Drinking water fountain to be installed at Flat Iron Square

As part of his work to reduce single-use plastic bottles in London, the Mayor has committed to installing up to 20 new water fountains across the city this year.

The first fountain has already been installed in Kingly Court off Carnaby Street and three more will follow this summer: two in Liverpool Street Station and one in Bankside's Flat Iron Square.

"To get a grip on needless plastic waste we need to provide simple ways of refilling and accessing free water, and water fountains are the much-needed solution," said Mr Khan.

"I hope the first four of the 20 new fountains this year will be popular additions to Carnaby Street, Liverpool Street Station and Flat Iron Square.

"For years public water fountains have been disappearing from London's streets; I want to hear from land owners in some of London's mostvisited locations so we can continue returning them to the capital."

To help find locations for the next 16 fountains, the Mayor is calling on land and site owners to bid for funding from a pot of up to £75,000, up to £50,000 of which is provided by the Mayor, with an additional £25,000 provided by water fountain specialists MIW.

Applications will be considered from site owners bidding for fountains in busy shopping streets, business districts, public attractions and other places that have high public footfall.

The bids will be assessed by the #OneLess campaign, which is led by Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) and which aims to reduce the number of single-use plastic bottles that end up in our rivers and oceans.

ZSL will also assess the site applications on accessibility, visibility and access to water – making water refills available for as many Londoners as possible.

Applicants should visit www.onelessbottle.org/fountainfund for information on how to apply, with an expression of interest deadline of 24 April 2018.

Earlier this month Mr Khan launched Refill London, which encourages shops, businesses and cafes to provide free tap water to members of the public. The South Bank, Bankside and London Bridge are three of the first localities to take part in the scheme.