As we approach our 7th birthday, we take a look back over our journey so far, and reflect on the significant milestones and industry first's that have shaped Castle Water in to the UK's leading independent water retailer.
2014 - Castle Water launches
In 2014, Castle Water was set up as an independent retailer, serving the Scottish non-household water market, with the aim of transforming how businesses buy water. This was in response to market deregulation which first took place in Scotland in 2008, when businesses, public sector and other organisations in Scotland were given the freedom to choose a business water retailer that suited their needs.
2016 - Major acquisitions
Then in 2016, Castle Water acquired the business customers of Portsmouth Water and Thames Water, becoming first independent water retailer in the English market. Today, we supply hundreds of thousands of businesses, charities, and public bodies throughout England and Scotland.
2017 - CCS framework appointment & First Annual Customer Conference
In March 2017, Castle Water announced that, following a competitive tender process, it had been appointed to Crown Commercial Service (CCS) framework RM3790 for the provision of water and wastewater services to the public sector in England.
John Reynolds OBE, CEO of Castle Water, welcomed Castle Water’s inclusion in the framework stating, “We are delighted that we will have the opportunity to work with English public sector bodies to reduce water costs and provide enhanced services. Castle Water’s business model, as a national dedicated retailer, and our commitment to managing service provision in-house, is unique in the market.”
Soon after the initial appointment to the framework, Castle Water secured its first major national contract through CCS framework in November 2017. Castle Water could now extend its services to supply contracts for up to three years to select public sector customers. Sam Ulyatt, Strategic Category Commercial Director for Crown Commercial Service said at the time, “In April we brought the largest public sector water framework agreement to the UK market. The agreement will eventually support the public sector to save £20 million on its water bill, leveraging the buying power of the public sector to support the delivery of efficient and effective public services.”
2018 - MyAccount launch
Timely, supportive, and clear customer communications is of the upmost importance at Castle Water. That’s why we were delighted to host our first Annual Customer Conference in London in 2017, and later in 2018 launch our customer portal, MyAccount. MyAccount has everything you need to stay in control of your account and keep your bills up-to-date, all in one place. Our customers can submit meter readings, update their details, and view bills and much more anywhere, anytime. We continue to invest in the development of MyAccount to optimise its functionality, with the most recent update meaning our customers can now check their account balance online.
2019 - Rebrand
In 2019, after months of planning, Castle Water revealed its new brand to the market. John Reynolds said of the announcement, “Our new brand embraces all that we stand for: independence, tenacity, industry leading expertise, transparency, high ethical standards, community engagement, investing in our people for success, and 5-star customer service.”
2020 - ISO 9001 certification
In 2020, our commitment to industry leading expertise was recognised when Castle Water was awarded ISO 9001 certification. The internationally recognised standard reinforces our focus on delivering industry leading offers and services, measured against global benchmarks of industry excellence.
In November 2020, Castle Water was delighted to announce it secured a second CCS agreement, RM6178 Water, Wastewater and Ancillary Services.
2021 - 2nd CCS framework appointment
In January 2021, the first aggregation for the new framework began. Gary Hinks, Castle Water’s Sales and Business Development Director said, “Castle Water remain focused on delivering quality services to our CCS customers, having successfully served the CCS portfolio since 2017. Our presence, expertise and stability in the market coupled with the enhancements to the new framework, ensures CCS customers receive exceptional service, value and support from Castle Water, now and in the future.”
Today, as we look towards our 7th year as the UK’s leading independent water retailer, the team at Castle Water reflects on the many great milestones we have achieved. As we continue to grow, our commitment to be at the forefront of innovation in the UK water market remains, as does our focus on providing all our customers with market leading 5-star service, and to uphold the highest standards that our brand embraces.