Event Recap: Bridging the Gap to CVF Implementation with UK&I Water Community Indaba

Thirty representatives from water utilities across the UK and Ireland joined IFS Copperleaf’s UKI Water Community Indaba on 25 June to tackle one of the sector’s most pressing questions: how do you actually operationalise Ofwat’s Common Value Framework without destabilizing your investment planning? 

The session delivered no neat answers but shared thinking on what the real challenges are and how to navigate them. 

Here are three key discussion points from the webinar:  

Will Your Cost-Beneficial Projects Still Stack up Under the CVF? 

Utilities are testing the CVF against their current investment logic. Early testing raises legitimate concerns: will projects that stack up as cost-beneficial today still look the same under the new framework? Particularly when nature-based solutions are weighted differently than grey infrastructure? The message from the community was clear: test the CVF against your own portfolio before making commitments and understand how Ofwat’s unit economics apply to each measure. 

When Will Ofwat Require CVF Implementation? 

The CVF is published and available, though water companies are navigating uncertainty around the timeline specifically, when it becomes mandatory and how implementation will be structured across DWMP, WRMP, and PR29 submissions. The community’s approach: don’t wait for mandates. Start building internal capability and testing scenarios now. The utilities that are furthest along are already consulting quietly with regulators to understand their expectations and timeline. 

How Do You Transition from Your Current Value Model to the CVF? 

Running two value models in parallel (your current one and the CVF) is feasible. You don’t have to go all-in on complexity. You can start simple with three key questions and layer in detail as data and skills catch up. But the question of how to reconcile the two, and how to communicate that transition to stakeholders, is something every utility will have to solve for itself. 

Want to hear the full discussion? Watch the on-demand recording of the latest water indaba to see how water utilities are thinking through these questions and what approaches are being tested. Have a specific CVF implementation question? Connect with us to discuss your approach or get involved in the next Water Community Indaba.