Northumbrian Water Limited has announced that it will retain royal recognition for a further five years as it receives its second Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

NWL has received the honour, which is the UK’s most prestigious business award and given to those ‘who are outstanding in their field’, for its sustainable development.

Northumbrian Water is one of eight businesses in the North East to be given the accreditation and the only one to receive it for sustainable development. The southern arm of the utility, Essex & Suffolk Water, is one of only three in the South East to achieve the award for sustainable development.

Heidi Mottram, NWL’s Chief Executive, said:

“We are incredibly proud to receive this award for the second time and to have this royal endorsement continuously for a decade. Everyone in the company has played an important part in our success. This recognition reflects our determination to become the best water and waste water company in the UK and our continued effort and commitment to protect and improve the environment, support local communities, contribute to the economy, be innovative and to the well being of our people.”

The utility’s long-term commitment to sustainable development is demonstrated by:

• turning 100% of sewage sludge into energy by using advanced anaerobic digestion at two major wastewater treatment works on Tyneside and Teesside;
• demonstrating the use of innovative technology, such as using ice to clean large-diameter water pipes in the North East;
• raising the water level of a reservoir, which supplies drinking water to people in Essex, by three metres and increasing its footprint by 40% to meet future demand;
• the process of taking waste water from a sewage treatment works, putting it through five further treatment stages, releasing it into a river and pumping it into a reservoir – the water is then further treated and supplied to people in Essex;
• the company’s ‘right first time, every time’ customer initiative;
• supporting more than 90% of the workforce to gain appropriate qualifications;
• encouraging staff to spend at least 12 hours of paid, work time a year to work in local communities.

NWL’s Queen’s Award citation reads:

“Northumbrian Water Limited wins its second Sustainable Development Award for upholding exemplary standards in supplying drinking water and treating waste water. Having developed a credible strategy to generate 20% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, it has contributed much towards environmental improvement, developing innovative methods for generating electricity from sludge, utilising reed-beds to treat waste and co-digesting many waste streams in anaerobic digester plants. Whilst increasing the capacity of an existing reservoir to secure water for 1.5 million people, it is boosting the wildfowl and bio-diversity habitat. It has demonstrated sector-leading outreach to communities, including donating 1% of pre-tax profit, establishing staff volunteer programmes, sponsoring improvement in a failing school, offering space to projects and developing a health centre within a deprived community.”

The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are the UK’s most prestigious awards for business success. In a survey of Queen’s Awards winners, 76% reported that the win had brought added commercial value to their business,  55% said the win had delivered new business opportunities, while  49% of winners achieved increased recognition overseas.