GEM Awards logo
‘Going the Extra Mile’ Awards 2025

NWG are pleased to announce the GEM Awards have returned for 2025!

 

Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) have a clear vision to be the national leader in the provision of sustainable water and wastewater services and it is vital that we work with suppliers who share our drive for excellence whilst delivering outstanding customer service.

 

We want to recognise the amazing contribution our supply partners play in helping us to achieve our vision and celebrate those that are “Going the Extra Mile”. We have 12 award categories this year reflecting our vision and values and which provide the opportunity to recognise the brilliant organisations we are working with of all shapes and sizes.

Nominations are now closed!

Categories and Shortlisted Suppliers

A customer focused approach is a key pillar of our values.

 

We love our customers and we make sure they are at the heart of everything we do. We are looking for a supplier who delivers world class customer service and an unrivalled customer experience while delivering excellent outcomes for NWG.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1

 Experientia

 Consultancy

 Services

 

 Smart from the Start -

 Unlocking Your Customer

 Super Powers 

 2

 Mott Macdonald

 Bentley

   Valley Gardens
 3  CKDelta  

 Early Warning System:

 Proactively Elevating

 Customer Experience

 Through AI

 4  United Living Water  

 Lead Renewal in the Water

 Supply Sector - United Living

 Water

 5  Esh Construction  

 A Holistic approach to

 Customer delivery across the

 frameworks

 

Part of our plan is to be leading in innovation within the water sector and beyond.

 

As such we place a high value on creativity and innovation, and we encourage our suppliers to partner with us to find innovative solutions that drive efficiencies, improve customer experience or simply add value to what we do.

 

Creativity can come in many forms from new product development to the creative use of technology, and if it helps us to work smarter then it definitely fits under this category!

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1

 Octo Design

 Suez,

 Hydrao,

 PDL

 Hydro Powered Smart

 Meter Project

 2

 Waterwhelm

 Limited

 

 Waterwhelm – Driving

 Innovation Through Net

 Water Positivity and

 Resource Recovery

 3

 Stantec and

 Aureos Idec

 Stantec and

 Aureos Idec

 Smart Networks -

 Tyneside

 4  Jacobs  

 Jacobs - Dune

 5  Stantec  

 Groundwater Infiltration

 Tool

We place great importance on health, safety and wellbeing.

 

It is embedded in everything we do. We are looking for a project, organisation, initiative or simply an action that goes beyond standard practice - something that demonstrates exceptional commitment to health, safety and wellbeing.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1

 Jacobs

 

 Jacobs - One Million Lives

 2

 Stonbury Ltd

 

 The OPEN Programme

 3

 Mott MacDonald

 Bentley

 

 MMB 2024 Company

 Health, Safety and

 Wellbeing Seminar

 4  Galliford Try  

 Protect and Prevent: A

 Comprehensive Initiative

 to Enhance Service

 Avoidance and Safety

 5  United Living Water  

 United Living Water -

 Shaping a Stronger, Safer

 Culture Across the

 Utilities Sector

One of our values is ‘we are one team’.

 

We place great importance on working together while promoting co-operation to achieve our objectives. By working well as a team we can come up with smarter ways of working and improved performance and outputs.

 

We are looking for a team who have demonstrated excellent team performance while living our values to achieve an excellent outcome.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1

 Durham Wildlife Trust

 and Essex and Suffolk

 Rivers Trust, with

 catchment delivery

 partners and

 environmental

 stakeholders and

 NWG

 Durham

 Wildlife Trust

 and Essex and

 Suffolk Rivers

 Trust, with

 catchment

 delivery

 partners and

 environmental

 stakeholders

 and NWG

 The Bluespaces

 Programme – AMP7

 Success and a New Plan

 for AMP8

 2

 Mott MacDonald

 Bentley

   Lanchester WINEP
 3

 ACEDA Limited and

 Gowland & Dawson

 Construction

 ACEDA

 Limited and

 Gowland &

 Dawson

 Howdon Administration

 Offices – Electrical

 Refurbishment Works

 4  Rullion  

 Rullion MSP

 Implementation: 'One

 Team - Not Just in

 Principle, but in

 Practice'

 5  Esh Construction

 Esh, NWG,

 Jetaire,

 Clearway,

 EDS,

 Greenspark,

 Pipetek,

 Butler

 Brothers,

 Mantank and

 Bellingram

 Working Together -

 Project Delivery and

 outcomes

NWL and its Supply Chain take pride in achieving excellent business results.

  

This award is for a supplier that has delivered exceptional results to NWL by going above and beyond the standard scope of their contract. We are looking for suppliers that have supported our corporate goals or wider business strategies in addition to completing their standard supplied goods or services.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Esh Stantec  

 Sewerage Rehab

 Pollution 24/25

 2  Stantec  

 Berwick Storm

 overflows PR24

 Accelerated Delivery

 3  United Living Water  

 Lead Renewal in the

 Water Supply Sector –

 ULW

 4

 Vyntelligence /

 Human Learning

 

 Northumbrian Water &

 Vyntelligence:

 Transforming Field

 Operations with Smart

 Video

 5  Rullion  

 Rullion MSP

 Implementation: ‘Doing

 What’s Right, Not Just

 What’s Required’

Social Value plays a vital role in ensuring NWG can achieve its vision.

 

NWG have committed to working with ethical suppliers who help to achieve our 7 Impact Initiatives as part of our Responsible Procurement Strategy.

 

NWG prides itself on making a positive impact in the communities in which we operate. Social Value delivery by our suppliers is a key part of the working relationship and a great way to benefit our communities. We are looking for suppliers who can demonstrate tangible social value outputs relating to the works on the contracts they have with NWG.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Farrans Construction  

 Project Pipeline: County

 Durham and Tees Valley

 2  Jacobs  

 Jacobs - Building Futures

 East

 3

 Mott MacDonald

 Bentley

 

 Built In, Not Bolted On:

 Creating Lasting Value at

 Springwell

We place great importance on the legacy impact we create through the works and services we provide.

 

We are looking for suppliers who can demonstrate how they have created a positive lasting impact which has enhanced our brand and reputation within the wider communities which we serve.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  D.G Walton  

 Kielder Water

 Lakeside Way

 2

 Jacobs & Stantec

 (STP)

 Jacobs and

 Stantec

 Low Sided Weirs -

 Jacobs & Stantec STP

 3  Turner & Townsend  

 Living Water Enterprise -

 NEC Training Programme

 4  IWS

 Wickham

 Engineering

 Heybridge Sea Lock

 Refurbishment

 5  Esh Stantec  

 Stanghow Road Lingdale:

 Speed Limit Reduction

One of the key drivers to delivering affordable, reliable and resilient services is to have high performing projects and programmes which deliver to agreed milestones while providing notable outputs, benefits or efficiencies.

 

The projects or programmes could come from any area of our business activity from IS programmes, investment projects, water efficiency projects or working smarter initiatives (to name a few!).

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Galliford Try

 Galliford Try

 - MMB -

 EshStantec -

 IDS - Capital

 Delivery

 AMP7 WINEP Programme
 2  Esh Stantec    WINEP Durham Transfers
 3  Retroflo Ltd  

 South Moor Sewer

 Connection

 4  Esh Construction

 Esh, NWG,

 Jetaire,

 Clearway,

 Greenspark,

 EDS, Pipetek

 Spill Reduction 24/25
 5  Stonbury Ltd

 CSC Services

 and McKenzie

 Construction

 Reservoir and Tower

 Inspection and Repair

 Programme

This Award specifically recognises the challenges and outstanding achievements of Small Enterprises who support us to achieve our vision of being national leader.

 

We are particularly looking for those who have made strides in improving their company through implementing best practice. To be considered for this category the supplier needs to have fewer than 50 employees and a turnover of less than £10m per annum.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Mr Baker the Baker    Mr Baker, the Baker
 2

 Murray Event

 Services Ltd

 

 Innovation Festival

 Support

 3  ACEDA Limited  

 ACEDA – Reliable,

 Dependable, Consistent

 and Competent! 

 4  Shout Digital  

 Shout: Big Impact from a

 Small Team

 5  JC Consulting Ltd  

 JC Consulting,

 Tim Holland

We will achieve a net zero carbon emission position in 2027, three years ahead of the PIC ambition and will be the first water company in England to meet this ambition.

 

We are looking for suppliers who have contributed/supported our journey to net zero through reducing, replacing, removing, or offsetting carbon on capital projects/programmes or through the works/goods/services you provide to NWL.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Potts Print (UK) Ltd  

 Doing the right thing

 today will make for a

 better tomorrow

 2  Galliford Try

 Cemex,

 Galliford Try,

 University of

 Manchester

 GEIC, Sika

 CoMLaG (Combining

 Micronized Limestone and

 Graphene) low carbon

 concrete trial

 3  Esh Stantec  

 Stanghow Road CSO:

 Attenuation Tank

 4

 Stantec, Jacobs,

 Esh Stantec, MMB,

 Avove, Galliford Try

 Stantec,

 Jacobs,

 Esh Stantec,

 MMB Avove,

 Galliford Try

 Carbon steering group

 and the five point plan

 5  Ennoviga Solar Ltd  

 Everything energy!

Having recently launched our TIDE Strategy (Together for Inclusion, Diversity and Equity), NWL are committed to working towards a more diverse workforce which reflects all customers throughout our regions.

 

Diversity helps our success and ability to innovate, with different people bringing skills and thinking to improve what we do and how we do it. We are looking for suppliers who reflect NWL’s D&I commitments within their own company strategies and are actively working towards/on the way to achieving an equal, diverse and inclusive workforce.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Esh Construction  

 Building Bridges:

 Supporting Armed Forces

 Personnel Through

 Inclusive Employment

 2

 Mott MacDonald

 Bentley

 

 Innovate and Inspire -

 Women in MMB

 Committee

 3  Stantec  

 Stantec Employee

 Resource Groups

 4  Stonbury Ltd  

 Engineering Equity:

 Empowering Women in

 the Water Sector

NWL are committed to investing in our people and developing their skills by attracting the best people to come and work for us, helping them to develop their potential and in turn they help us to deliver the very best service for our customers.

 

This means we constantly invest in the skills, training and experience of our employees. Through apprenticeships, research partnerships, sponsored PhD placements, NGO relationships and much more we invest heavily in our greatest asset – our people.

 

It is important that together, we maximise the sector’s investment in skills and ensure we develop a sustainable and skilled workforce for the future. Therefore, we are looking for an outstanding, early careers, individual from our supply chain who you have identified is “one to watch” for the future.

 

   Shortlisted Supplier  Joint Entry  Entry Title
 1  Aqua Consultants    Jake Laverick
 2  Mott MacDonald Bentley    Laura Harvey
 3  Jacobs    Matthew Crawford
 4  AVOVE    Jack Graham
 5  Turner & Townsend    Amelia Bewick

Going the Extra Mile (GEM) Awards – Frequently Asked Questions

The GEM awards are NWG’s supplier recognition initiative designed to help us create an environment where our suppliers feel valued and are driven to deliver outstanding service to NWG. We want to promote, highlight and celebrate the crucial role our suppliers play in the day-to-day success of our business.

A project team will be created to judge the award entries. This will include a wide range of stakeholders to ensure we have a range of people reviewing the entries.

We offer the shortlisted suppliers in each category two places free of charge for each award they are shortlisted for. Following initial allocation if there are still spaces available we may offer additional places to shortlisted suppliers but we do ask that a small donation is made to the charity ‘WaterAid’ for each additional place.

The awards are a way of NWG celebrating the role our suppliers play in our success and as such we don’t charge to enter or attend the event. Food and drink will be provided for those who attend. As an active partner of WaterAid we will be looking to partner with them for this event and there will be opportunities to donate to WaterAid throughout the evening.

The awards ceremony date is 6 November 2025.

 

An event programme will be issued to shortlisted suppliers closer to the date with more information.

The venue for the awards will be the The Biscuit Factory, 16 Stoddard Street, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, NE2 1AN.

If you have any further queries regarding our GEM awards, please email gemawards@nwl.co.uk