Image description: River Ouse flowing through York. Photo by Korng Sok on Unsplash
A change at the top
Yorkshire Water chief executive Nicola Shaw, who has led the company since 2022, announced on 30 October that she will step down, a day after the Environment Agency gave the company one star out of four, its lowest possible rating, which classes it as a “poorly performing company”. The BBC reports the Environment Agency as saying Yorkshire Water was responsible for 260 pollution incidents in 2025, its highest total since 2011. Shaw will hand over to Nicola Medalova on 1 January 2027. According to Yorkshire Water, Medalova joined as chief executive designate on 2 November. She is a chartered environmental health officer who held senior roles at National Grid, including chief operating officer of National Grid New England, and is a former non-executive director of Yorkshire Water. Shaw said it was the “right time” to begin an orderly transition and that she was proud of what colleagues had achieved, while acknowledging that “a huge amount of work” remains.
Pay, penalties and reaction
Shaw has faced criticism over previously undisclosed payments she received from the company’s parent, Kelda Holdings, which the firm described as being for “investor engagement” and “financial oversight”. Ofwat said the payments were not performance-related, and Shaw previously said not being transparent about them was a “mistake”. The company was also fined £47m by Ofwat in 2024 for historic sewage leaks. Local MPs from the Liberal Democrats, Labour and the Conservatives all said the change of leadership was overdue or insufficient. Labour’s Judith Cummins said a new face at the top “cannot wash away years of Yorkshire Water failing to put customers first”, and Conservative MP Robbie Moore has requested an urgent meeting with Medalova. Campaigners said the problems run deeper than one individual. Chris Stewart of Ouse It Lose It told the BBC there had been “a continual decline in the operation of this business”, while Naomi Tilley of Surfers Against Sewage said “the whole system and every water company is failing in different ways”.
A chief executive departure so soon after a one-star rating shows how directly environmental performance now feeds into leadership accountability. Regulators, MPs and customers will look for an early change of approach under Medalova.
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