A councillor was disappointed to see a “lack of water” at the Cassiobury Park paddling pools during the hottest weekend of the year.

Cllr Matt Turmaine, who represents the Holywell Ward, ran through Cassiobury Park on Monday in the 10km run and wandered down to the splash pool area afterwards.

He says there was only a “dribble of water” available for those who wanted to have a dip.

Cllr Turmaine said: “It was not really good enough, in my view.

“It was the hottest day of the year and there was practically no water available at all.

“There was a tiny dribble with a ton of people clustered around - probably from a burst Buxton bottle.”

Mayor of Watford Peter Taylor responded that there were a few “glitches” during the Bank Holiday weekend.

He said: “We kept the paddling pools open on every day of the Bank Holiday weekend on the busiest and hottest weekend of the year. They were enjoyed by thousands of people, most of whom had a really great time. I was in the park on both Saturday and Monday with my family and saw how busy it was with people enjoying the fantastic weather.

"There were a few glitches, for which we apologise, but this did not stop most people enjoying our park and having a great family day out. We had a free May Day celebration at the bandstand, popular charity run and many people enjoyed our recently refurbished tennis courts and basketball court – both free to use.

"There was a slight delay in opening the pools on Bank Holiday Monday, and some occasions where the pools drained and then quickly refilled again. We are investigating why this happened to stop it from happening again. We will also be increasing the number of staff covering our pools during school holiday and Bank Holiday weekends.”