QUALITY & STANDARDS 3 (Q&S 3)
What is Quality and Standards 3?
Q&S 3 defines a set improvements required to continue the work to transform our water industry. These are expressed as Ministerial Objectives and cover improvements to:
- Drinking water quality
- The environment
- Customer service
Covering an eight year horizon, the Ministerial Objectives seek to facilitate better business planning and secure more cost-effective compliance with longer term legislative requirements.
The objectives were specified by Ministers following a robust, stakeholder-led and evidence-based process undertaken on behalf of Ministers by the Quality and Standards Board, detailed research and a full public consultation. After careful consideration of all this information, the then Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development, Lewis MacDonald, announced these requirements in Parliament on February 9 2005.
The Scottish Government is requiring Scottish Water to deliver these Objectives over two separate four-year regulatory periods to coincide with the price setting processes operated by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland. Respectively, these periods are April 1 2006 until March 31 2010, and April 1 2010 until March 31 2014. The requirements for each four-year period are detailed by legally binding directions. The requirement to deliver a specific set of objectives during 2006-10 and to plan and prepare for the delivery of a further set of outputs are set out at:- Water Industry Investment Directions.
What will Q&S 3 deliver?
Scottish Water is required to deliver specified outcomes which will improve drinking water quality, clean up our environment, provide for new development, and improve customer service. These requirements, which Scottish Water must deliver within the funds determined by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, are set out in a Ministerial Direction to Scottish Water. In the period 2006-2010 these objectives will deliver the following outcomes through a combination of improved operating practices and £2.45 billion of investment:-
- Improve the quality of drinking water for 1.5 million people and provide better disinfection control for 4m people.
- Contribute to improving water quality for over 200km of water bodies.
- Provide new strategic capacity to enable new development and allow our communites to grow.
- Address odour nuisance at 14 waste water treatment works.
- Remove 456 properites currently as risk from internal sewer flooding.
- Remove 2250 properties currently subject to low water pressure (less than 1 bar pressure).
- Deliver a net reduction of 425 properties affected by unplanned interruptions in water supply (non trunk mains).
- Improved customer services from 177 (2006) to 250 (2010) as measures by the Overall Performance Assessment (OPA) methodology.
- Reduce leakage in line with WICS targets.
What does the investment programme involve?
This investment programme comprises more than 2,000 individual projects across each of the areas identified by Ministers. It is widely acknowledged that this is one of the largest investment programmes per customer ever attempted in the UK. For this reason, the efficient and effective delivery of such a complex programme within the four-year regulatory period presents a significant challenge to Scottish Water.
There are many risks to the timely delivery of this programme - some of which can be managed directly by Scottish Water and others not. The main risks include planning delays, SW's ability to manage such a volume and variety of projects and the capacity within the supply chain to meet the challenging deadlines.
Who is monitoring delivery?
Ministers have set up a specific group, the Output Monitoring Group, to ensure that Ministers' objectives are delivered. The OMG brings together all major stakeholders in the Scottish Water Industry including the Scottish Government, Scottish Water, Water Industry Commission for Scotland , Drinking Water Quality Regulator, Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Waterwatch. This group is chaired by the Scottish Government and operates to the protocol and remit contained in the links below.
OMG - Protocol
OMG - Remit
The OMG produces quarterly reports which summarise the progress made by Scottish Water in each quarter of the financial year. The report uses the targets and milestones shown in Scottish Water's Delivery Plan and information reports produced by Scottish Water for its regulators. Progress is colour-coded:
Red - Progress is behind target and there is no prospect of recovery over the regulatory period.
Amber - At risk of not delivering the output within the regulatory period.
Green - On programme, or if off track will recover within the period
The monitoring reports are attached below.
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 4 2010-11 period to end March 2011
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 3 2010-11 period to end December 2010
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 2 2010-11 period (to end September 2010)
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 1 2010-11 period (to end June 2010)
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 4 2009-10 period (to end March 2010)
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 3 2009-10 period (to end December 2009)
Outputs Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 2 2009-10 period (to end September 2009)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 1 2009-10 period (to end June 2009)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 4 2008-09 Period (to end March 2009)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 3 2008-09 period (to end December 2008)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 2 2008-09 Period (to end September 2008)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 1 2008-09 period (to end June 2008)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 4 2007-08 Period (to end March 2008)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 3 2007-08 period (to end December 2007)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 2 2007-08 period (to end September 2007)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 1 2007-08 period (to end June 2007)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 4 2006-07 Period (to end March 2007)
Output Monitoring Group Report - For Quarter 3 2006-07 Period (to end December 2006)
Previous Investment Programmes
During the last regulatory period, 2002-2006, Scottish Water delivered an investment programme known as Quality and Standards 2. A report on the requirements of that capital programme and the extent of delivery at March 31 2006 is provided below.
QUALITY & STANDARDS 2 (Q & S 2)
Who monitors and audits Scottish Water?
Scottish Water is a public corporation accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament. Its performance is therefore subject to scrutiny by the Parliament and Parliament's auditors, the Auditor General. The Auditor General's most recent report on Scottish Water.
The Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change Committee regularly takes evidence from the Water Industry. Committee reports and meeting papers.
Where can I get more information about Quality and Standards 3?
- Information on how Scottish Water is currently taking forward this work is available from Scottish Water's Delivery Plan 2006-2010 or the March 2007 update.
- Information on specific improvement projects going on in your area is available from the Scottish Water website.
- A specific list of outputs (called the technical expression) which Scottish Water's regulators have confirmed will meet the requirements which Ministers have specified is also available on the Scottish Water website.