Customers
Continually improving service at an efficient cost
Supporting vulnerable people through assistance schemes
Our operating environment and dependencies
Key resources
We depend on each of the six capitals to deliver our purpose, including sustainable natural resources across the water cycle, our extensive network of assets and people. We also work hard to positively impact these capitals.
1.8bn
litres of water supplied every day, abstracted from reservoirs and other water resources before treatment
669
treatment works to clean both raw and used water and more than 122,000 kilometres of water and wastewater pipes
External environment
We are influenced by and must adapt to a number of external factors, including the regulatory environment we operate in, and our reliance and impact on the natural environment.
40%
higher urban rainfall in the North West than average across England and Wales
5-year
regulatory cycles (AMPs), with long-term adaptive plans
Materiality assessment
Our operating environment and dependencies, including stakeholder views and priorities, help us to identify and prioritise material themes. Our disclosures across the four pillars that follow have been aligned to the top material themes to ensure we are providing information on what matters most to our stakeholders.
Our approach to creating sustainable long-term value
Strategy
Our six strategic priorities help us deliver our purpose and drive sustainable long-term improvements for customers, the environment and society, at an efficient cost. We use scenario analysis and adaptive planning across short, medium and long-term horizons to ensure flexibility and resilience.
Value creation for multiple stakeholders
Long-term planning horizons
Governance
We are committed to responsible business, factoring ESG matters and stakeholder priorities into decision-making at all levels of the business, and executive remuneration is linked to performance against customer, environmental and financial targets.
Responsible, diverse and inclusive culture
Holistic remuneration approach
Risk management
We have a robust framework for identifying, assessing and managing risks and opportunities, with regular monitoring as well as longer-term plans to enhance our resilience to climate change. Our Dynamic Network Management and culture of innovation help us to maximise opportunities to work better, safer, and more efficiently.
Robust risk management framework
Culture of innovation
Metrics and targets
We monitor and measure our performance against a range of operational metrics for each of the stakeholders we create value for, as well as financial metrics covering the income statement, balance sheet, and investor returns.
KPIs linked to ESG and delivery of our purpose
Short, medium and long-term targets
Delivering on our purpose
Protecting and enhancing the natural environment in our region
We delivered a number of environmental improvements over AMP6, our current AMP7 programme is driving this even further, and the business plan we have submitted for AMP8 includes the largest environmental improvement plan we have ever delivered.
Net zero
transition by 2050
60%
spill reduction targeted in the decade to 2030
Supporting society across the North West with great quality services
We are focused on continually improving our water and wastewater services and supporting customers with affordability and vulnerability. Colleague health, safety and wellbeing is a top priority and we are committed to improving equity, diversity and inclusion.
26%
targeted reduction in water quality contacts
1 in 6
customers to get financial support in our AMP8 plan
Responsible business
and governance supporting jobs and communities
Our activities support thousands of jobs, directly and through our supply chain, bringing income to the North West economy. We spend customers’ money wisely and deliver against our commitments, investing in communities for the long term.
7,000
new skilled jobs created by our AMP8 plan
74%
support for our submitted business plan
We create sustainable long-term value for a range of stakeholders
Affordability
£280m1
support for customers over
2020-25
(1) 50% company funded
Customer satisfaction
#1
water and sewerage company in Customer Service Index
Communities
Building partnerships
Working with schools and young people to develop skills
Opening our land to the public
Community investment
£11.8m
Invested in the community so far during AMP7
Total taxes
£240m
paid in 2023/24, contributing towards public finances
Suppliers
Investing in local infrastructure and generating jobs and skills
Acting fairly and adhering to the Prompt Payment Code
Supply chain payments
> 99%
of invoices paid within 60 days or less
Jobs supported
30,000
across the value chain through our AMP8 business plan
Environment
Reducing our impact
Protecting and enhancing reservoirs, catchments, rivers and bathing waters
River health
24%
reduction in spills per reported overflow since 2020
Carbon emissions
3.4%
reduction in scope 1 and 2 emissions since 2020
Colleagues
Looking after health, safety and wellbeing
Attracting, developing and retaining a diverse team
Pension schemes
nil
deficit, fully funded on a low dependency basis
Traning and development
Won
Water Industry Skills Employer of the Year 2023
Investors
Investing in our assets for growth and resilience
Managing risk prudently and providing an appropriate return
Dividend
49.78p
per share for 2023/24, increased in line with CPIH inflation
Return on regulated equity (RoRE)
8.5%
outperforming the base return of 4%
Key resources
The six capitals
Delivering our purpose requires us to sustainably source, use and replenish resources from each of the six capitals.
Natural capital
We rely on natural resources at every stage of the water cycle, and we work hard to minimise any negative impact and maximise potential positive impacts through our activities, as seen in the water cycle below.
Human capital
Colleagues are essential in delivering our purpose and a skilled, engaged and motivated team is fundamental to great service and colleague retention, which helps ensure efficient training and better performance.
Manufactured capital
We have a large number of physical assets that are essential in enabling us to provide our services to customers and protect public health, including buildings, fleet, equipment and infrastructure.
Financial capital
Our activities, including significant long-term infrastructure projects, require access to a pool of funds. In order to protect affordability and spread the cost fairly between generations of customers, we need to use debt and equity financing as well as direct procurement for customers (DPC) and funds received as revenue.
Social capital
It is important that we maintain positive and constructive relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders across our region.
Intellectual capital
The knowledge and systems we have across our business, including our understanding of the region and the people who live here, are critical to effectively running our treatment works and maintaining our assets to ensure a long-term resilient service.
Water cycle
Each step in our water cycle and every aspect of our activities is aligned with delivering our purpose, and this is what helps us to create value for a variety of stakeholders.
Water resources - sustainably sourcing water
Providing great water:
We collect raw water from a variety of sources across the North West, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, but predominantly from open reservoirs. The biggest are Thirlmere and Haweswater in the Lake District National Park.
We have more reservoirs than any other UK water company. They provide great tasting water, but have high maintenance needs and the raw water requires more treatment than some other water sources. They are quick to fill when it rains, but are more vulnerable to periods of dry weather than ground water sources.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We own and manage 56,000 hectares of land, much of which is catchment land (the areas immediately surrounding our reservoirs).
We are optimising the use of this land to protect water quality, create natural carbon sinks by restoring peatland and planting woodland, and explore potential clean energy development.
We manage our land and water resources in a sustainable way, protecting and enhancing local habitats, and open our land to the public to enjoy nature and its health and wellbeing benefits.
Cleaning and returning wastewater
Providing great water:
We have 79,000 kilometres of pipes that transport wastewater from sewers to one of our 584 wastewater treatment works. Wastewater is separated, treated and, once it is clean enough to meet stringent environmental consents, we return it to the natural environment through rivers and streams so that the water cycle can begin again.
54 per cent of our sewers are combined, taking a mix of wastewater and rainwater. In excessive rainfall, when sewer capacity is overloaded, storm overflows are activated, using a separate pipe to allow this heavily diluted mix to flow directly into rivers or the sea to help prevent flooding of streets, homes and businesses.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We have a long coastline and 25 designated coastal bathing waters in our region. With higher urban rainfall and more combined sewers, our network has to take more water than other parts of the country, creating a much bigger challenge for reducing the use of storm overflows in the North West.
We are already investing substantial amounts in AMP7 and have already delivered a significant reduction in the number of spills. Our ambitious plans for AMP8 target even more significant improvements, and we are accelerating the work to go further faster.
We are also exploring new and innovative ways of working such as nature-based solutions and partnerships with groups such as The Rivers Trust.
Supplying treated water 24/7
Providing great water:
We treat raw water in one of our 86 water treatment works and then stored in covered reservoirs. An average of 1.8 billion litres of safe, clean drinking water is delivered every day to more than 7 million people and businesses, using 43,000 kilometres of water pipes.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
Our integrated supply network enables us to move water around the region as needed. Along with production planning and optimisation of storage levels ahead of anticipated demand increases, and a fleet of alternative supply vehicles, this helps us to deliver a more resilient water supply.
We use sensors and artificial intelligence, and have dedicated teams to detect and fix leaks across our pipes as well as helping customers identify leaks on their property, which can save them money on their bills as well as reducing water losses.
Our Haweswater Aqueduct uses gravity to transfer water from Cumbria to Manchester, helping to reduce our carbon footprint from energy-intensive pumping.
Bioresources - generating renewable energy
Providing great water:
We minimise waste from our water and wastewater operations to promote a circular economy. Sludge by-product from wastewater treatment is transported to our Bioresources treatment facilities, which process around 200,000 dry tonnes of sewage sludge a year.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
Our main treatment process uses digestion technologies to safely and compliantly treat the sewage sludge. The digestion treatment process produces biogas and biosolids.
We use biogas to generate renewable energy. Self-generation helps us to reduce our carbon footprint and save energy costs, and the remaining electricity needs that we purchase are 100 per cent renewable.
We provide biosolids to local farmers to use as a high quality and effective fertiliser and soil conditioner.
We are closely following developments in the interpretation of Farming Rules for Water, and the impact this could have on our provision of compost for formers throughout the year.
Water resources - sustainably sourcing water
Providing great water:
We collect raw water from a variety of sources across the North West, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, but predominantly from open reservoirs. The biggest are Thirlmere and Haweswater in the Lake District National Park.
We have more reservoirs than any other UK water company. They provide great tasting water, but have high maintenance needs and the raw water requires more treatment than some other water sources. They are quick to fill when it rains, but are more vulnerable to periods of dry weather than ground water sources.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We own and manage 56,000 hectares of land, much of which is catchment land (the areas immediately surrounding our reservoirs).
We are optimising the use of this land to protect water quality, create natural carbon sinks by restoring peatland and planting woodland, and explore potential clean energy development.
We manage our land and water resources in a sustainable way, protecting and enhancing local habitats, and open our land to the public to enjoy nature and its health and wellbeing benefits.
Water resources - sustainably sourcing water
Providing great water:
We collect raw water from a variety of sources across the North West, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, but predominantly from open reservoirs. The biggest are Thirlmere and Haweswater in the Lake District National Park.
We have more reservoirs than any other UK water company. They provide great tasting water, but have high maintenance needs and the raw water requires more treatment than some other water sources. They are quick to fill when it rains, but are more vulnerable to periods of dry weather than ground water sources.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We own and manage 56,000 hectares of land, much of which is catchment land (the areas immediately surrounding our reservoirs).
We are optimising the use of this land to protect water quality, create natural carbon sinks by restoring peatland and planting woodland, and explore potential clean energy development.
We manage our land and water resources in a sustainable way, protecting and enhancing local habitats, and open our land to the public to enjoy nature and its health and wellbeing benefits.
Water resources - sustainably sourcing water
Providing great water:
We collect raw water from a variety of sources across the North West, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, but predominantly from open reservoirs. The biggest are Thirlmere and Haweswater in the Lake District National Park.
We have more reservoirs than any other UK water company. They provide great tasting water, but have high maintenance needs and the raw water requires more treatment than some other water sources. They are quick to fill when it rains, but are more vulnerable to periods of dry weather than ground water sources.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We own and manage 56,000 hectares of land, much of which is catchment land (the areas immediately surrounding our reservoirs).
We are optimising the use of this land to protect water quality, create natural carbon sinks by restoring peatland and planting woodland, and explore potential clean energy development.
We manage our land and water resources in a sustainable way, protecting and enhancing local habitats, and open our land to the public to enjoy nature and its health and wellbeing benefits.
Water resources - sustainably sourcing water
Providing great water:
We collect raw water from a variety of sources across the North West, including lakes, rivers and boreholes, but predominantly from open reservoirs. The biggest are Thirlmere and Haweswater in the Lake District National Park.
We have more reservoirs than any other UK water company. They provide great tasting water, but have high maintenance needs and the raw water requires more treatment than some other water sources. They are quick to fill when it rains, but are more vulnerable to periods of dry weather than ground water sources.
For a stronger, greener
and healthier North West:
We own and manage 56,000 hectares of land, much of which is catchment land (the areas immediately surrounding our reservoirs).
We are optimising the use of this land to protect water quality, create natural carbon sinks by restoring peatland and planting woodland, and explore potential clean energy development.
We manage our land and water resources in a sustainable way, protecting and enhancing local habitats, and open our land to the public to enjoy nature and its health and wellbeing benefits.
Our strategic priorities:
Our external environment
We are influenced by and must adapt to a number of external factors, including the regulatory environment we operate in, and our reliance and impact on the natural environment.
Regulatory environment
The vast majority of our activities sit within United Utilities Water Limited (UUW), the second largest of 11 regulated water and wastewater businesses in England and Wales.
UUW is subject to regulation of price, performance and compliance by various bodies, as shown on page 24 of our integrated annual report. These bodies exist to help protect the interests of customers and the environment and assess whether companies are meeting their obligations. One of the ways they do this is to undertake comparative assessments of companies’ performance.
We must balance incentives and requirements that can sometimes act in tension, such as the desire for rapid environmental improvements and the upward pressure this can place on customers’ bills. We maintain constructive dialogue to agree commitments for continuous improvement.
Natural environment
The natural environment is constantly changing. We have already experienced prolonged dry periods, more extreme rainfall events, and freezing temperatures followed by rapid thawing. This increases the level of risk for water availability, flooding and network damage.
The North West population is also increasing, with an anticipated one million increase by 2050, and much of the landscape in our region is legally protected for its environmental or cultural significance. We must plan well into the future and continually adapt to strengthen our long-term operational resilience, and we have a role to play in restoring healthy and resilient ecosystems.
We need to work collaboratively to deliver nature-based solutions, which offer many benefits including carbon sequestration, cleaner water, and improved biodiversity.
Economic environment
Our costs are impacted by market rate movements such as interest rates and inflation. Inflation has risen sharply in recent years, and the government raised interest rates in response.
The impacts on our business are complex, with cost increases partly offset by increased allowances under the regulatory mechanism. 55 per cent of our debt is in index-linked form, therefore impacted by inflation, but our regulatory capital value (RCV) also rises with inflation and our £3 billion of fixed-rate debt increases in benefit as interest rates rise. Unlike many, our low dependency pension schemes are protected from market rate movements.
The economic environment also impacts customers, with the most deprived communities typically hit the hardest. We have more in the North West than any other region, making the industry-leading affordability support we provide even more critical.
Political environment
Political decisions have the potential to impact on our operations. We engage with regional and national politicians and other policymakers to understand developments and key policy issues, improving policy development where possible, and stay flexible to adapt as needed.
For instance, with publication of the Environment Act 2021 the government set out an ambitious plan for reducing spills from storm overflows, as well as obligations to reduce phosphorus and address nutrient imbalance. We are already investing significant amounts in AMP7 to improve the quality of rivers and seas in the North West, and our AMP8 plan includes our biggest ever environmental investment programme, addressing these new legislative requirements.
We also have a part to play in the plans of devolved regions and mayors for growth and green energy development in the North West, such as plans to host a pioneering carbon-capture facility on our head office site in Warrington.
Stakeholders
There are many people and groups who take an interest in the water industry, its role in society, and the North West region. The nature of our work and the huge areas of land we manage means we interact with a wide variety of stakeholders, from communities and environmental interest bodies to suppliers and regulators.
It is important that we understand what matters to each of them and develop constructive relationships built on mutual trust. We engage and consult with stakeholders to understand their views and priorities as we develop and execute our plans, balancing their often conflicting priorities.
Each of our operational performance measures is linked to one or more stakeholder for whom we are creating value.
Technology and innovation
New technology and innovation can create opportunities for improvements in service and efficiency. The use of artificial intelligence and machine learning helps us to improve performance, and is central to our Dynamic Network Management approach.
In an increasingly digital world, customer expectations change and we must evolve our services to ensure we meet those expectations. Technology has changed the way customers can get in touch to access their bills, update their information and receive updates on services and support.
Technology can also create risks, such as the threat of cyber-attacks which has increased in recent years as a result of global political tensions. Protecting infrastructure, customer information and commercial data from malicious activity is a key priority.
Downloads
Our business model
Key resources
External environment
