Self-lay group slams ‘invalid’ developer services data

Group urges Water UK to publish independent audit report on the way developer services data is reported

A representative group for self-lay providers has demanded that Water UK remove all developer services data from its website until it is proven to be valid.

The group – Fair Water Connections – insisted Water UK also “immediately release” an independent audit report, which it commissioned to review the level of consistency in reporting across the water industry.

“Based on the input we had at the audit planning stage, which included discussions with the auditors, we were told that the audit would be produced by late March 2017 and, a short while later, a version would be made public,” said Fair Water Connections managing coordinator Martyn Speight. “I now see from information on the Water UK website that this is not the case.”

Writing to Water UK’s legal and policy adviser David Strang, Speight said concerns about the validity of the reported data are not new, and go back to 2015 when publication of the data started.

“During the last two years, we have flagged on many occasions our scepticism about the levels of service being reported by Water UK covering the performance of Water UK members against the criteria that has been set by themselves against a range of water connection related services,” he said. He added that “suppressing” the audit findings is “not the openness we expect from Water UK”.

Water UK hit back at the criticism, insisting that it “remains committed” to publishing the full audit report. A spokesperson for the group told Utility Week: “As our recent press release and statement on the Water UK website make clear, the water industry recognises that our developer services reporting system needs to be shown to be robust.

“Our reputation and indeed that of Halcow, the independent auditors, rests on having a credible report which all of our stakeholders will recognise and accept. While there has indeed been a delay in publishing the report, we have been using the time to understand how certain conclusions have been reached and ensure the consistency of the approach adopted by the auditors.

“Given the number of companies and the number of metrics, this is a time-consuming process but it is one which will improve the quality of the report and help us to understand their conclusions. There is no question of any “suppression” of information – we remain committed to publishing the full report which we now expect to be in the summer.”

Water UK published its latest developer services report late last month. In its press release, the group highlighted a yearly performance of 98 per cent for water and 99 per cent for sewerage across 2016/17, compared with 95 per cent and 99 per cent respectively for the corresponding period in 2015/16.

The highest performer for water services for the fourth quarter (January-March 2017) was Severn Trent, with an overall score of 99.63 per cent. The lowest scorer for water was Bristol Water (92.11 per cent).

Meanwhile Northumbrian Water scored highest for sewerage services, with a perfect 100 per cent. Ranked lowest for sewerage was Wessex (99.05 per cent).