Yorkshire Water - Corporate governance and structure

Vanda Murray OBE, Independent Non-Executive Chair

Appointed: Vanda joined the Board as Independent Non-Executive Director on 1 July 2021, stepping up to become the Chair of the Board on 1 September 2021.

Skills and experience: Vanda is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and has extensive experience of corporate leadership in both executive and non-executive roles. From 2001 to 2004 she was Chief Executive of Blick plc, a FTSE quoted company, where she doubled the value of the business before it was acquired by The Stanley Works Inc. She was also Managing Director of Ultraframe plc between 2004 and 2006. Vanda was appointed OBE for Services to Industry and to Export in 2002.

Other roles: Vanda is Non-Executive Chair of Yorkshire-based Marshalls plc. Vanda is also the Chair of Kelda Holdings Limited and a Non Executive Director at Howden’s and Chairs the Remuneration Committee.

Committee Membership: Chair of the Nomination Committee, Member of Audit and Risk Committee, People and Remuneration Committee, Public Value Committee and Safety, Health and Environment Committee

Nicola Shaw CBE, Chief Executive

Appointed: Nicola joined the Board as CEO in May 2022.

Skills and experience: Nicola brings with her extensive experience in regulated infrastructure businesses and has an excellent track record in driving efficient delivery whilst also improving customer service and colleague engagement. Most recently Nicola was the UK Executive Director for National Grid and was previously the Chief Executive of High Speed 1 and a Director of First Group. Nicola was the author of the Shaw Report published in 2016 which made several recommendations for the future of British Transport. Nicola received a CBE for services to transport in the Queen’s New Year Honours in 2016.

Other roles: Nicola is the CEO for Kelda Holdings Limited and a Non-Executive Director of International Airlines Group.

Committee Membership: Member of Public Value Committee and Safety, Health and Environment Committee

Paul Inman, Chief Financial Officer

Appointed: Paul joined the Board as the CFO in March 2023.

Skills and experience: Paul joined Yorkshire Water from BAE Systems where he was the financial director for the air sector, having previously held multiple role with Rolls-Royce. Paul has extensive financial experience and also brings strong operational experience to the Board, having led a number of transformation programmes and undertaken general management roles in asset health monitoring and maintenance, repair and overhaul. Paul is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Other roles: Paul is the CFO for Kelda Holdings Limited.

Committee Membership: None

Andrew Wyllie CBE, Senior Independent Director

Appointed: Andrew joined the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director in September 2017.

Skills and experience: Andrew was Chief Executive of Costain Group PLC for 14 years up until May 2019. He was also a Non-Executive Director of Scottish Water from April 2009 to April 2017. Andrew has an MBA from the London Business School, he is a Chartered Engineer, a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and was President of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 2019. Prior to joining Costain Group PLC, Andrew worked for Taylor Woodrow where he was the Managing Director of the construction business and a member of the Group Executive Committee. Andrew was awarded a CBE for services to engineering and construction in the 2015 New Year Honours list.

Other roles: Andrew is a Non-Executive Director of Persimmon PLC and BMT Group Ltd and undertakes a variety of independent advisory roles.

Committee Membership: Chair of Safety, Health and Environment Committee, Member of Audit and Risk Committee, Nomination Committee and People and Remuneration Committee

Dame Julia Unwin, Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Julia joined the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director in January 2017.

Skills and experience: Julia brings to the Board a wealth of experience from the voluntary, commercial, and public sectors as well as from regulatory environments. She was the Chief Executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation for a decade until 2016. She has regulatory experience having served on the Boards of the Housing Corporation, the Charity Commission and she was Deputy Chair of the Food Standards Agency. Through her engagement with consumers, regulation and public policy, Julia brings a deep understanding of the interests of customers and individual communities to the Board as well as a specific knowledge of the demographics of the Yorkshire region and of poverty, vulnerability, and disadvantage. She has worked extensively on issues to do with developing social value. In May 2019 Julia received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Chartered Management Institute and was appointed a Dame in the 2020 New Year Honours list for her contribution to civil society.

Other roles: Julia is a Non-Executive Director of Mears Group Plc and is the Chair of the Board of Governors of York St John University. She is the Inaugural Chair of the Smart Data Foundry, Edinburgh University.

Committee Membership: Chair of Public Value Committee and Interim Chair of People and Remuneration Committee, Member of Nomination Committee and Safety, Health and Environment Committee

Andrew Merrick, Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Andrew joined the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director in June 2019.

Skills and experience: Andrew brings considerable financial experience and expertise to the Board, as well as strong connections with the Yorkshire region. Prior to joining the Board, Andrew was the CFO of Irwin Mitchell solicitors, having previously worked as Group Finance Director for Dart Group plc and as Director of Finance for Bradford & Bingley plc. Andrew has also sat on the Board of ‘Incommunities’, a Bradford-based social housing provider, where he chaired the Audit Committee.

Other roles: Andrew is a Non-Executive Director of Market Harborough Building Society, a Trustee Director of The Nell Bank Charitable Trust and a Director of Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club Limited and its subsidiary, ILTSC Events Limited.

Committee Membership: Chair of Audit and Risk Committee, Member of Nomination Committee, People and Remuneration Committee, Safety, Health and Environment Committee and Public Value Committee

Wendy Barnes, Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Wendy joined the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director in November 2022.

Skills and experience: Wendy has a significant breadth of knowledge from the utilities sector as well as in regulation, cyber security, customer service and change management. She has previously held non-executive roles at OCS Group, Southern Water Services Limited and Scottish Power Networks Limited. Wendy was previously the Interim Chief Operating Officer at the Department of Energy and Climate Change, and she has held executive roles within the water sector, with United Utilities.

Other roles: Wendy is a Non-Executive Director of Scottish Power Limited and BMT Group Limited and undertakes a variety of consultancy roles.

Committee Membership: Chair of the People and Remuneration Committee, Member of the Audit and Risk Committee, Nomination Committee and Public Value Committee.

Isabelle Caumette, Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Isabelle joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in November 2023.

Skills and experience: Isabelle is a London based Senior Principal in the European Infrastructure Private Equity division of DWS, and is responsible for leading asset management for a number of funds and leading the transaction team on key infrastructure investment transactions. She is a voting member of the Investment Committee for the four European infrastructure funds managed by DWS. Prior to joining DWS’s infrastructure business in 2011, Isabelle worked as a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group.

Other roles: Isabelle is also a Non-Executive Director of Kelda Holdings Limited, and a Non-Executive Director of Streem, a railcars and tank containers leasing company.

Committee Membership: Member of Nomination Committee, People and Remuneration Committee and Safety, Health and Environment Committee

Andrew Dench, Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Andrew joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in September 2017.

Skills and experience: Andrew is a Senior Vice President in GIC’s Infrastructure team, based in London. He is responsible for the ongoing management of GIC’s global infrastructure portfolio. Prior to joining GIC, Andrew was deputy CEO / CFO of Veolia Water, UK, Ireland & Northern Europe, CFO of Electricity North West, and Head of Corporate Finance & Change at London Stock Exchange Group. While at Veolia, he was a Non-Executive Director of Affinity Water (formerly Veolia Water). Andrew started his career in the investment banking division of Morgan Stanley where he was focused on project finance, mergers & acquisitions, utilities, and the natural resources sector.

Other roles: Andrew is a Non-Executive Director of Kelda Holdings Limited and several other boards, including Teréga (Gas transportation and storage, France), Duquesne Light and Power (Electricity transportation and distribution, US), Greenko (Renewal generation, India) and Raffles Infra Holdings Limited (Infrastructure investment, Asia).

Committee Membership: Member of Audit and Risk Committee, People and Remuneration Committee and Nomination Committee

Russ Houlden, Non-Executive Director

Appointed: Russ joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in January 2022.

Skills and experience: Russ is an Operating Partner at Corsair Infrastructure, a business unit of Corsair Capital. Russ brings a wealth of financial expertise and water industry experience to the Board, having been the CFO of United Utilities Group PLC for ten years until July 2020. During his time at United Utilities, he was also Chair of the Financial Reporting Committee of the 100 Group from 2013 to 2020. Prior to his role at United Utilities, he was the CFO of Telecom New Zealand from 2008 to 2010 and Finance Director of Lovells from 2002 to 2008. Until 2002 he held a variety of divisional Finance Director positions in ICI and BT.

Other roles: Russ is a Non-Executive Director of Kelda Holdings Limited. He is also an Independent Non-Executive Director at Babcock International Group PLC and an Independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee at Orange Polska SA.

Committees: Member of People and Remuneration Committee, Nomination Committee and Public Value Committee

Corporate governance and structure documents

Our Organisational Chart

Matters Reserved for the Yorkshire Water Board

The full role of the chairman of Yorkshire Water

The full role of the chief executive of Yorkshire Water

Remuneration Committee Terms of Reference

Nomination Committee Terms of Reference

Audit and Risk Committee Terms of Reference

SHE Committee Terms of Reference

Public Value Committee Terms of Reference

Our Occupational Health and Safety policy