Pennon announces 5 million Better Futures Programme to support local communities

Putting people and resources into the places where people need it the most

Pennon has today announced the launch of a new £5M programme designed to go even further towards providing support for those who need it most. Better Futures will support water customers and communities across Devon, Cornwall, Bristol, Bournemouth, Isles of Scilly and Sutton and East Surrey.

The programme is divided into two main components, Hardship funding and Community funding.

The £5m ‘Better Futures’ programme will provide:
Hardship Funding:A helping hand in the form of a small grants programme to support individuals and families who suddenly find themselves in difficult financial circumstances.
Community funding:Funding of community groups which inspire physical activities, education, health and wellbeing and positive environmental outcomes - supporting the lives of people and places they love for generations to come.

The ‘Better Futures’ programme will not only provide financial support to groups who are able to reach those who find themselves in difficult situations, but it will also open doors to opportunities people may not have had access to in the past.

Alongside the £200m customer support programme announced in December, Pennon is also one of the only companies to have eliminated water poverty and has expended this pledge to 2030.

Ketan Hindocha, Director of Customer Care,said: “The wellbeing of every one of our customers is incredibly important to us - this may be in the form of financial wellbeing and the support we give to those who may be finding it hard, but we want to go even further. Over the coming weeks and months, we will be announcing more details about our Better Futures programme and what we are doing to support our customers and communities more than ever before. What we do here is about much more than just water and we hope that this investment will go some way towards helping people to make positive changes for a Better Future.”

Yesterday, Pennon announced that they have accepted Ofwat’s Final Determination as a clear line of sight to 2030. The Group are delivering on an investment plan of £3.2bn over the next 5 years.

Pennon’s ‘outstanding’ plan (cited by Ofwat) focusses on four priorities based on what customers have said matter most:
1.Customer support and affordability
2.Net Zero and environmental gains
3.Increase water resources and maintain clean, safe drinking water supplies
4.Reducing the use of storm overflows