell and talk to the catchment team.
Engaging directly with farmers for healthier soil and water
We work closely with farmers to improve soil health, structure, and resilience, which reduces runoff, improves water infiltration, and keeps nutrients where they belong. These benefits are demonstrated at Groundswell through our rainfall simulator, an interactive tool illustrating how soil management impacts water retention and quality.
Healthier soil means fewer agricultural inputs are lost to watercourses, protecting water at the source, saving farmers money and reducing the need for costly treatment. We actively promote regenerative practices such as companion cropping and cover crops, which support biodiversity, boost soil microbiology, and help retain soil moisture.
Our overarching goal is to protect the chalk aquifers and streams that serve as vital lifelines for both people and nature. Since 2020, Affinity Water has delivered 34 chalk stream restoration projects and plans to complete 33 more by 2030. Alongside this, we’ve already reduced abstraction by over 38 million litres of water per day from protected water sources, with a further 36.37 million litres per day of reductions planned in AMP8 (2025-2030). These reductions help restore flows to rare chalk streams and support long-term water resilience across our catchments.
Restoring chalk streams through partnership
Many chalk streams flow through farmland, making collaboration with landowners and managers essential to restoring natural chalk stream processes and characteristics. Our river restoration measures include:
- Bypassing, notching, and removal of weirs to eliminate barriers
- Channel re-meandering and narrowing to improve flow diversity and sediment transport
- Channel realignment to connect rivers with floodplains and groundwater
- Wetland creation to hold water on floodplains, slow flow, and create habitat
- Installing in-channel features such as large woody debris, hinged trees, and gravel augmentation to enhance habitat for fish and macroinvertebrates
- Tree works to increase light for riparian vegetation growth
- Fencing to protect riverbanks from livestock poaching and sediment runoff
This work enhances chalk stream habitat, boosts biodiversity, and increases resilience to droughts and floods.
Visit Affinity Water at Groundswell 2025
Attendees are invited to visit Affinity Water’s stand near the Big Top tent to:
- Experience rainfall simulator demonstrations showing soil and water management impacts.
- Meet catchment management and biodiversity teams to learn about ongoing collaborations.
- Discover the ‘Rooting for Wildlife’ grant scheme supporting local biodiversity initiatives.
- Collect a free reusable water bottle (while stocks last) and access educational materials on sustainable water and land management.
Danny Coffey, Catchment Manager at Affinity Water, said:
“We fully support regenerative agriculture as a sustainable, carbon-friendly approach to protecting water at its source rather than relying on energy-intensive engineered solutions. It’s critical to consider both crops and water in our trials, and we look forward to sharing our latest findings at Groundswell.”
Affinity Water’s participation in Groundswell 2025 reinforces its commitment to working alongside farmers, growers, and land managers to achieve measurable and lasting environmental improvements.