The Independent Water Commission has been gathering evidence to review the UK water sector and its regulation.
In April 2025, the Future Water Emerging Talent Group met online to discuss key topics and provide feedback to ensure the group had a say in shaping the future of water regulation. The group decided to focus on the key areas outlined below.
Measuring and Assessing the Water Environment
- The group discussed that using citizen science could improve measurement and assessment of water quality by greatly increasing the volume of data.
- Data sharing platforms were discussed as an opportunity for the water industry to be more transparent with the public.
- Overall, the group agreed the most important thing is to get targeted information out to the right people and to prioritise quality data to help make informed decisions.
The Regulators
- The group linked this to the wider industry issue about attracting and retaining talent which has discussed in previous meetings. The requirement for transformation needs to be supported by the right people.
- The group suggested that improving collaboration between the regulators and communication to wider stakeholders would be beneficial, especially during periods of change.
Customer Bills
- The group suggested that there should be increased transparency for customers on the outputs delivered from their bills. There is a lack of tangible evidence that things are improving hence, communication could be improved to support transparency.
- The group agreed that increasing the use of smart water meters could enhance transparency and in the future, innovative tariffs could be explored.
Investment and Innovation
- The group discussed the positive and negative impacts of the current 5-year AMP cycles. The group agreed that AMP cycles provide structure but they can lead to rigidity in investment planning, innovation and may limit longer term planning.
- The group agreed the regulatory framework can support innovation however, there are difficulties in moving from pilot to implementation. The group suggested R&D could be regulated separately and incentivised to increase innovation.
Overall, the meeting allowed the Emerging Talent Group to have meaningful discussions and contribute to recommendations for the call for evidence. The session enabled the voices of the group to be heard as the group continues to support initiatives that will benefit the sector in the future.