Yorkshire Water Leadership Change Days After Shock Report

Yorkshire Water Chief Executive Nicola Shaw is stepping down days after the firm received a damning one-star environmental rating.

Yorkshire Water Chief Executive Nicola Shaw is stepping down, the company announced today, just 24 hours after a damning report relegated the utility firm to a shock one-star rating from the Environment Agency. The timing of the departure follows public fury across East Yorkshire with local councillors and campaigners voicing outrage over severe sewage discharges and failing ecological standards.

Former National Grid executive Nicola Medalova will take over as CEO Designate on November 2nd before formally assuming the top role on January 1st 2027. Ms Medalova, who already knows the business intimately from her time as a Non-Executive Director on the board, will face an immediate challenge of rebuilding shattered public trust.

The handover comes amid widespread local anger in communities in Hull and the East Riding where local campaigners have accused water bosses of presiding over chronic underinvestment. The one-star verdict – the lowest possible assessment under environmental performance metrics – highlighted persistent pollution incidents, compounding frustration among residents who have repeatedly demanded tougher accountability for executive leadership.

Yorkshire Water was criticised last year for the size of executive pay. According to reports in the national media, the outgoing CEO was on a salary of more than £600,000 and received additional payments for her work bringing her total annual earnings to approximately £1.39million.

Despite these controversies, the company is making positive strides forward, despite this week’s damning report, according to the outgoing Nicola Shaw. She said:

“Although there remains a huge amount of work to do, I am extremely proud of what our colleagues have achieved, putting the business on a stronger footing for delivery across all aspects of its work. These jobs are challenging but fulfilling and I am especially grateful for the dedication and commitment of colleagues at all levels throughout the business across this county – thank you all.”

“This now feels like the right time to begin an orderly transition to the company’s next chapter. I know Nicola Medalova will do an outstanding job leading the company and I look forward to working closely with her over the coming months to ensure a seamless handover.”

Jon Lewis, Chair of Yorkshire Water, said:

“I would like to thank Nicola Shaw for the important contribution she has made to Yorkshire Water. Under her leadership, the company secured £500m of new shareholder equity, with a further £600m committed, enabling us to embark on the largest investment programme in our history and accelerate work to strengthen the resilience of Yorkshire’s water network. She leaves the business with strong foundations for the next phase of investment and improvement.

“We are delighted that Nicola Medalova will become our next Chief Executive. She is an accomplished and inspiring leader, with deep operational experience and a strong track record of delivering major capital programmes in complex environments. She is passionate about delivering for customers and brings a strong understanding of the environmental responsibilities that sit at the heart of Yorkshire Water’s role.

“Importantly, she also knows Yorkshire Water well from her time as a Non-Executive Director on the Board. The Board believes she is the right person to lead the company through its next phase, improving service for customers, reducing pollution and delivering the investment needed to modernise Yorkshire’s water network.”

A new leader with a strong foundation in pollution control

The new leader of Yorkshire Water has strong experience across strategy, operations, major capital investment, regulation, customer service and environmental management. During her executive career at National Grid, she held a number of senior leadership positions and has previously led a 4,000-person business in North America.

Nicola Medalova began her career in environmental protection regulation, working with Moray Council and alongside the Scottish Government and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. This early experience provided a strong foundation in pollution control, land and watercourse contamination, public health and flood risk management.

She explained:

“Yorkshire Water faces huge challenges but also great opportunities for continued improvement and I look forward to working with Nicola Shaw, the leadership team and colleagues across the business as I get up to speed. I’m looking forward to getting to know Yorkshire Water, its people and the communities it serves.”

“My immediate priority will be to listen and learn, while maintaining a relentless focus on delivery. Yorkshire Water will ultimately be judged by what it delivers for customers, communities and the environment, and I’m excited about the opportunity to help shape its future.”

Yorkshire Water labelled a ‘poorly performing company’

Yorkshire Water’s government rating was downgraded to one star out of four for its environmental performance this week, with sewage pollution blamed. The impact is hitting coastal communities in East Yorkshire particularly hard, with councillors worried the rating will damage the region’s tourism industry.

The report by the Environment Agency labelled Yorkshire Water as a ‘poorly performing company’. In 2023 and 2024, Yorkshire Water was graded as two star. In 2022, it had three stars – so its performance is getting steadily worse.

Cllr Denise Howard (Reform UK – East Wolds and Coastal ward) said:

“The company’s pollution performance is seriously lacking and needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.”

“Bridlington beaches have been hit by a series of pollution alerts that are bad for residents, bad for business and bad for tourists. Serious investment is needed – but no doubt the consumer will be picking up the tab.”

Yorkshire Water’s problems have caused huge issues to coastal communities, said Cllr Andy Walker (Independent – Bridlington South). He said:

“Right across Yorkshire, our rivers, rare chalk streams and beaches are in desperate need of repair, compassion and understanding and, deep down, we all know that the great privatisation experiment has failed – not just us humans but all life forms, all relying on clean water.”

Yorkshire Water bosses are planning an ‘orderly transition’ as it moves through its next phase of improving service for customers, reducing pollution and delivering the investment needed to modernise Yorkshire’s water network.