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Rule of thumb in this country. It will take at least as long to replenish an
aquifer as it took to drain it. So you'll be looking for at least 18 months.
That's why they say the drought will stay till at least the end of the year
and then some.

A lot of that 6" of water will be lost through evaporation at this time of
year, and most of the rest will drain back into the rivers through drainage
ditches, and what's left may seep down to the water table and drain out
wherever water tables drain out, and not necessarily down to the aquifers..
At the moment very little water is penetrating more than six inches into the
ground, because what is below the surface is bone dry and rock hard, and
just won't allow the water to pass through or be absorbed. It's going to
take a damn sight more than 8" of rain a month to allow that process to
start up again. Admit it, nature has damaged itself, and only nature can
repair that damage given time, lots of it.

jim, Northampton

Hi Jim
Are you making those statements because you know its true are are you
just repeating what you hear else where.?
Have you been out into the fields..?I just dont believe you when you
say soils are dry 6 inches down.Even the ea are saying the smd has
virtually gone.
I quote
Elsewhere, soil moisture deficits are now 10mm or less in all our
regions with EA
Wales now close to zero
Herein Rutland our soils are waterlogged..Its impossible to tell if
there is a dry layer further down as if you dig it just fills with
water.What i can say is on our free draining soils the soil will be
wet right down to the underlying limestone.To say that at the moment
very little rain is penetrating less than six inches is just not
true.
And why or how could water run out into rivers but not recharge the
aquifers??-round here aquifer recharge has to happen before it can run
to the river as an underground spring.Even the EA say on there latest
update are saying that significant aquifer recharge has occured.
I quote
Groundwater levels in some aquifers have started to rise in response
to April’s rainfall. There
have been notable increases in levels in those indicator sites located
in the limestone and more
responsive chalk aquifers.
Also Aquifer recharge is not normally dependant on time but on
rainfall amount and time combined.
Im afraid most of what you say is not corect