Read: NI Water signs up to Levelling Up Goals

Northern Ireland Water (NI Water) has committed to levelling up Northern Ireland through a new partnership with former Education Secretary Rt Hon Justine Greening. 

The partnership will see the development of a Levelling Up Action Plan to map NI Water’s activity against the Levelling Up Goals and identify where the organisation can maximise its impact on the communities it serves.

Launched earlier this year, the Levelling Up Goals are the UK’s first levelling up framework to focus efforts on driving equality of opportunity at key life stages, and other barriers to that can stifle opportunity. The 14 Goals provide a universal benchmark for organisations to measure their progress against. 

The Levelling Up Goals are the first major piece of work by the most committed businesses, universities and public sector organisations, including the BBC, Compass Group and Liverpool John Moores University, that make up the Purpose Coalition. NI Water is the first organisation from Northern Ireland involved in the movement which brings together those who are leading the drive on the twin challenges of levelling up and reaching net zero.

The Purpose Coalition sits alongside the Social Mobility Pledge which works to encourage organisations to play a strategic role in how they create opportunities to help level up the UK.

Rose Kelly, Director of People and Learning at NI Water

Justine Greening said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be working with Rose Kelly and the NI Water team to measure its activity against the Levelling Up Goals architecture. NI Water has a huge reach across Northern Ireland and it’s brilliant that the organisation is committed to levelling up the communities it serves.  

“The Levelling Up Goals give a clear benchmark for organisations to measure their impact against. The challenge now is for more purpose-led businesses to step up and play their role in boosting opportunity and social mobility as we recover from the pandemic.

“Levelling up needs to be achieved across the UK and I’m delighted to be working with the first of what will hopefully be many Northern Irish organisations.”

NI Water was set up in April 2007 to provide the water and sewerage services in Northern Ireland and supplies 560 million litres of clean water a day for almost 1.8 million people, as well as treating 320 million litres of wastewater a day.