WaterAid is an international not-for-profit, determined to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. Only by tackling these three essentials in ways that last can people change their lives for good.

The statistics are stark:

  • 785 million people in the world – around one in ten people – do not have clean water close to home. Those living without this everyday essential do not have an equal chance to be healthy, educated and financially secure. 
  • 2 billion people in the world – one in four – do not have a decent toilet of their own. 
  • Good hygiene behaviour is integral to keeping people clean and healthy and stopping the spread of diseases, yet globally two in five people lack handwashing facilities at home. 

Your incredible support has enabled WaterAid to reach millions of people in some of the most hard to reach communities in the world. Installing taps and toilets is essential, but we need to do so much more to reach everyone, everywhere. Clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene change everything. Together we can get there within a generation.

 

To find out more visit www.wateraid.org/uk

 

Why WaterAid?

In 1981, a visionary group of water industry leaders including Anglian Water, responded to the UN’s call for action to do something about the world water crisis.

Since then the UK water industry has remained at the heart of WaterAid, helping to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere.

Between us, we have the commitment, experience, resourcefulness and connections to change millions of more lives – until everyone everywhere has what so many of us take for granted. Together we can do it.

There’s a natural link between the UK water industry and WaterAid. Water and sewerage companies produce millions of litres of world-class drinking water daily, treating the returning waste water to high standards so it returns safely to the environment without causing pollution. We therefore understand the importance of WaterAid’s work.

How we work together

In our area, WaterAid is supported by a Regional WaterAid Committee. It comprises Anglian Water employees who give up their free time through our Love To Help volunteering scheme and a representative from WaterAid itself. The Committee is led by our Group Strategy and Risk Director, Richard Boucher and our Regional WaterAid Representative, Diana Freeman.

We raise money by;

  • organising corporate fundraising events supported by our partners and suppliers,
  • organising smaller fundraising events for staff, families and friends. These include quizzes, cake bakes, raffles and sponsored activities,
  • running a monthly employee lottery,
  • encouraging employee donations through Payroll Giving,
  • supporting WaterAid’s national and local fundraising efforts.

In 2019-20, our Regional WaterAid Committee and volunteers raised over £1.3 million for WaterAid, raising over £1 million for WaterAid in a single year for the second time. With limited ability to meet in person during 2020-21 because of Covid-19, fundraising was difficult. However, the total funds raised for WaterAid during the year were just over £330,000. 

Global support

Nepal and The Beacon Project 

This landlocked country has a diverse landscape, from low lying terrains to Mount Everest. Many rural communities live far from water sources, while in urban areas the growing population, caused in part by the decade-long conflict in the country, puts increasing strain on limited water and sanitation supplies. 

We’ve developed a unique partnership with WaterAid Nepal and the Nepal Water Supply Corporation, helping to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene the norm, in addition to providing financial support. A key focus of this programme is the Beacon Project in Lahan, a medium-sized town in Siraha, South-Eastern Nepal. 
 
In March 2018, we and our Alliance partners visited Lahan, spending time with the communities who will benefit from this partnership and meeting partners who are on this journey with us. Our project team has already made great progress, laying the foundations for change in this area. 
 
By working together with WaterAid, our Alliance partners, local communities and the Nepalese government we can influence water and sanitation policy in Nepal, making lasting change. Around the world every day the water crisis continues to cost lives, denying people their human rights and locking them in poverty. 

The Beacon Project, is crucial in helping Nepal achieve its Sustainable Development Goal on clean water and sanitation for all by 2030. If governments don’t take urgent action now, many countries like Nepal will miss their targets and more lives will be lost. 
 
The Beacon Project supported Covid-19 relief efforts in Nepal by providing handwashing stations, extending water supply times and donating PPE in Lahan.