Northumbrian Water has become the first water company in the world to be awarded with a prestigious accreditation for innovation.

The company has been officially certified with an ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) Kitemark accreditation for Innovation Management - awarded by the BSI (British Standards Institute).

Northumbrian Water has shown that it is performing over and above the basic remit of the standard, by passing the additional Kitemark test measures.

ISO 56001 is an international standard for innovation management systems, designed to help organisations improve their ability to innovate effectively, respond to change and create long‑term value. The ISO Innovation Kitemark (ISO 56001), recognises the company’s structured and consistent commitment to turning new ideas into real benefits for customers, communities and the environment.

This includes adopting new technologies, developing platforms, using data-driven learning and nature-based solutions – as well as its famous Innovation Festival, which has generated around 300 new ideas over the past decade.

Some of those ideas include Smart Sewers, which is helping to reduce storm overflows in Tyneside, PipeBot, a robot that helps to monitor sewers for blockages, and the National Underground Asset Register, a map of all underground assets to reduce utility strikes, which has since been adopted by the UK Government.

Angela MacOscar, Head of Innovation at Northumbrian Water, said:

“This accreditation is so important to us, because innovation is genuinely at the heart of everything we do.

“It’s not just down to our technical teams, everyone across our business has adopted and contributed to the culture of innovation here, which shines outwards and allows us to be creative in our approach.

“The Kitemark accreditation recognises that innovation here isn’t ad-hoc, it’s actually built into how we operate as a business.

“It gives our customers, partners and regulators confidence that we have a consistent, mature approach to developing and delivering innovation that makes a real difference.”

The internationally-recognised certification assesses how organisations manage innovation - from leadership, strategy and culture, through governance and planning, to how ideas are developed, tested and embedded into everyday operations.

As part of the assessment auditors looked at the strength of Northumbrian Water’s innovation culture and how colleagues across the business are encouraged to contribute ideas.

It also reflects the company’s focus on delivering real-world outcomes - from smarter use of data and digital tools, to new approaches that help reduce pollution, improve resilience and enhance customer service.

Angela continued:

“Having the ISO accreditation in place now means that we will be able to innovate even faster and bigger than before.

“It’s made even more special by the fact that this year we are celebrating our tenth Innovation Festival, which is a real milestone for us.

“It means that after almost a decade of doing everything we can to adopt new ways of working, we can officially say we are standing way ahead of the industry with this qualification. It shows that we are aligned with global best-practice, and we couldn’t be prouder.