Private water supplies
Around 3% of Scotland’s population get their drinking water from private water supplies, not owned or operated by Scottish Water. Most of these are in remote and rural areas and use sources like lochs, streams or boreholes.
You can find more information on private water supplies on mygov.scot, including a tool to help make them safer.
Private water supply grant scheme
We provide funding to local councils to deliver the private water supply grant scheme, offering up to £800 eligible persons to improve their existing private water supply.
Check how to apply for a private water supply grant at mygov.scot.
Private water supply connections project
The private water supply connections pilot project helped eligible communities affected by water scarcity explore opportunities to connect to the public water network.
The project included:
- a Scotland-wide scheme where councils nominated affected communities
- a pilot project to assess the extension of the public water supply to shortlisted communities
Our aims were to:
- improve Scotland's resilience to water scarcity
- better understand the challenges of extending the public water network to communities with private supplies
- learn lessons for future climate change projects
This was delivered with Scottish Water, Consumer Scotland and local councils.
The pilot scheme has now ended, and no further communities are being considered for connection through this project.