Company Monitoring Framework
The water industry regulator, Ofwat, introduced the company monitoring framework assessment to encourage companies to deliver high quality assurance of the information that they produce. This is more than ensuring that companies have systems in place to check that data is correct. It is also being confident that companies are communicating issues in a clear, accessible and transparent way and that the information gives a fair view of how a company is performing.
Companies are assessed in one of three categories - ‘self assurance,’ ‘targeted assurance’ or ‘prescribed assurance’. The categorisations reflect Ofwat’s view of the quality of each company’s approach to assurance as well as the level of discretion the company has in determining the assurance process for information it publishes going forward.
As a targeted assurance company, South West Water is required to perform a ‘Risks, Strengths and Weaknesses’ consultation as well as publish an Assurance Plan.
Risks, Strengths and Weaknesses statement
South West Water recognises how important it is for all our customers and stakeholders to have trust and confidence in the information we report on our services. We undertake a review of our risks, strengths and weaknesses to understand how we can improve the information that we publish to ensure that the information is what customers and stakeholders want, in a format that is helpful, accurate and easily understood.
The results of this exercise identify where we can improve the information we publish over the coming year. A culture of quality and continuous improvement is embedded in the business and supports this objective.
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Assurance Plan
South West Water remains keen to ensure that the information it provides to customers and other stakeholders is reliable and that the information it provides is useful and is in a format and style which is understandable and user-friendly for customers and stakeholders.
The assurance plan utilises South West Water’s long established Integrated Assurance Framework which incorporates a robust ‘three lines of defence model.’ This framework is applied flexibly to areas where assurance is required, considering both the risk that the information/data may be incorrectly reported and the appropriate options for assurance.
The assurance we perform and commission gives comfort to the users of the information which we provide internally and externally and forms part of South West Water’s corporate governance.
This plan is currently under consultation and we are actively seeking feedback in respect of this Draft Assurance Plan ahead of it being finalised and published as a final version. This consultation will close on 31 January 2019. We welcome any feedback you would like to provide on this document at riskandcompliance@southwestwater.co.uk
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