• twenty interoperable Smart Data schemes by 2035
• £36m of Industrial Strategy investment
• cross-sector Trust Frameworks and data sharing interoperability across the economy

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/smart-data-strategy

For IB1, this is core to our work – and features the Perseus programme. It underpins how we will help deliver our sustainable economy into a data-enabled digital-first era, building the load-bearing foundations for trust, protecting our data rights, and delivering impact.

Open Banking took a decade to get right: we can now move much, much faster. The opportunity isn’t just ‘switching’, it’s opening up new markets and connecting financial flows to real-world outcomes at scale. The time to engage is now: the schemes being shaped today will define the data infrastructure of the next decade.

The UK has a great team helping to lead this, with Samantha as co-chair, the Department for Business and Trade (Siobhan, Agnieszka, Priya, and a growing support team), and non-govt Smart Data Council members including Henk, Adam, Liz, Charlie, Marie, Chris, Ezechi, Ghela, Helen, Joe, Josh , Louise, Maria, Nicola, Stephen, Jane, Lucy, Sue and many others across industry and government now engaged.

At Icebreaker One it’s what we’ve been building with IB1 Open Energy Perseus, STREAM and our Data Infrastructure work and we will continue to lead on Open Sustainable Finance.

Date: Tuesday 10 March 2026 10:00-12:00 GMT

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gavin Starks (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims 

1. Sign off Q2 outcomes and priority use case
2. Align on bids process criteria for incoming bids

Summary:

• It was agreed that:
  • Q2 strategic business priorities include: (endorsed by members after this meeting)
    • defining Stream’s 12‑month ambition and roadmap
    • continuing development of the Change Champion network
    • establishing a clearer process for supporting funding bids
    • progressing the Open Data maturity assessment plan.
  • The first prioritised Water Efficiency use case for this year will be Water Situation Reports.
• It was noted that:
  • Co-ordination will be required with the Environment Agency for the water situation report (as the report is owned by the EA)
  • Growing demand for Stream support on shared data use cases highlights the need for a clearer triage and prioritisation approach.
  • Members and observers felt there were certain items that should be taken into consideration, such as scope clarification (open vs shared data), the importance of FOI/EIR alignment, and maintaining opt‑in/opt‑out flexibility.
  • Energy sector learnings highlight the importance of common pattern libraries and Trust Frameworks to minimise cost and legal complexity.
  • Cross‑sector use cases may present future opportunities and should be considered in long‑term design thinking.
• It was discussed that:
  • The bids process requires refinement, including criteria such as value, repeatability, resource impact, technology implications, and avoiding parallel infrastructures.
  • A scoring matrix for shared data use cases could include economic, social and environmental value, friction reduction, legal complexity, and organisational readiness.
  • A Trust Framework model separating identity assurance from Scheme rules could lower future cost and improve cross‑sector interoperability.
  • Sector legal engagement will be challenging but early use case examples could build confidence and reduce friction.
  • Further knowledge‑sharing and workshops are needed to deepen understanding of Trust Frameworks and scheme governance.

Next meeting: Tuesday 21 April 2026 10:00-12:00 BST

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat. 

These are confidential to the Steering Group Members.

Date: 24 February 2026 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: Online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Darren Anderson (NWL)

Secretariat: Icebreaker One 

Meeting Aims

1. Endorse the Q2 outcomes
2. Endorsement for CReDO data standardisation
3. Accelerating the decision towards sharing agreement templates

Summary:

• It was agreed that:
  • There were no significant concerns with the overall approach; however, the primary delivery risk identified was engagement with internal legal teams.
  • There’s value in the development of reusable artefacts and templates to avoid repeated drafting and to help colleagues engage legal teams more effectively.
• It was noted that:
  • A decision was made to continue with Esri on a reduced basis, with the cost totalling £27,000, down from £45,000 in year 1 and 2 of the project.
  • Q2 outcomes were presented for endorsement, including:
    • progressing data sharing agreements (created and signed) and sharing progress on shared data; 
    • technology / data sharing infrastructure best practice to CaSTco extension funding project
  • The next CReDO workshops are on hold, pending a further funding decision.
  • A case study on the Perseus data sharing scheme was presented as an example of how multilateral data-sharing arrangements and governance structures have been implemented elsewhere.
  • The working group outlined its approach to data-sharing agreements, including developing a decision framework and questionnaire to guide organisations on appropriate sharing mechanisms, categorising data by risk level, and creating a modular template agreement that could be adapted by participating organisations.
• It was discussed that:
  • There are risks associated with combining datasets and the need for legal and security considerations to be embedded within the framework.
  • It might be worth convening legal stakeholders together, potentially at the Innovation Festival, to help develop draft agreements and accelerate buy-in across water companies.

Next meeting: Tuesday 7 April 2026 10:00-11:30 BST

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat. 

These are confidential to the Advisory Group Members.

Date: 19 February 2026 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: Online

Co-Chairs: Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1), Alex Hughes (Portsmouth Water), Andy Johnston (Scottish Water) 

Secretariat: Icebreaker One 

Meeting Aims

1. Review the feasibility of the Q2 outcomes 
2. Prioritise Q2 use cases

Summary

• It was agreed that:
  • Breakout group outputs indicate that initial focus is expected to fall on Water Situation Reports and Smart Metering use cases.
  • Recruitment for the next Change Champion cohort will begin in Q2, adopting the new six month model.
• It was noted that:
  • Alignment on Stream’s long‑term ambition to 2030 will require a clearer narrative and a shared understanding of data‑maturity expectations.
  • There is a need for earlier visibility of future expectations, including DEFRA’s emerging monitoring direction, and Stream could provide a coordinated route for this.
  • Q2 planning includes further development of CReDO, water‑efficiency workshops, and refreshed ecosystem communications
    • Use case and dataset activities will require higher member engagement than ecosystem‑level work.
• It was discussed that:
  • Water Situation Reports present a clear opportunity to move from PDF‑based reporting to consistent, reusable datasets aligned with EA‑sourced information.
  • Smart Metering requires alignment on core data items and consideration of processing‑scale challenges, reflecting varied rollout maturity across companies.
  • DWMP, WRMP and WINEP remain important but carry higher complexity due to predefined reporting formats and the need to reconcile published plans with underlying datasets.
  • Members emphasised ensuring new datasets are interoperable and sensitive to internal organisational capacity and timelines.

Next meeting: Thursday 2 April 2026 10:00-11:30 GMT

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat. 

These are confidential to the Advisory Group Members.

Co-chaired by Icebreaker One and NWL, the group’s primary function is to help provide leadership and market signalling. Oversight of, and endorsement from, this group will establish a lasting set of robust governance measures to ensure data is shared safely and with the correct regulations.

Date: 27 January 2026 10:00-12:00 GMT

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gavin Starks (IB1)

Meeting Aims: 

• Members provide direction to Stream on priorities emerging from company 1-1s
• Clear ambition and alignment on the vision for Stream

Summary:

Minutes:

• It was noted that:
  • Operational updates for 2026 are progressing, including intranet launch and minor operating model refinements
  • Ofwat completed meetings with all water companies, noting that strong progress has been enabled by Stream and identifying sector‑wide themes including internal data portals, maturity assessment use, value measurement, and transparency of roadmaps.
  • Upcoming regulatory changes from DEFRA’s white paper and wider government initiatives (Smart Data Council, National Data Library, NESO/RECO developments) will have material impact on future data flows and interoperability requirements.
  • There was broad support for the ODI maturity model as a shared baseline. Members felt it provides practical benchmarking, comparability and a lighter process than previous audits.

• It was agreed that:
  • Stream will prioritise work on the four sector themes presented by Ofwat (in order of priority):
    • Standardised maturity assessment (e.g. using the ODI Open Data Maturity Assessment for Open Data).
    • Alignment on company data portals and approaches to internal/external data publishing.
    • Value measurement framework for open/shared data.
    • Greater transparency of company roadmaps.
  • Members will reflect on the long‑term direction of Stream as a Data Institution, to inform future governance and strategic decisions.

• It was discussed that:
  • The transition from Stream today to a Data Institution requires a clearer narrative for members, ensuring a clear understanding of the different layers of governance, operational maturity, and interoperability with the wider ecosystem.
  • Stream must be capable of connecting with wider UK data sharing initiatives, both within the water sector and cross-sector.
  • Its socio‑technical approach was seen as a strength versus more tech‑heavy models elsewhere.
  • Strong consensus that use cases should continue driving design decisions.
    • Use cases like continuous water quality monitoring will test how far Stream should move beyond raw data to provide analytics/visualisation and a guided interpretation.
  • There is a need for early visibility of future expectations (e.g., open monitoring) to avoid inefficiencies seen in recent reporting requirements. Stream could act as a coordinated route into regulators.

Date: 13 January 2026 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Darren Anderson (NWL)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims

1. Refresher on the Data Institution to surface any key questions that members have
2. Aligning on new steps/actions for the Data Institution (potentially questions to take away for the next session)
3. Aligning on governance/onboarding best practice for 2026

• It was noted that:
  • The meeting focused on advancing Stream’s transition toward becoming a data institution, a key strategic goal for 2026. 
  • Funding from the Water Breakthrough Challenge will end by 2028, requiring Stream to develop a sustainable business model beyond member subscriptions, otherwise membership fees are likely to triple. 
  • A centralised hub for governance documents will be developed to improve integration and transparency. 
• It was agreed that:
  • Next steps include refining the business and operating model, creating clear messaging and an FAQ for executive buy-in, addressing financial sustainability, and engaging data champions within member organisations. 
• It was discussed that:
  • Becoming a recognised data institution by 2028 requires clarity on recognition criteria and positioning Stream as the industry go-to for water data. 
  • There are some key concerns, which include: 
    • Balancing commercialisation with maintaining open data principles. 
    • Aligning Stream’s governance with existing company processes and managing liability shifts. 
    • Our current technical capability for items such as automated data pipelines and broader data formats (e.g., audio/video) was identified as a potential limitation. 
  • There are some opportunities, which include: 
    • Leveraging Stream’s role to influence governance standards and become proactive rather than reactive. 
    • Positioning Stream as the trusted industry hub/advisory body during regulatory changes. 
  • Some risks were identified: 
    • Loss of regulatory pressure could reduce industry cooperation. 
    • There are long timelines to realise true value (e.g., Transport for London example took 10 years). 

Date: 8 January 2026 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: Online

Co-Chairs: Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1), Alex Hughes (Portsmouth Water), Andy Johnston (Scottish Water) 

Secretariat: Icebreaker One 

Meeting Aims 

• Refresh the prioritisation process to ensure focus and alignment for 2026 
• Refine the backlog ahead of prioritisation process for one big use case on 2026’s theme of water effectiveness using water company insights 
• What do you want to see from a water company perspective moving forward? 

Summary

• It was noted that:
  • All outcomes were achieved in Q4 2025. 
  • The overarching theme for 2026 is water efficiency, covering leakage, per capita consumption, metering, water quality, and resilience. 
  • Engagement from members is critical to success; lack of participation is a key risk. 
  • Several changes for 2026 include introducing a strategic business pillar and renaming ‘operations’ to ‘governance’. 
  • Open Data Day will run in March as part of the global Open Knowledge Foundation event, focused on water efficiency, with hackathons hosted by member organisations, who are able to define their own challenge within the remit of water efficiency. 
• It was agreed that:
  • Five priority use cases will move forward for refinement 
  • Some use cases (e.g., APR data and common performance commitments) are valuable but deferred due to timing and regulatory uncertainty. 
• It was discussed that:
  • Additional use cases need further exploration before prioritisation 
  • Risks include dependency on third-party data and regulatory changes. 
  • CReDO funding update: the initial bid was unsuccessful but a new bid will be submitted for Catalyst funding. 
  • Engagement campaigns and reusable tools, such as the bitesize messaging, will be developed to strengthen ecosystem participation. 

Co-chaired by Icebreaker One and NWL, the group’s primary function is to help provide leadership and market signalling. Oversight of, and endorsement from, this group will establish a lasting set of robust governance measures to ensure data is shared safely and with the correct regulations.

Date: 1 December 2025 10:00-12:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gea Winterson-Mikic on behalf of Gavin Starks (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims 

1. Endorsing the 2026 achievement states and outcomes for Q1 2026
2. Endorsing the Tech WG recommendations
3. Engaging members in the shift from project to business through the Data Institution
4. To gather a baseline to understand where companies’ engagement with Stream is right now and how we can best support companies moving forward. What are the next steps?
5. Action from members on Water Efficiency Lab Fund and Section 82 work

Summary:

Minutes:

• It was agreed that:
  • The tech working group’s recommendations will proceed, subject to quorum confirmation, with emphasis on publisher support, metadata enhancements, and Esri contract engagement.
  • Q1 priorities will include roadmap development for the data institution and delivery of secure data sharing capabilities.

• It was noted that:
  • Stream is working towards a ‘data institution’ status, supported by ODI workshops scheduled for early 2026.
  • Water Efficiency will be the 2026 theme, following the delivery of the 2025 “Clean up UK Rivers and Seas” theme.
  • Usability testing showed high satisfaction for external users (score: 77.5) regarding the Stream platform, but only average ease of use for publishers (score: 68.6).
  • The Esri contract renewal is a fixed 3-year term starting early 2026, limiting near-term replatforming options due to budget constraints.
  • A retrospective was conducted and a summary will be shared back in the next meeting

• It was discussed that:
  • Financial sustainability remains a core challenge as Stream transitions to a Data Institution
  • There is a need to distinguish bugs from enhancement requests in platform feedback to better inform contract negotiations.
  • Manual account setup on the Esri platform poses a barrier to scaling shared data access but it can be done.
  • Risks include uncertain technical readiness for secure research environments and potential misalignment between future use cases and existing tooling.

Date: 17 November 2025 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Jackie Yemm

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims:

• It was noted that:
  • A series of more detailed workshops will be held to understand how Stream can move forward to becoming a Data Institution (legal & governance, technical, and commercial) and what the challenges may be.
    • Multiple people are welcome
    • Please invite anyone with IP experience to join the legal & governance workshop.
  • The Cunliffe review called out a need for a data sharing platform, the Data Institution work is in response to that call, alongside the need to be a sustainable venture.
  • A renewal for ESRI is occurring earlier, with a longer contract than anticipated and therefore tradeoffs have had to be made and the recommendations have been adapted accordingly.
  • Stream’s theme for 2026 is water efficiency, which came out of strategic priorities and AMP8 work.
  • The Achievement States have been set for the year and members have been asked to endorse them.
    • Sharing agreements are essential to move Stream beyond open data and the needs of these agreements are a key part of the work in Q1.
    • Water company risk appetite is low and therefore moving forward with data sharing without impacting the work on Open Data needs to be considered
  • A retrospective took place and members shared their feedback for the state of governance for 2026
• It was discussed that:
  • One of the key challenges facing the Data Institution will be the shift in mindset from project to business, alongside the financial implications of this shift for water companies
  • The Data Institution is a big shift for Stream to communicate to stakeholders when the value creation work is still ongoing
  • Work needs to be done to show that this is relevant and the right thing to do
  • The biggest risk is that it is unknown whether the platform meets the requirements for the Phase 3 goals as we do not know what the requirements are.

Date: 13 November 2025 10:00-11:30 GMT

Location: Online

Co-Chairs: Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1), Alex Hughes (Portsmouth Water), Andy Johnston (Scottish Water) 

Secretariat: Icebreaker One 

Meeting Aims 

• To sign off the achievement states 
• To recap on the Data Institution aims and its impact for Stream 
• To have a retrospective on AG1’s 2025 experience 

Summary:

• It was noted that:
  • A key goal is to position Stream as a responsible data steward in the sector
  • The ODI have invited all members along to three respective workshops to help shape the data stewardship of the model.
    • The workshops include: legal and governance, commercial, and technical infrastructure
  • Independence and financial stability are key elements of a secure Data Institution
  • ‘Global’ could be interpreted as ‘one’ other country but this needs to be more clearly defined, potentially to ‘international’ or ‘globally relevant’.
  • Our big theme for the year will be water efficiency but further work is needed to define what success looks like.
  • this should be called out in the achievement slide so that it’s clear
• It was agreed that the achievement states feel like the right level of ambition
• It was noted that the confidence for the CReDO use case being finished is high
• It was discussed that:
  • Tools for tracking engagement are important to help bring in non-water company members and their engagement
  • Open Data day planning needs to be brought forward so that awareness is raised within companies.
• It was agreed that in order to improve external awareness, we first need to be recognised internally within water companies
• It was noted that taking the time to provide context to the discussion and vote is helpful for members.

Co-chaired by Icebreaker One and NWL, the group’s primary function is to help provide leadership and market signalling. Oversight of, and endorsement from, this group will establish a lasting set of robust governance measures to ensure data is shared safely and with the correct regulations.

Date: 13 October 2025 10:00-12:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gavin Starks (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims 

1. Improved understanding & support regarding the Discovery work (in the context of the use case water efficiency fund for pan utility interoperability) 

2. Vote on Q4 outcomes 

3. Collaborate on the Independent Water Commission Review items 

Summary:

Outcomes:

• It was noted that Q4 activities are focused on data quality improvements, CReDO refinement, platform analytics, and preparing Stream’s infrastructure and processes for 2026 readiness.
• It was discussed that the ecosystem pillar, particularly around leadership, strategic clarity, and publisher-consumer coordination, is central to Stream’s long-term value and will require active support and championing through Phase 3.

Project collaboration opportunities:

• It was noted that:
  • Stream is supporting two aligned bids to the Water Breakthrough Challenge Fund: CaSTCo (led by United Utilities) and Riverdeep Mountain AI (RDMAI), both of which seek to use Stream for data provision and verification, citizen science infrastructure, and model enhancement.
  • Mobilisation on Stream’s side would follow confirmation of bid success (expected April at the earliest), though early engagement on Section 82 and member discussions may be beneficial.

Marketing strategy:

• It was noted that:
  • Audience segmentation is structured into Tier 1 (regulators, policymakers, etc.) and Tier 2 (civic tech, students, etc.).
  • The strategy will be delivered through four content pillars, with the current focus on trust and storytelling via Open October.

A strategic response to the Cunliffe review:

• It was agreed that:
  • The Cunliffe review presents a key opportunity for Stream to represent the best collective industry response to its proposals.
  • The 32 relevant recommendations presented on the Miro board require senior-level socialisation to assess their strategic importance, particularly given the varying stages of progress and resource constraints across member companies.
• It was discussed that:
  • Key opportunities include monitoring under Section 82, harmonising smart meter standards, and improving infrastructure data reporting
  • It would be worth running a workshop to divide items into short, medium and long-term aims.

Water Efficiency Fund

• It was noted that the programme will consist of two parts: a national Water Efficiency Campaign and a Water Efficiency Lab for innovation testing.
• It was agreed that robust data access plans must be in place by mid-2026, including anonymised smart meter and water consumption data with national coverage.

Date: 9 October 2025 10:00-11:30 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Dilani Pararajasingam (Pennon Group)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting Aims 

1. Endorsement for Q4 outcomes 

2. Capturing views on proposed principles from the Technology Working Group 

3. Seeking advice on the simplest approach to bring value through CReDO 

Summary:

Q3 Outcomes

It was noted that:

• There was strong performance across operational areas:
  • engagement scores showed a significant increase (107%), though this may not accurately reflect true engagement levels.
  • There were mixed results with technology 50/50 success rate.
• A successful workshop was held to align industry needs with member objectives.
• Efforts to expand the secretariat support role are underway.

Q4 Outcomes: Endorsement

It was noted that

• Endorsement was delayed due to timing constraints but quorum was reached in the meeting and the Q4 outcomes were endorsed.
• The Technology pillar will focus on a single priority: platform renewal preparation.

It was discussed that Stream aims to streamline operations based on Q1–Q3 learnings – preparing for potential paid project work, and establishing plans and processes to enable quick onboarding and delivery.

Working Group Updates

Technology WG: 

It was noted that 

• the Technology Working Group developed a framework to assess tools for collaboration and future adoption.
• a vote is planned on the proposed principles and standards

It was discussed that documents have been shared for review; feedback and suggestions are encouraged. It was requested that members read documents thoroughly before providing input.

CReDO – First Shared Use Case

It was noted that:

• CReDO is the first cross-sector use case under Outcome 2: discovery and refinement of shared data sets.
  • Initial discussions with CReDO have taken place; discovery and refinement will begin in Q4.
• if funded, data availability is expected by January 2027.

It was discussed that a use case refinement session will take place with data publishers and members to identify gaps and questions.

Group Discussion

It was discussed that 

• legal agreements are not yet in place and will only start once funding is confirmed.
• getting internal data might take time. There could be resistance, especially around asset data.
• there is value in moving from reactive to proactive maintenance which will be a focus this quarter. Anglian will join the refinement session to share their experience.
• standardising data across companies would really help. We will be at the clarification call next week with our Climate SME.

It was noted that 

• Stream can learn from NUAR’s approach to flexible data sharing.

Date: 25 September 2025 10:00-11:30 BST

Location: Online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1) 

Secretariat: Icebreaker One 

Meeting Aims 

1. Understanding how we shape and deliver future use cases 

2. Endorsement for Q4 outcomes 

Summary:

• It was noted that:
  • The only outcome at risk was “Improved data quality and consistency across priority datasets​”, with improvements needed by 29th September to reach the 50% target.
  • On the 29th September, the target had not been reached (45%).
• It was agreed that the new outcomes are suitable for the next quarter, with the vote being recorded as quorate in the meeting.

Open October

• It was noted that:
  • The pillar champions asked members to share who they thought should be at Open October.
  • One key area that Stream should be mindful of is how to use the government’s growth strategy as an opportunity to platform the project’s work.
  • As a result, it may be worth inviting individuals from DSIT and DBT.

The Cunliffe Review

• It was noted that there are 32 potential recommendations that may be relevant to the Stream consortium.
• It was agreed that some of these recommendations could form the basis of future use cases.
• It was noted that:
  • Members were concerned about how these use cases may be funded
  • Section 81-82 is a priority
  • The next step would be to theme the recommendations to help further align on which recommendations to prioritise.

CReDO

• It was noted that:
  • The Product Team is ready to go into the discovery and refinement phase for this cross-sector use case, with the aim to finish the work by the end of Q4.
  • The goal for this use case is to bring the work that CReDO has done with Anglian Water to the wider Stream members, whilst also building out a more comprehensive model.

Co-chaired by Icebreaker One and NWL, the group’s primary function is to help provide leadership and market signaling. Oversight of, and endorsement from, this group will establish a lasting set of robust governance measures to ensure data is shared safely and with the correct regulations.

Date: 9th June 2025 10:00-12:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gavin Starks (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

The meeting aimed to

1. Prepare for impact by:
   1. Reviewing and confirming the next quarter’s outcomes
   2. Aligning on common strategic priorities
2. Review AG1 and AG2 recommendations: for decision
   1. Consolidated tech stack
   2. Use cases

Summary:

• The SG group members noted a number of communication barriers:
  • It was noted that there can be an internal communication barrier to a better understanding of Stream within many of the large organisations as they may work in silos
    • It was then discussed that in order to break down these siloes, the SG should:
      • Write to the appropriate level of seniority within companies to highlight the opportunity to reduce work duplication.
      • Leverage the next round of Ofwat Innovation Challenges to encourage colleagues to use Stream for any potential data sharing.
    • It was agreed that it would be worth creating a standardised information content that companies could share across their internal networks
  • It was noted that external organisations are lacking in understanding of what Stream is about.
    • A noted value of Stream which is poorly understood is the collaboration element of Stream 
    • It was noted that member companies must continue repeating Stream messaging and talk about it externally so external stakeholders know where to turn to if they wanted to contact Stream. 
• It was noted that the Stream team has put in a concept note for the New Commons Challenge and if they make it through to the next round (receive notification on 16th June), the Steering Group members will be notified.
• It was noted that Phase 3 collaboration agreements need to be signed by August 2025 to ensure a smooth funding transition, with Northumbrian Water
• It was noted that due to the lack of pillar champions for the next quarter, success would be measured by outcomes rather than objectives.
• It was noted that the Q3 outcomes for each pillar will be:
  • Use case and datasets: improving data quality and consistency, publishing the APR dataset, expanding the value of DWQ dataset, and offering member support
  • Ecosystem: developing a focused marketing strategy to increase awareness and trust in Stream, and organising and running upcoming events and festivals 
  • Operations: engaging internal stakeholders, mapping member company goals for this AMP and internal goals, and resetting the strategy for the Stream team
  • Technology: operationalising and integrating Stream’s tech stack, and a plan for implementing a clear actionable reporting analytics framework that meets the needs of Stream
• It was discussed that there are no set target levels or percentages for data quality, and that in Q3 the product team will analyse the current state of the datasets, and look to set an achievable goal in Q4 with member companies. 
• It was discussed that certain performance commitments could be supported by open and shared data and therefore leveraged by Stream to garner attention and support from senior executives within water companies to help galvanise members around a key mission.
• It was agreed that per capita consumption (PCC)  is a key priority for the Steering Group, followed by river water quality and leakage.
• The updates from the Advisory Group 1 were noted:
  • It was noted that AG1 did not recommend creating a new dataset to answer the common EIR request of ‘what do you put in my drinking water?’.
    • Instead, AG1 members proposed to improve the tagging of the existing dataset and signpost people to existing content such as the DWI website and company websites.
  • To address the use case prioritisation list, it was noted that AG1 members recommended three key steps:
    • Explore the proof of concept of customer data sharing between different water companies who share customers
    • Prioritise the Collaborating on Lead use case
    • Explore a roadmap and proof of concept for Asset Performance / Condition Based Monitoring use case
• The updates from the Advisory Group 2 were noted:
  • It was noted that AG2 members had also made a recommendation to the Steering Group around a suitable tech stack for the team and members to use moving forward.
  • It was noted that the recommendation was to keep the tech stack simple so that the tools could be seamlessly switched from NWL to an autonomous Stream platform when it’s appropriate to do so.
• Finally, it was discussed whether the pillar champion period should extend from three to six months and that all members need to nominate a champion to support the success of the project. 

Next meeting date: 21st July 2025

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Steering Group members.

Date: 27th May 2025 10:00-11:30 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Dilani Pararajasingam (Pennon Group

Secretariat: IB1

Summary:

• Members discussed the Icebreaker question  – ‘If you were to set up a startup on the basis of data sharing across industry, what principles would you apply when thinking about your collaboration tools and tech stack?’
  • It was noted that logging in needs to remain easy 
  • It was noted that, with an increasing threat landscape, cybersecurity should be front and centre when considering collaboration tools and tech stack
  • There was discussion around keeping costs low and benchmarking other startups to understand what is being done in the space
  • Other themes of discussion included open source, portability, minimising friction and complexity  
• It was noted that Stream is trialling an outcome based approach for next quarter’s goals
  • It was noted in AG1 that metrics should be added in to measure when/whether these outcomes have been achieved
  • It was noted that it will be a busy quarter for the operations pillar, focussing on aligning work across industry needs and member objectives 
  • It was noted that work for the technology pillar will surround integrating a fully operational tech stack
• It was noted that members reviewed the consolidated tech stack. Questions raised included:
  • How should we balance the technical complexity of multiple products with functionality benefits?
    • It was noted that there is a natural tension with having multiple products and having products interact, complexity should be considered, with multiple teams working across Stream
  • What are the support/SLA requirements for each product? How do these limit speed of change functionality or manage risk for Stream? 
    • It was noted that a process/guide should be developed with this information
  • We don’t have a Steam IT team so how can we support all products
    • It was noted that somebody should be responsible for training on new tools being brought into Stream
  • Can we define expectations in terms of portability?
• The broader recommendations were noted:
  • Benchmarking suggest tech estate against other start ups
  • Creating stream principles and process for tooling
  • Explore further M365 tools and what it can do for us, is it enabled to do so?

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Advisory Group members.

Date: 22nd May 2025 10:00-11:30 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

Summary:

• Members were given an OKR update and it was noted that:
  • The use cases and datasets pillar has everything in progress and moving nicely
  • The ecosystem pillar has all objectives in progress

• It was noted that members were given an introduction to the license sharing scenarios with a view to having a more standardized approach
• It was noted that the Legal and Data Governance working group requires some input in terms of scope 
  • Members of the AG were asked for real life examples of data sharing scenarios to be included in this scope 
    • Credo, Climate Resilience Demonstrator, was noted as an example of an energy company, telecoms company and water company sharing data with a third-party company in a bi-directional relay of data and then insight
    • Data sharing surrounding leakage was noted in the long-term pipeline, with restrictions of what data can be published, a group-based access preemptive arrangement with a many-to-many sharing scenario would be needed 
    • With companies not currently sharing full EDM activations history data or water quality sampling related to activations data, the potential in expanding the scope of the National Storm Overflow Hub was noted
• It was noted that the subject of drinking water quality was prioritised for a data triage workshop held April 30th. Members discussed recommendations to take to the Steering Group:
  • The outcome of the workshop was that drinking water quality data is sensitive and would require mitigation which may result in it becoming a hindrance rather than a helpful data source 
  • It was, however, noted that a benefit would be the promotion of transparency in the industry and that would in turn raise public awareness of water treatment and the challenges that the industry faces 
  • The recommendation was that a new data set wouldn’t be released but rather it was agreed that existing content will be signposted to inform users of how water is treated and why
  • It was suggested that the Product Team speak to the EIR group regarding where they signpost people who have ‘what’s in my water?’ requests.
    • Additionally, there was a suggestion that more could be done with the metadata for this dataset, which could be reviewed with the EIR group.
  • Members were asked – ‘Is there anything that you would add or take away from this recommendation, and do you have any other advice that you can give us in this space, given that it’s the first one to come up that’s like this.’
    • It was noted that the recommendations are similar to work already being done by individual water companies, for example, the postcode search tool linking to water quality reports, and that this could be linked onto the Stream page
•  It was noted that Stream is trialling an outcome-focused approach for this quarter 
  •  It was noted that metrics should be included to measure progress 
• The Miro board was used to discuss use case prioritisation, with 3 questions posed, and a view to take a recommendation to Steering Group: 
  • Do you have any advice for the prioritisation of the use cases?
  • Can you provide any advice on the use cases? 
  • Is there anything you think’s missing in there?
    • For the use case focusing on proof of concept, there was discussion surrounding the sharing of customer data between bordering water companies, for non-billed customers. It was noted that communication is an important aspect of this use case, and also needs to be explored from a policy perspective. 
    • It was agreed that Stream should continue to explore this work and proof of concept to understand this further 
    • It was noted that the use case focusing on lead would be valuable to proceed with due to the fact it affects all companies and there is the potential to get ahead of the problem as an industry
    • It was discussed that asset data is a very large data domain with further exploration needed to assess whether a use case focussing on a particular asset class would be a better way to proceed 

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Advisory Group members.

Co-chaired by Icebreaker One and NWL, the group’s primary function is to help provide leadership and market signaling. Oversight of, and endorsement from, this group will establish a lasting set of robust governance measures to ensure data is shared safely and with the correct regulations.

Date: 1st May 2025 12:30-14:30 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Gavin Starks (IB1)

Secretariat: IB1

Meeting aims:

1. To provide members with clarity on the bid and what is coming next
2. Tackle the risk of low engagement and how to move forward

Summary:

• The meeting presented updates from the Product Team:
  • The new newsletter is available in both an internal and external format from May onwards. It was noted that this is the only way to receive the relevant updates whilst also being a key way to inform your colleagues of what Stream has been up to.
  • the Citizen Science work that has been taking place as part of the Cleaning Up the UK’s Rivers and Seas use case. It was noted that there are three upcoming blogs that will be published as part of a collaborative piece of work undertaken by Stream and the ODI.
• The group discussed the question: “What problem do you passionately want to solve?”
  • It was agreed that it would be worth creating a Venn diagram of all water companies’ needs, organisational priorities and pressures to highlight common areas where they can come together, as well as any regional alignment.
  • It was discussed that there may be links to other sectors and the Venn diagram may help to unlock opportunities outside of the water sector as well.
• Risks and blockers associated with this quarter’s OKRs were discussed.
  • It was noted that there is a low engagement rate with upcoming working groups and pillar champions.
    • Members were asked to support engagement or, if not, share how they would look to resolve the challenge
  • It was noted that there has been some difficulty getting access to the relevant legal contacts within the respective water companies. This has a knock on effect on the respective working group and the upcoming collaboration agreement.
    • It was noted that legal representatives are very busy and therefore getting a response has been challenging.
    • It was noted that once we have a use case, it may be easier to reach certain legal representatives, and it could be possible that a group of four (minimum) lead the work, with the rest agreeing to adapt to the work.
    • It was noted that for those looking to engage with internal teams, asking: “there will be things coming on data licensing and we’d like to know what your process is so that we don’t accidentally surprise you” may help with processes.
• It was noted that Stream is becoming well known between stakeholders but is less well known within member’s organisations.
  • It was agreed that there needs to be value-based messaging that lands with senior internal stakeholders
    • It was noted that the group should openly discuss what has and hasn’t worked to help get Stream on the executive agenda.
    • It was noted that there’s an opportunity to tie Stream’s work in with the other major activities that water companies undertake such as public disclosures, which have big validation processes and require engineering and product resources.

Next meeting date: 9th June 2025

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Steering Group members.

Date: 7th April 2025 11:30-13:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Lucy Chambers (IB1); Sophie Sherriff (Wessex Water)

Secretariat: IB1

Summary:

• It was noted that members were asked for possible data sharing scenarios to be included in the scope of the Legal and Data Governance working group, along with real life examples
  • Real life examples included EV charging point data being shared between local authorities and the private sector, and water companies sharing data with the wildlife trusts 
• It was noted that members were asked for thoughts on how to standardise language around data sharing and shared data licences
  • The idea of a data sharing gateway was discussed 
• The Q2 OKRs were noted
  • The Technology pillar is focusing on analytical needs 
  • For the Operations pillar, there is a focus on data governance, risk and legal decisions
• It was noted that there was a playback from the Data Quality, Standardisation and Interoperability working group 
  • It was noted that there’s a crib sheet to be included in the documentation sent out, and a validation script to check for common mistakes on the platform
• During the playback of the EIR working group it was noted that there are 5 possible outputs for Q2 datasets, listed below in order of popularity:
  • Spills
  • Drinking water quality 
  • Maintenance requests about specific work 
  • Sampling datasets 
  • Sewerage and flooding

• It was noted that these datasets are currently being shared with RDMAI and that this EIR work should supply multiple use cases out of this quarter 
• It was noted that the Governance working group created a decision tree to understand how each item should go through Stream, and to help build interesting agendas
• It was noted that the Core Processes working group prioritised onboarding and alignment with the Governance working group
• Members discussed what they would like to see in AG2 and how they can be supported, it being noted that giving advanced notice on meeting themes would be of help in getting the people with expertise to attend

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Advisory Group members.

Date: 3rd April 2025 11:30-13:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Melissa Tallack (NWL); Charlotte Hillenbrand (IB1); Justin Doran (Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water)

Secretariat: IB1

Summary:

• An update on engagement with the University of Hertfordshire was provided alongside an overview of initial marketing ideas. It was noted that: 
  • Post-graduate students developed a communications and marketing strategy for Stream 
  • Ideas included: 
    • The creation of an ambassador group called Stream guardians to work specifically with universities 
    • Launching a sustainability campaign within the universities 
    • Making the Stream logo feel less corporate to connect further with universities 
    • Extending Stream’s storytelling through the use of posters for public transport and across social media platforms

• It was noted that the next step is to co-work with the product team to understand which marketing ideas best serve Stream’s ecosystem strategy and are most feasible with the available resources, before bringing this back to the AGs 
• It was noted that the agreed OKRs for the ecosystem and use cases pillars were confirmed 
  • The use cases pillar is focusing on working with a partner and exploring the process for dataset progress and tracking 
  • The ecosystem pillar is looking at ensuring that the comms and marketing strategy is effective in showing the benefits seen from releasing data on the platform 
• Playbacks from the working groups were given to members:
  • The Open Data Day working group noted successes, with amazing feedback on the hacks 
    • The V-KEMS event brought out in depth questions for additional research 
    • The DreamCode Hackathon showed interesting approaches for engaging with younger people and citizen scientists 
  • It was noted that the Governance working group created a decision tree to understand how each item should go through Stream and to help build interesting agendas. Additionally, the groups were discussed, with a focus on the type of people needed to get the correct advice during sessions. 
  • It was noted that the Core Processes working group looked at how to onboard people and engage with the consortium, alongside aligning processes with the Governance working group 
• The upcoming use cases were discussed 
  • It was noted that there is a desire to make the EDM RDMAI data open
  • It was noted that there were repeated mentions of flooding, with a view to holding a workshop on sewer flooding 
  • It was noted that three use case templates were given to members: carbon emissions from wastewater, collaborating on lead pipes and business clean water consumption 
• It was noted that a Costing working group will be set up, with an open call for engagement from those with expertise – productteam@streamwaterdata.co.uk 
  • It was discussed that the group will aim to set up a mechanism for costing that is simple and repeatable 

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Advisory Group members.

Date: 3rd March 2025 11:30-13:00 BST

Location: online

Co-Chairs: Wes Thomas (Anglian Water); Lucy Chambers (IB1); Sophie Sherriff (Wessex Water)

Secretariat: IB1

Summary:

• Members were asked the Icebreaker question “What does good technology, operational ability, and governance look like re: AI?”
  • Reflections from State of Open Con 2025 noted that if Stream endorses its data being fully open and for it to be accessed by AI systems, then a fully open licence would be appropriate (such as CC0), as attribution licences are difficult when combined with LLMs and AI systems
  • It was noted that for some water companies, the AI conversation is in the early stages, with aligned thinking between data and IT teams needed
  • It was noted that on the large AI sites it takes multiple prompts to get to Stream. 
  • It was discussed that in the long term, as the volume of and confidence in the data grows, Stream could play an active role as a trusted source of data for AI

• Inputs for the Legal Working Group were discussed and members were asked the question “Does anyone have any legal agreements to facilitate data sharing that we can take into the working group to help build out the understanding?, with further feedback from members and their teams to be shared asynchronously 
• It was noted that updates to the architecture have been made, to include reporting and analytics
• It was noted that the Q1 OKRs are being worked through, including: 
  • The discovery and user research for citizen science has been completed
  • The use case theme pages are being worked on
  • To assist in reaching the 10% increase in members a survey was sent out at the start of the quarter to assess where improvements could be made, a second survey will be conducted at the end of the quarter to understand further insights 
• The Q2 OKRs were discussed, with a focus on the questions: 
  • Are there any words or phrases that are ambiguous? 
  • Have we missed anything?
  • Are we making enough progress?
  • Do we need to bring anything forward to reach our achievement states by the end of 2025?

• It was noted that due to low attendance the miro board with the Q2 OKRs was sent out post-meeting, to allow for further responses to be collected 
• It was agreed that the Q2 OKRs for the technology and operations pillars are clear 
• When deciding and implementing the next highest strategic priority technical capability for Stream’s future architecture, it was noted that analytical capabilities are key for demonstrating value 
• It was noted that there is a need to define how Stream is a stable and user friendly platform, and that this may require using both qualitative and quantitative measures to understand this. 

Next meeting date: 7th April 2025

Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat, and are confidential to the Advisory Group members.