CEO Today United Kingdom Awards

37 www.ceotodaymagazine.com CEO Today United Kingdom Awards 2019 WATER SERVICES PETER SIMPSON CEO of Anglian Water FIRM PROFILE At Anglian Water, we cover the largest geographical area in England and Wales. We employ 5,000 people and supply water and water recycling services to more than six million customers in the east of England and Hartlepool. Our huge region stretches from the Humber estuary, north of Grimsby, to the Thames estuary, and from Buckinghamshire to Lowestoft on the east coast. Our coastline is around 1,257 kilometres and 112,833 kilometres of water and sewer pipes supply and transport water across some 27,500 square kilometres. If we laid them end to end, they would take us a quarter of the way to the moon. Compared to other regions, we have a high proportion of flat and low-lying areas, including The Fens in Cambridgeshire and the Norfolk Broads. A quarter of our region lies below sea level which means we are acutely aware of the risk of flooding. And with so few hills providing gravity, we have to use more energy to pump water from place to place. Because of our region’s size, we run more water and water recycling treatment works than elsewhere - 1,257 - which is around a quarter of all the works in England and Wales. This ensures the recycled water we return to nature passes strict quality standards set by law and our regulators. We’re also one of the driest regions in the country; with just 600 millimetres of rain each year, we receive on average, a third less than the rest of England. In fact some areas have lower annual rainfall than Jerusalem which is why it’s vital to look after the water we’ve got. What we do: Our business is founded on water and the water cycle - it’s the most basic and vital of our natural resources. This is why we’re passionate about supporting your health and wellbeing, encouraging growth and prosperity in our region and helping to future- proof it against the challenges of climate change and a growing population. Safe, world-class drinking water We borrow water from the environment, store and treat it to world-class standards so it’s safe to drink and then supply it to 4.3 million of you in towns and villages from Grimsby in the north east of our region to Milton Keynes in the south-west. www.anglianwater.co.uk GREAT STUFF IN, GREAT STUFF OUT Our drinking water is among the best on the planet. In the last five years we’ve invested £100 million in drinking water quality, hitting some of the most stringent targets in the world. We focus on quality across our operations, and are the only company in our industry to achieve ISO standards for excellence in quality, environment and health and safety. KEEP IT CLEAN About a billion litres of used water is flushed and poured into our sewers each day. It’s then delivered via 76,355 kilometres of pipes to over 1,000 water recycling works, where with the help of a few billion friendly bacteria and micro-organisms, we clean it up before passing it back to nature. Our rivers are cleaner than they’ve been for decades.