Yorkshire Water CEO Resigns After Lowest Environmental Rating
Yorkshire Water CEO Nicola Shaw resigned after the Environment Agency issued the company a one-star rating due to a surge in pollution incidents.
Chief Executive Nicola Shaw resigned from Yorkshire Water on October 30, 2026, one day after the Environment Agency (UK) downgraded the company to a one-star rating, the lowest possible environmental performance score. The regulator classified the firm as poor performing following a more than 70 percent increase in pollution incidents during 2025, with reports citing between 260 and 335 incidents, including 13 serious cases.
The downgrade triggered an automatic ban on performance-related bonuses for senior executives. Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle summoned water company executives to Whitehall to demand immediate improvement plans, stating that water companies have let the public down. Yorkshire Water admitted its performance was not good enough and noted it had faced £1.215 million in pollution fines in 2025, adding to a £47 million fine from Ofwat in 2024 for historic sewage leaks.
Nicola Medalova, a former National Grid executive and non-executive director at the firm, will join as chief executive-designate on November 3, 2026, before officially assuming the role on January 1, 2027. While the company maintains the leadership transition is not a direct response to the regulatory report, Shaw's tenure was also marked by controversy over £1.9 million in undisclosed payments from parent company Kelda Holdings.
