British Water Liaison Meeting 2026
Last week, United Utilities welcomed around 100 suppliers, some direct suppliers of UU and some hoping to be, to our Lingley Mere site for a lively engagement event, delivered in partnership with British Water The day brought together colleagues and supply chain partners to talk openly about what’s coming up, how we’re planning to deliver AMP8, and how suppliers can get involved early.
The event began with an engaging presentation from Jane Simpson, outlining the purpose of the day, the importance of collaboration across the water sector and how United Utilities values the British Water relationship. From there, colleagues set out United Utilities’ AMP8 priorities, including the scale of our capital delivery programme and the importance of the supply chain relationships to be able to successfully deliver the programme. – insert specific quote from Jane
Senior leaders from our water, wastewater, enterprise and Better Rivers teams took the opportunity to walk suppliers through their programmes of work, highlighting where the key opportunities sit and what delivery will look like in practice. There was also plenty of time built in for networking, giving suppliers and UU colleagues the chance to connect and have honest conversations.
A big focus of the day was helping suppliers understand how to do business with United Utilities. Our commercial and procurement teams talked through what “good” looks like when working with us, shared visibility of the procurement pipeline, explained who leads in each business area, and outlined opportunities through the United Supply Chain (USC).
The networking & lunch had stalls from Enterprise Partners, UU’s Commercial team, Innovation and Blueprint which allowed for lots of conversation on ways of working, how to further engage and the delivery of AMP 8.
Lisa Mansell discussed Innovation, focusing on how suppliers can bring new ideas to us, what we’re looking for now, what’s already been achieved and where we see future opportunities. Throughout the day wrapped up attendees were encouraged to have conversation with both UU colleagues and the partners in the room to connect the ecosystem and encouraging collaboration between larger partners and smaller suppliers.
John Welch, Commercial Director at United Utilities, said:
“It was great to bring so many British Water members together on site here at Lingley Mere. Welcoming new and potential suppliers into the business and sharing our plans openly really helps set the foundations for strong partnerships. These conversations are exactly what we need as we move into AMP8.”
Overall, the event was a great opportunity to build relationships, share our ambitions and make sure suppliers have a clear view of how they can play a part in delivering for our customers, communities and environment in the years ahead. We've already had some great feedback from suppliers commenting on 'how impressive the AMP 8 programme is and UU’s commitment to Innovation and Collaboration'.