# Regional water councils: United Utilities and the Rivers Trust welcome them, with conditions

> United Utilities pointed to its Windermere and Greater Manchester partnerships as the model. The Rivers Trust says catchment partnerships must sit at the centre of the councils, and must be funded.

Published 6 November 2026 by The Water Wire. Topic: Regulation & policy. Canonical: https://waterwire.co.uk/story/regional-water-councils-industry-reaction

Reaction to Thursday's announcement of eight regional water councils was broadly positive ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/communities-to-get-a-stronger-say-over-billions-of-pounds-of-water-investment)). But each group set out what it needs to make the councils work. United Utilities presented its existing North West partnerships as the template. The Rivers Trust said the councils must reach well beyond water companies and be backed by funded catchment partnerships.

## What we know

**United Utilities.** Chief executive Louise Beardmore said the company "strongly support[s] the principle" of bringing decisions closer to communities ([Water Magazine](https://www.watermagazine.co.uk/2026/11/06/united-utilities-welcomes-plans-for-regional-water-councils/)). She cited three existing partnerships:

- **Windermere:** the Only Rainwater into Windermere coalition, which is working to remove wastewater and highway run-off from England's largest lake.
- **Greater Manchester:** an Integrated Water Management Plan with the combined authority, the Environment Agency and local councils.
- **Liverpool City Region:** a £30m programme of sustainable drainage and nature-based solutions with local partners.

**The Rivers Trust.** Chief executive Mark Lloyd called the councils "a welcome step in the right direction" and said they fill the "missing middle" between local and national water governance ([Water Magazine](https://www.watermagazine.co.uk/2026/11/06/catchment-partnerships-key-to-success-of-new-regional-water-councils-says-the-rivers-trust/)). His conditions:

- **Not just water companies:** farmers, infrastructure owners and local authorities all need to be at the table.
- **Funded partnerships:** the councils must be underpinned by well-resourced catchment partnerships, which have more than ten years' experience of using local evidence.

## What others are reporting

[8point9](https://8point9.com/campaigners-welcome-new-regional-water-councils-for-england/) carried Lloyd's remarks alongside reaction from West Yorkshire mayor Tracy Brabin, who called privatisation "a disaster for our region". The government's own release included support from Wildlife and Countryside Link and The Wildlife Trusts. Link's Richard Benwell said regional control "could be a victory for people and nature", provided the councils get powers and funding ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/communities-to-get-a-stronger-say-over-billions-of-pounds-of-water-investment)).

## Background

United Utilities' three examples differ widely in scale and maturity:

- **Windermere** is the largest. Last month the coalition costed its preferred option at about £3.7bn. That includes a pipeline or tunnel of roughly 12 miles to divert treated wastewater away from the lake. UU is procuring a £600m design and integration partner on a 13-year contract from April 2027 ([Place North West](https://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/plans-afoot-for-3-7bn-windermere-wastewater-tunnel/)). The government backed the "only rainwater" ambition in March 2025, subject to a feasibility study ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-ambition-to-end-sewage-discharges-into-windermere)).
- **Greater Manchester's** plan was launched in summer 2023. It is run by a trilateral partnership of the combined authority, the Environment Agency and United Utilities, working with all ten councils ([GMCA](https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/integrated-water-management/)).
- **Liverpool's** £30m "spongier city" programme was announced in June 2026 for delivery by 2030. It builds on a 2025 agreement with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and the Mersey Rivers Trust ([United Utilities](https://corporate.unitedutilities.com/corporate/newsroom/latest-news/united-utilities-unveils-30m-plan-to-create-a-spongier-city/)).

## What we don't know yet

None of the responses addresses who funds the councils' secretariats, or the catchment partnerships the Rivers Trust wants at their core. It is also unclear how a council would handle a scheme on the scale of Windermere, where the costs fall on a regional customer base but the benefits are partly national.

## What to watch

- Proposals from local leaders, due by the end of the year, and whether UU's partners put forward the trilateral model.
- Whether the Water Bill gives catchment partnerships a formal role or funding.
- Responses from other companies, particularly those without established combined-authority partnerships.

United Utilities' response is well judged. By pointing to partnerships it already runs, it presents itself as the template for the new system rather than its target. The risk for the company is that a council with real powers could also become the forum where Windermere's £3.7bn price tag and pace are contested in public.

The Rivers Trust's intervention is about who sits at the table and who pays. The government said in January that funding for local catchment partnerships would double ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-unveils-biggest-overhaul-to-water-in-a-generation)). Whether that is enough to support a statutory role in eight councils is untested. The point it makes about farmers and infrastructure owners matters too. Many of the pressures the councils are meant to tackle, from diffuse agricultural pollution to highway run-off, are not under water companies' control. A council that can only influence water company plans would leave much of the problem untouched.

## Sources

- [Water Magazine — United Utilities welcomes plans for regional water councils](https://www.watermagazine.co.uk/2026/11/06/united-utilities-welcomes-plans-for-regional-water-councils/)
- [Water Magazine — Catchment partnerships key to success, says The Rivers Trust](https://www.watermagazine.co.uk/2026/11/06/catchment-partnerships-key-to-success-of-new-regional-water-councils-says-the-rivers-trust/)
- [GOV.UK — Communities to get a stronger say over billions of pounds of water investment](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/communities-to-get-a-stronger-say-over-billions-of-pounds-of-water-investment)
- [8point9 — Campaigners welcome new regional water councils for England](https://8point9.com/campaigners-welcome-new-regional-water-councils-for-england/)
- [Place North West — Plans afoot for £3.7bn Windermere wastewater tunnel (21 October 2026)](https://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/plans-afoot-for-3-7bn-windermere-wastewater-tunnel/)
- [United Utilities — United Utilities unveils £30m plan to create a 'spongier' city (10 June 2026)](https://corporate.unitedutilities.com/corporate/newsroom/latest-news/united-utilities-unveils-30m-plan-to-create-a-spongier-city/)
- [Greater Manchester Combined Authority — Integrated water management](https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/integrated-water-management/)
- [GOV.UK — Government unveils biggest overhaul to water in a generation (January 2026)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-unveils-biggest-overhaul-to-water-in-a-generation)
- [GOV.UK — Government ambition to end sewage discharges into Windermere (March 2025)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-ambition-to-end-sewage-discharges-into-windermere)