Review of Water UK Levels of Service (LoS) (Metrics) for the Price Review 2019 (PR19) Developer Services Measure of Experience (D-MeX) Incentive

Tender description

The Contractor will be required to check the clarity of definitions of the Water UK current set of metrics (as at August 2019) and advise Ofwat on consistency of definitions, including: check whether definitions of the Water UK current set of metrics are sufficiently clear and unambiguous based on comparative analysis that Water UK has conducted and will provide to Ofwat by the end of July 2019 and are in line with previously conducted horizontal audit of levels of service reporting by CH2M final report on Industry Horizontal audit of levels of service reporting; and recommend which metrics would benefit from clarification, and how. The Contractor will be required to identify which metrics are most important for customers, how they align with customer priorities and to recommend how to define ''importance'' (for example, customers' priorities, the impact on customers, efforts required for companies or alternatively the relative importance of all those factors). This should be informed by stakeholder engagement including by:setting up a workshop with customers and customers' representative bodies; taking into account first-hand knowledge of customer experience through analysis of anonymised verbatim comments for customer surveys conducted for the qualitative element of D-Mex throughout the shadow year. The Contractor will be required to comment on the activities that underlie each of the LoS metrics and more precisely the level of complexity or difficulty with which these activities can be undertaken.The Contractor will be required to assess whether the proposed NAVs metrics that are currently being developed by Water UK, are fit for purpose (these are expected to be available in August 2019). The Contractor will be required to comment on whether the current set of metrics are sufficiently stretching overall through a high-level assessment (rather than a metric-by-metric assessment), including comment on whether the metrics are stretching enough to differentiate between companies performance and provide customers with an excellent level of service. This action is in line with overall objective for PR19 where we require companies to propose stretching performance levels.The Contractor will be required to recommend reporting requirements for companies in relation to metrics - i.e. to outline the information that should be collected as part of company reporting of performance of metrics. The Contractor will be required to provide ad-hoc advice related to this review when and if needed by Ofwat.The Contractor will be required to take into account the wider D-MeX project in its work, including: Identifying any implications for the qualitative element of D-Mex and liaising with Contractors working on the qualitative component of D-MEX, if needed;Engaging with Ofwat, Water UK, water companies and wider stakeholders, when and if advised by Ofwat.Other suggested areas the Contractor may identify that is not listed above, to be agreed in advance with Ofwat