SECV Part 2 Delivering Meaningful Outcomes for Our Stakeholders and Customers 2018/19

Ofgem stakeholder engagement and consumer vulnerability incentive

Part 2 Delivering meaningful outcomes for our stakeholders and customers

2018-19 Contents

SECV Part 2 Delivering meaningful outcomes for our stakeholders and customers 2018/19

1 Introduction, 2018 headlines and 2019 priorities – 2018/19 headlines – 2019 priorities

2 Measuring value – Measuring quantifiable value and benefits to stakeholders and customers – Sense checking value at an industry level – Customer perceptions

3–4 Strengthening our region – Thinking beyond the asset – Maximising the opportunities to support transport infrastructure – Supporting local energy strategies with LEPs across the region – Planning for electric vehicles

5–7 Responding to changing needs – Getting closer to our customers – Getting closer to our communities – Responding to policy, weather and wider environmental changes

8–10 Fit for the future – Distribution System Operator (DSO) transition – Getting on with it – Emerging priorities Introduction, 2018 headlines and 2019 priorities 1

priorities. Our engagement has highlighted service delivery decisions closer to the business-to-business account management, customers that they affect improves our social inclusion in the transition to DSO and the understanding of the local requirements EV challenge for Local Authorities as key areas and creates more opportunities for our our stakeholders would like us to focus on. work to benefit our communities and the whole region. We recently restructured We have also worked with stakeholders to our field operations team to put even more improve the way we deliver our core services. decision-making into the local operating In particular, we are aware of the need to areas. Similarly, our approach to recruitment play our part in responding to the impact focuses on drawing talent from rural and of Universal Credit on many of our more socially deprived communities so that our Stakeholder engagement is a prime mover vulnerable customers; our partnership with organisation better reflects the diversity in our business planning process; it plays Citizens Advice has been a crucial part and makeup of the communities we serve. a crucial role in establishing our strategic of our contribution to that effort. Elsewhere, priorities. At the start of our annual cycle, we worked with the NFU to develop Ultimately, we always aim to have a positive it helps us make better-informed decisions our SHOCK video in response to a very impact on our communities. I believe that about our priorities for the coming year and concerning increase in agricultural cable our approach to engagement is the key to beyond. The following pages detail how this strikes that occurred at the time of the hot, achieving this. I hope you see this reflected has created a positive impact by influencing dry summer and the condensed period for in the work detailed in this submission. the services and outcomes we have delivered. the harvest that followed.

We work hard to understand the long-term The more we understand our stakeholders trends and challenges that stakeholders and customers, the better we serve them. are grappling with so that we set the right Putting the people who make front line Phil Jones President and CEO

2018/19 headlines

185 24/7 Over £3m SHOCK! 196 meaningful outcomes Better informed Increasing investment New national potential power cuts for stakeholders customers through in tower block agricultural prevented, minimising extending texting refurbishment from safety education customer disruption service to 24/7, £7m to £10m-£15m tool developed 365 days of the year

2019 priorities

Co-creating future optionality Engaging widely on the role Mapping the social and cost benefit approach of data, to support our inclusion roadmap for for core service provision with stakeholders’ needs with future energy scenarios our customers the future energy system

NEW CASE STUDY Enhanced engagement for business to business relationships

to business relationships and potential scale this up. We have deliberately chosen account management models, in responding partners who would have the most complex to our stakeholder’s priorities and supporting requirements in order to build something the DSO transition. that is readily replicable within stakeholder To date we have focused on: groups who need this the most. Gaining a better understanding of our Outcomes and benefits business customers’ needs through: Detailed understanding of business – In-depth workshops with Durham customers’ needs informing current County Council to determine current and future plans. and future needs and our respective Single point of escalation in place priorities and challenges. for large connections customers. The issue – 20 independent telephone interviews Enabling our transition to DSO requires Commercial model for EV support with Local Enterprise Partnerships piloted with Leeds Local authority. greater engagement with and understanding (LEPs), local authorities and major energy of business customers’ needs. From research users to better understand satisfaction, Dedicated “MP hotline” established and feedback, we are aware that their expectations and areas for improvement. in response to feedback, enabling expectations are increasing as to how them to raise queries directly with Mapping existing business to business they would like to engage and the scale our leadership team. relationships, resource requirements of what they would like to discuss, with and the gaps between this and our Partnership charter in place piloted an emphasis on shared understanding stakeholder expectations. with Durham County Council and five and collaboration. projects underway including a review of This learning has confirmed that there is developers' planning journey across Durham What we did no ‘one size fits all’ account management CC and Northern Powergrid and sharing We have established a cross-business team approach. We are testing a model for data, information and activity to support to deliver a pilot project throughout 2019 improving relationships (from June 2019) vulnerable customers and communities, to inform our future approach to business to examine options and how we might and identify areas for joint working. Measuring value 2

Measuring quantifiable value and benefits to stakeholders and customers All our services and the improvements we Some of our third sector partners are able Yorkshire Water and Northern Gas make to them are paid for by customers, to provide Social Return on Investment Networks looked at the adverse effects so ensuring we are investing in the right (SROI) based on robust understanding of of our essential works on the social areas and making decisions which deliver the measure and how it applies to services environment in which they are undertaken; the best outcomes in the most efficient they supply on our behalf. Citizens Advice like traffic congestion, noise, dirt and dust and effective way is essential. Measuring report £12.42 social benefit for every when we are excavating roads. The report the impact of the decisions we make and £1 invested. in March 2018 gave us some indicative the improvements we deliver as a result of For some initiatives there is a direct or values which we can use to assess and stakeholder engagement is a complex task assumptive financial benefit to customers compare proposed intervention, new which we continually strive to improve. through interventions like Green Doctor technologies or approaches. Through multiple measures we are able to (£61.79 per household) and Energy Sometimes the measure may be the gather a more robust picture of impact to Heroes (£11,500 per school). changes we make, enabling partners help ensure we are doing the right thing. Using industry agreed metrics; for example, to realise their own or wider regional Every project is different and many of the applying Health and Safety Executive outcomes and benefits, for example, the outcomes and benefits from the activities methodology to calculate the impact of amount of estimated inward investment are qualitative. However, we always strive a fatality (£1.79m) when developing new or the number of jobs created. to quantify and where appropriate we use a safety education materials. Our use of these quantification methods number of tools to identify financial outcomes enables us to make better informed and conduct cost benefit analyses, whilst Our innovation project “Measuring the Societal Impact of Network Activities” decisions and helps to ensure our being careful not to overstate impact based activities deliver value for our customers. on assumptions, for example: in partnership with Northumbrian Water,

Sense checking value at an industry level In addition to our own priorities research, Whilst this is a relatively small sample of our From this research we have conducted a this year we partnered with all five UK specific customers, the overall prioritisation cost benefit analysis using the customer DNOs to conduct prioritisation research largely aligns to that of our representative values derived from the research against the with domestic customers which placed research and the outcomes help us to sense costed examples which were tested within a financial value on a set of typical service check that the hypothetical value supports this submission at both headline and service improvement statements. 1,216 customers value for money for customers in terms of improvement specific level, for example: were surveyed, 163 within our area and what we are investing in these areas. asked to “trade off” the statements. Based Significant willingness to pay (WTP) was on the average annual bill, a hypothetical demonstrated for each of the service packages, financial value (not a cost to serve) was but most for "Customer Support" and then applied to each statement. "Vulnerable Customer Support" packages.

Cost/ WTP per customer value per year NPg cost anaysis Service package Outcomes/benefits delivered to provide per (indicative customer value divided £ % of bill by cost per customer)

Vulnerable Customer Support Targeted campaigns resulting in 46% including targeted recruitment increase in health and mental health £6.15 0.91% 25p £25 campaigns, partnership referrals, PSR registrations and 485% increase (total dedicated PSR support, fuel poverty on the overall 2018 average; £709,755 £959,251) initiatives and strategic partnerships direct savings for customers through wider fuel poverty support programme

Raising customer awareness of the Targeted communication to 2 million national power cut number and customers in areas of limited £2.58 0.38% 0.3p £747 making it easier for customers to knowledge of us, resulting in an (total know how to contact us increase of 24% in awareness, with £13,463) 68% of customers now contacting us via 105

Whilst it is reassuring that customers place a higher indicative value on the services we provide than the cost to serve, we always strive to find the most efficient way to deliver these services, as we know that keeping costs down is an overriding priority for us all.

Customer perceptions Our research highlighted this year that: Despite high levels of awareness of who developed with our stakeholders, to 66% of customers and stakeholders we are, 67% of people surveyed had not develop a similar resource which explains felt that the service we offered was experienced a service. our business, our services and the value for money, this increased to From this, we have challenged ourselves to associated costs in a way that stakeholders 76% in people aged 56+ and 72% better educate our customers, particularly and customers can readily understand. for vulnerable customers. those who have not received a service, Our aim is to use the resource in all our future research to ensure we have feedback 52% of domestic customers feel the around our cost breakdown. In 2019 we will take the learning from our smart metering based on well informed understanding of amount they pay to their DNO is the the value of our services. right level. education resource (page 10), which we Strengthening our region 3

We are well placed and feel a responsibility to play a broader role broader social issues such as the growing skills challenge, fuel in our region, above and beyond our core services. As a significant poverty, economic inequalities and the impact of climate change. industry player in energy, we can support infrastructure and Across our operating region, stakeholders are looking at how to bring economic development, complementing the Northern Powerhouse's inward investment and development to their cities and towns, and we goals of more renewable energy generation across the North of have a crucial role in working with them through greater integration England and boosting innovation and enterprise, and help to tackle and partnership working.

Thinking beyond the asset Outcomes and benefits

At present, load growth in Durham city centre is restricting Enabling Durham County Council’s aims to secure continued ambitious infrastructure developments which would enable economic growth and investment and high-quality jobs for new restaurants, cinemas, office space and housing stock. local people. Aligning our plans through closer working with the A collaborative plan that provides the most efficient upgrade development and regeneration team at Durham County required for current and future growth. Council, we have agreed a proposal to invest approximately

EMBEDDED Easier and cheaper connections for developers and less disruption £1.2m to install two new high voltage cables into the city for residents in Durham. centre, increasing capacity and resilience. This close cooperation has improved our understanding and approach Supporting the expansion of Durham University, one of the biggest to support future developments and has directly affected employers in the city. the route of the new cables.

NEW CASE STUDY Beamish Living Museum

The museum is investing £18m in the building Outcomes and benefits of a new 1950s style village to increase visitor Increasing network capacity and numbers but requires an upgrade to the local resilience, helping to deliver the new visitor electricity network to support current and attraction as planned, creating 100 new future expansion plans. jobs including 50 new apprenticeships for the local community. What we did Working closely with Beamish, we agreed Bringing in an estimated 100,000 extra . The increased on a programme of upgrades for the local visitors to the local area tourist spend will benefit the surrounding network which met our requirements but businesses and the regional economy. also increased capacity to allow for future load growth; adding a second connection Improved network resilience in the local The issue to the local electricity network to improve community which should lead to fewer, Beamish, the Living Museum of the North, reliability at the same time. The work has shorter power outages for customers is a significant tourist attraction in North East been delivered in tandem with the museum’s and local businesses. England, employing over 400 people locally development schedule and was completed and attracting over 700,000 visitors per year. before the opening of the new attraction.

Maximising the opportunities to support transport infrastructure

We are working collaboratively to support the successful delivery of a number of major transport infrastructure projects: Outcomes and benefits HS2 will connect Leeds with a high-speed rail network A much deeper understanding of what is needed to deliver running south. projects and how this can reduce costs and timescales to The Trans-Pennine route upgrade will dramatically improve benefit our region’s customers. services between York, Leeds and other parts of the North. ENHANCED Enabling stakeholders to budget forecast more effectively

makes complex projects easier to implement. Responding to the complex needs of our stakeholders involved in the HS2 project, early engagement has led us to assign a Supporting the redevelopment of Leeds railway station – dedicated senior point of contact to facilitate discussion between the busiest station in the North of England. Arup+, Northern Powergrid and HS2 ltd, and has helped establish Enabling HS2, predicted to deliver 40,000 additional jobs and a good working relationship between all parties as early as possible a reduction in journey times from Leeds and Sheffield to London in the planning stages of the project. by 40 minutes. Enabling the Trans-Pennine Route upgrade to deliver 13m extra We are taking this learning, and applying it to other investment seats per year and £3bn of investment to the region. works such as the Trans-Pennine route upgrade, offering the same structured approach to Network Rail. Keeping 40 million passengers moving on the Metro in the North East – keeping customer costs down and minimising disruption. Improving reliability of the Newcastle Metro network will deliver better services to 40 million customers per year. In 2019, building on this learning we will deploy a dedicated project Greater collaboration with Nexus, and a pilot testing lead to coordinate with local stakeholders in Bradford as we undertake programme, has unlocked a long term solution, enabling the £30m of planned investment. replacement of switchgear across the network at 10 stations using new technology that is more cost efficient and easier EMBEDDED to install.

This large scale programme provides a future proofed system for Nexus and fewer future outages for Metro users. Strengthening our region 4

Supporting Local Energy Strategies with LEPs across the region Outcomes and benefits

We have reached out proactively to all of our LEPs to support the development of their Strengthening the coordinated energy strategies that will set out how each local area will achieve a secure, affordable regional response to changes in energy supply that also reduces carbon emissions to help combat climate change. Through the energy landscape. sharing information around generation and demand availability, DSO and flexibility plans, Increased innovation collaboration with smart technology deployment and innovation projects with all LEPs in our operating region regional partners, e.g. Humber LEP as a we are: collaborator for our planned Vehicle to Supporting their local infrastructure needs, including strategies for electric Grid innovation project. vehicle charging. Improved ability for local authorities and Discussing issues and opportunities around community energy projects, LEPs to attract business investment and promoting our Community Partnering Fund and how their strategies take talent to the region. into account vulnerable customers. In Leeds alone the strategy will Discussing their decarbonisation plans and how we can support these by integrating help deliver: our work plans. – 53% reduction in emissions by 2036. Advising how their strategies can take into account climate change adaptation and – £11bn increase in annual economic resilience to extreme weather patterns. output by 2036. Supporting the development of strong and well-informed plans through our membership – 100,000 more jobs by 2036. of a number of LEP energy strategy panels, such as the Leeds City Region LEP.

Planning for electric vehicles Outcomes and benefits

Local authorities, addressing clean air targets to reduce particulate matter pollution by 50% The engagement programme means we by 2025 and their social responsibility to encourage low carbon transport, are exploring EV have been able to deliver EV connections charging and connections strategies for their fleets and local communities. This need is driving information and training to a broader pool an increase in enquiries from local authorities about the possibility of installing new chargers, of Council Officers from across our region, and our response has been to simplify and standardise the process for our stakeholders. giving them a clear understanding of how We put in place a structured engagement approach, delivering two EV workshops targeted we work and what information we require at local authorities (with 83 Council Officers and staff attending), to foster understanding and from a connections request. share learning. Through engagement and feedback, we now understand that different council We have a better understanding of departments require very different information to deliver successful EV charger projects, and their needs and how best to package that knowledge has led to an improved process within the business that should speed up our information to help their long term EV feedback to councils in future. strategic decisions. In response to this feedback, we are investing Saving councils costs by moving planned £1.1m from the Network Innovation Allowance EV connections to more accessible areas to develop an online EV budget estimate tool, of the network and future proofing their hand-in-hand with local authorities so that it planning decisions; minimising the need meets their needs; giving immediate budget to reinforce the network. estimates, enabling them to assess where there Saving customers money through more are existing electricity assets and available cost-effective EV connections and saving electricity capacity in their locality. We are time; shaving up to 20 days typically off currently testing the tool with Local authority the process with real-time estimates. partners at planning sessions to gather their detailed feedback to refine it further.

NEW CASE STUDY Partnerships with technical colleges

round table debate. The EU skills strategy development of potential recruits through states that in future: “Many recruits [into partnerships with further education the job market] will need more advanced colleges, including Gateshead College, technical skills as the UK moves towards Tynemet College in North Tyneside and a smart energy system.” Bradford College. However, the UK as a whole, and the energy Through a partnership with us, the colleges sector, faces a significant skills challenge: deliver maths and electrical engineering 36% of current vacancies in some areas are courses to students which are directly proving hard to fill due to a lack of skilled applicable to the positions for which we applicants – the highest recruitment deficit will be recruiting in relatively large numbers across all sectors in the UK. until 2023. To compound the skills shortage, by 2030, there is projected to be approximately Outcomes and benefits 46,000 fewer people in the 16-64 A pipeline of skilled college graduates labour-force age-groups in the Northern in the areas of our network where they Powergrid regions. are most needed. Skills are pertinent to current and future The issue What we did network needs. Future skills is an emerging priority for our It is vital that we have the right number of An approach which can be replicated stakeholders from our priorities research, highly skilled staff to maintain and develop with other colleges across our region. challenge at our stakeholder summit and our network. We are encouraging the Responding to changing needs 5

No customer or community is precisely the same, and their needs can Through our data, annual engagement cycle and approach (part 1, change in an instant and over time, dependent on circumstance. page 3), we have developed a greater understanding of our customer This year, our customers and stakeholders have experienced climate in terms of their complexity and challenges – current and future. change, weather adaption, political, policy and broader environmental Understanding these needs means we are far more agile in our challenges and events impacting all the communities we serve. engagement and the support we can offer as a result.

Getting closer to our customers Outcomes and benefits

This year, through a programme of New online instant quote service Better informed customers 24/7, 365 customer listening groups, customer – That supports our customers days of the year. research, stakeholder and customer and stakeholders to undertake A reduction in processing time from NEW feedback, we have introduced new and property demolitions safely 29 days to 0 days for disconnections. improved services supported by a culture and further renovation works of continuous improvement and Executive in reduced timescales. A 23.3% improvement in time from leadership supporting 64 customer 50.5 days to 38.7 days for new properties Streamlining our connections or re-generation connections. improvement actions, including: processes – Customers requiring new Better informed 24/7, 365 days of connections for new properties or Awareness raising has resulted in an the year – Focus group feedback led re-generation projects told us they increase of 20% usage, with 70% of to a change in our pro-active texting wanted to see a reduction in the length customers now contacting us via 105. approach which now continues of the process – which may cause Saving our customers time, speeding throughout the night. From this, ENHANCED delays and increase costs. up the smart metering installation process we have improved all customer Increasing awareness of the 105 from over 40 days to around 7 days,

ENHANCED messaging; text, social media, number – We developed targeted with the potential to improve resolution IVR and our website. communications to two million times on over 10,300 faults per year. Supporting business customers customers, particularly in areas with Enabling the national roll out of around complex issues – It is hard limited knowledge of us, to educate smart meters with minimal disruption for large energy users to navigate around the 105 number so we can be to customers. SCALED UP

NEW the changing landscape of electrical there if they need us. charging reform, which may have 24 hour Rapid Response team – significant financial implications for Customers and contractors asked “After the work completed at my them. Recognising that this group is us to review the process for booking property, I could not have been more time poor, we ran a series of different NEW secondary appointments for repair pleased with every single one of the engagement opportunities; webinars, works identified by our Smart work team. They were all very polite and professional. Kept me informed, one-to-one briefing panels and Metering contractors. We are trialling bilateral meetings. We also extended when needed. They were here over a our 24-hour Rapid Response team week and there was a lot of disruption, representation at our Stakeholder booking follow-up appointments with Panel to better reflect large but they could not have done a better the customer at the time of completing job.” – Northern Powergrid customer energy users. their work to save customer time.

Getting closer to our communities Outcomes and benefits

Our area encompasses six operating regions, see a fully joined-up picture of our work Aiding Local authority strategic each with a wide range of stakeholders, in a given area. planning, identifying synergies between issues and needs. Each area has its own In response to the priorities research and their planned investment work and ours. unique qualities and characteristics, and preparing for DSO, all operational activities Clear, local points of contact in Northern through the increasing use of data have been brought together, so that each area and engagement, we are increasing our Powergrid who are responsible for their will now have the ability to deliver all work area and the complete work programme. understanding and appropriately tailoring types, driving faster and more consistent our response to meet the varying needs operational decision making to support our Local understanding allows us to better of our customers. customers more effectively. The new roles of tailor and coordinate across all work and Delivering locally driven, holistic services General Managers and Customer Service minimise customer disruption. and engagement – Historically, our teams Managers will focus on customer needs and (new connections, repairs, and overhead line stakeholder priorities; through this new model, work and plant maintenance) have been customers and stakeholders will have access managed as separate business units, but to a clear, holistic picture of exactly what work our stakeholder research told us that this is taking place and planned for their area. approach meant it is often challenging to

ENHANCED CASE STUDY Adapting plans to reduce the impact on communities

The issue the Canal and River Trust, ‘Slow the Flow’ and responsively to move the proposed location Resilience to flooding remains a significant others, we are delivering complex flood of a new substation to one that was less priority, with many areas in our region such defence measures and community resilience prominently sited and more agreeable to as York, Hull and Calderdale still recovering ahead of schedule for communities and the local community in direct response from previous flood events and the increasing businesses in flood-prone areas. to their request. threat of future events. With a complex and In planning the work, our team agreed on major disruptive programme of substation an enhanced programme of engagement The outcomes and benefits replacement work planned to take place with Calderdale Council to respond directly Accelerated substation relocation in the town centre of flood-prone Hebden to community needs. Working closely with achieved to minimise customer disruption. Bridge, it was important we minimise the local partners, we have been able to Revised location of substation with less impact on a vulnerable town. coordinate our works in a way that reduces visual impact on historic town. disruption to residents, businesses and Realised efficiencies of £50,000 – What we did road users. We held a series of briefings for Through an enduring partnership with money that will now be re-invested local councillors and public drop-in events, into future local schemes. Calderdale Council, the Environment Agency, resulting in our teams working flexibly and Responding to changing needs 6

NEW CASE STUDY Looking after vulnerable communities

programme to include more buildings Expected outcomes and benefits (232) and the deployment of advanced Maximising resources, avoiding protection equipment on rising mains duplication and minimising disruption systems where possible. to tenants: Using our social and vulnerability data, we – Demonstrating we are responsive identified the vulnerability levels in each by changing our approach following of these communities, and the current levels feedback from the council. of registered PSR customers, to identify – Increasing investment from £7m opportunities to deploy an enhanced to between £10-£15m, enabling community engagement and social an increase in the number of buildings programme to provide additional support refurbished from 125 to 232, doubling for tenants as a blueprint for future projects. the number of customers who benefit, In anticipation of the Leeds scheme from 7,000 to an estimated 16,000 commencing in mid-2019, we developed and across the region. deployed a direct mail and radio campaign – Refurbishment work will install new The issue targeting 5,000 addresses in the most equipment and make it much easier Since the Grenfell tragedy, many local vulnerable and hard to reach areas to inform to have new smart meters fitted. authorities have accelerated their tower customers about the benefits of signing up for our Priority Services Register (PSR) before – Collaborative approach supports future block refurbishment programmes. We are energy load growth from residents, working collaboratively to understand how the refurbishment takes place. We have also arranged for 11 local One Stop Community as the work will coincide with Local we can support and enable this, as well authority work to reduce the power as planning our upgrade works so that we Hubs to support us by displaying posters and application forms, helping people fill needs of the building, delivering on cause as little disruption as possible. The their decarbonisation strategy. nature and age of tower block housing them in if required. The next steps will be – PSR targeted recruitment campaign mean that they are in some of our most offering appropriate community support before work begins enabled greater deprived areas with high proportions in addressing broader social issues and understanding and more proactive of the top three vulnerabilities of health, tailoring support for vulnerable customers response to individual needs and poverty and isolation and these as the work commences. an increase in the number of PSR communities that can least afford registrations in those areas. disruption to their energy supplies. Activities included: Engaging with Leeds City Council and – Opening up direct lines of What we did One Stop Shops (community hubs which communications to the most vulnerable We are committed to replacing the rising support residents). through PSR prior to infrastructure works and lateral electrical mains within 125 high One Stop Shops were sent application commencing. rise buildings across our area before 2023. forms and posters and Northern Powergrid We will roll out the community As part of this programme, we approached volunteers ran drop-in sessions. engagement model to other capital Leeds City Council’s Tower Blocks Steering All properties door-dropped with leaflets investment schemes affecting vulnerable Group to assess whether we could align encouraging residents to apply to go on communities. our work with its refurbishment activity. the PSR. We will apply learnings to other tower This pre-planning resulted in a review of 3-week local radio campaign. block refurbishment schemes taking place the specification of our entire refurbishment across our area between 2019 and 2023.

NEW CASE STUDY Responding to climate change – Collaborative Fleet thinking

What we did depot charging infrastructure. We are We are working closely with local authorities also inputting into their policy for to explore ways in which we can support the reimbursing employees who charge transition to greener transport. As well as their company vehicles via their home responding to individual Local authority metered electricity supplies. queries this year, we approached the issue proactively by hosting a series of EV The outcomes and benefits workshops and making this a crucial part of We are working with Leeds Council to our stakeholder summit in December 2018. share expertise on delivering an EV fleet These events have provided valuable insight of vehicles on a large scale. Leeds’ own into the diverse needs of individual local strategy aims to transition its fleet to authorities and their different departments. Ultra Low Emission Vehicles by 2025. The issue As a result of our summit event, we have Helping the council to deliver on Transport and heat are now the most an emerging collaboration with Leeds City government-backed proposals that almost significant sources of harmful greenhouse Council, working together on the rollout of every car and van be a zero emission gas emissions, and this is reflected in our EVs across our respective fleets using mutual vehicle by 2050 and that 60% of new decarbonisation strategies as well as those insight to pave the way for a timely and cars must be electric by 2030 to meet which our stakeholders are working towards. trouble-free transition. This involves us greenhouse gas targets. In 2018, the Government committed to a new advising the council on the appointment Improvements in air quality across plan, “The Road to Zero”, with the ambition of a new fleet supplier, as well as providing the city as part of the introduction that the majority of cars sold by 2040 should guidance on how to set up an associated of a Clean Air Zone for the city. be electric or hybrid. Responding to changing needs 7

Responding to policy, weather and wider environmental changes There are a host of different external factors In partnership with the National Farmers' Looking for new ways to extend reach impacting our stakeholders, and we have a Union (NFU), we reviewed our approach, – Following farmer feedback, we responsibility to understand what these issues moving to a deeper level of engagement to contacted tractor/machinery sales are and by working together help to negate address the challenges of safety, environment, NEW companies, supplying them with safety or minimise any negative impact on our and resilience, not just to raise awareness literature including cab stickers and air customers where possible. but to educate a range of hard to reach fresheners to be on display in their Agile response to weather and broader stakeholders and customers. showroom and added to machinery environmental challenges We have used our engagement with the NFU sold. Safety information has also been and other agricultural stakeholders to set added to our wayleaves letters and Last year's unusual weather conditions had a cheques reaching 47,000 hard to significant impact on our time poor and hard ourselves three objectives; reducing animal welfare incidents, increasing the reach reach rural customers annually to reach agricultural stakeholders. Extreme at no additional cost. snowfall and prolonged hot, dry weather led of our safety advice to farm workers and to a constricted growing season and greater seasonal workers and finding effective Targeting future farmers – Working time pressures for farmers. ways to educate young farmers, through: with the Farm Safety Partnership Building strategic understanding ‘Yellow Wellies’ to reach the new We have seen a worrying rise in the NEW – Throughout 2018, a cross-disciplinary generation of farmers (20 to 40 year number of accidents involving farmers olds) with articles and safety blogs. and overhead power lines following team led by our Executive attended a consistent downward trend. NEW NFU board and county meetings to Used trusted channels. Promoted safety and better understand members’ business safety materials through the NFU Magazine Number of incidents challenges and priorities and discuss (British Farmer and Grower) July edition with the most effective ways to provide 6,506 copies sent to NFU members with the additional support to change a 75% open rate. 34 31 unsafe behaviours. Joint promotion with Energy Networks Joint working to address animal Association – ‘Look Out, Look Up!’ Farm 17 welfare – We are working with Yorkshire safety video. Water to understand how we can Hard to reach – increasing reach and depth 2014 2017 2018 NEW improve our joint processes to minimise of rural engagement. Alongside our annual the impact of power cuts which attendance at the Great Yorkshire Show Declining from indirectly may affect water supplies (reach 130,000), by visiting hard to reach 34 incidents in which in turn can create animal welfare rural stakeholders at local shows in areas 2014 to 17 issues in times of extreme heat. with a high propensity of overhead lines and incidents in 2017 Educating the young – Embedding arable farming, we have reached 25,000 (a 50% reduction). With 42,200 safety learning in college induction additional rural customers/stakeholders. people working on events and curriculum with 320 There has farms in our area, new students plus their lecturers been a spike keeping them safe and associated farm workers at of 31 in 2018. is a key priority. Bishop Burton and Askham SCALED UP Bryan agricultural colleges.

NEW CASE STUDY SHOCK! A step change in our region’s agricultural safety

who may use self-directed safety inductions, The animation will be officially launched which do not cover this issue. This situation as part of the Farm Safety Partnership’s presented us with the challenge of reaching 2019 campaign that aims to halve a very geographically dispersed and farm fatalities by the end of 2023, demographically diverse audience with and shared widely through our work this important safety message and to with new agricultural partners, DNOs develop engaging and effective education across the UK and outlets including material that changed behaviour – the NFU, the Farm Safety Foundation, not just raised awareness. agricultural colleges and farm vehicle retailers. What we did Further discussions with the NFU concluded The outcomes and benefits this issue was widespread across the UK and Potentially life-saving education demonstrated the need to create a bespoke being delivered to at risk, hard to resource to explain the dangers presented reach audiences. by overhead lines and what to do in case The issue Resource which can be used nationally of an incident. We agreed this would be by other DNOs, ENA and wider partners. A specific safety incident on a large managed developed as a national resource, as this farm led to a chain reaction that has further is a national issue, creating a memorable Consistent, accurate messaging as part of informed our approach to increasing animated mnemonic that could easily safety induction for colleges and managed agricultural safety. be shared to change behaviours as well farms – filling an important gap. The incident involved a high-voltage as educate. Easily sharable and translatable across overhead power line brought down by a The new ‘SHOCK’ protocol outlines what a range of different channels such as contractor raising a trailer underneath it. to do if your vehicle makes contact with an adapted for large screen use at agricultural The follow-up investigation revealed that overhead line (S is for Safe, H is for Help, events across our region to extend reach although farm managers had printed O is for Others, C is for Clear, K is for Keep to new audiences. information about overhead line locations away). This model is based on the Stroke and safety considerations, it was unclear Association’s widely recognised FAST As well as working regionally through our how much of this information was passed (Face, Arms, Speech, Time) programme. newly formed partnerships, we are jointly on to individual workers and contractors campaigning nationally. Fit for the future 8

Regular input and challenge from our stakeholders is helping to ensure we are fit for the future for our customers. Ensuring their current and future priorities and needs are shaping our decisions and directing our plans.

Distribution System Operator (DSO) transition Building on our previous DSO engagement programme, we have expanded and accelerated our approach. In the past year, we have raised the intensity of engagement to validate our thinking, add definition to our plans and support the first phase of implementation of our customer flexibility plans.

In the past year we have raised the initial draft was shared at our summit We achieved five pieces of quality trade frequency and scale of our engagement, and we updated it with attendees coverage with an online readership of using stakeholder mapping to increase feedback before wider publication. 94k and a series of media interviews. the diversity, quality and quantity of Unlocking our energy future Strategy informed by stakeholder feedback opinions including emerging groups, roundtable consultation events – At our London DSO event held in January new market entrants, energy disruptors

SCALED UP We held targeted DSO consultation 2019, we asked stakeholders if they agreed and groups representing the interests of events to discuss key parts of DSO v1.0 with our guiding principles, outlined in the those who may be left behind. in more detail. The deliberative events DSO v1.0 document: Stakeholder summit – mature with 70 plus delegates majored on Four guiding principles for future ENHANCED engagement approach – We held our roundtable facilitated discussions. DSO services first stakeholder summit in December Led by our Executive, the round tables NEW 2018, with our Executive and over debated critical aspects of the potential 1. Led by our customers’ needs. 80 senior stakeholders, focusing on pathways to 2030, as well as ensuring 2. Promoted sustainability by being DSO transition; four well-attended they matched particular elements of efficient, fair and inclusive and better workshops debated DSO approach, DSO that stakeholders had told us they for the environment. flexibility, social inclusion, electric would like us to explore. 3. Requires a right-sized regulated vehicles and future skills priorities. Understanding stakeholder priorities business supporting competitive 76% of stakeholders were supportive When asked which topics for future markets for flexibility. of our DSO direction of travel. engagements our DSO stakeholders would 4. Changes to duties that optimise the Launching our DSO strategy most likely attend, they responded as follows: system as the volume of distributed document (DSO v1.0) encourages Flexibility – 52%, Social Inclusivity – 41%, energy resources increases. further engagement and captured Data – 41% and this forms the basis of the

NEW 84% of delegates agreed with our draft 18 months of stakeholder input – future engagement planning cycle. guiding principles, but some consensus We set out our next steps and Broadening reach to support the launch of our emerged on the need to add some proposition longer-term emerging thinking with DSO and customer flexibility plan, we also around impartiality and transparency. A fifth a series of questions with an easily undertook a series of press releases and guiding principles will therefore be added accessible commentary. This media relations activities with coverage in when the DSO document v1.0 is updated established a platform for deeper industry publications, raising awareness and in summer 2019. engagement and six-monthly updates understanding to increase interest, inclusion in line with feedback and challenge. The and to encourage future engagement.

Getting on with it As we set out last year, we continue to deliver on the aspects of the DSO strategy we can be getting on with, including innovation, smart grid developments and flexibility. Some examples of this in 2018/19 are set out below.

Launch of flexibility opportunities ‘Silent Power’ providing sustainable resilience for our customers Building on stakeholder feedback and learning from other DNOs’ approaches, we’ve launched our customer-led flexibility Resilience is a key customer priority; we currently deploy strategy to work with large energy users (or aggregations of more than 2,500 diesel generators to provide temporary

NEW smaller users) in our region to provide extra value from their power restoration during power cuts and planned outages energy assets and manage the network in the most cost-efficient NEW each year. manner. Through our targeted engagement, including press, Diesel generators cannot be deployed in some areas due conferences, round tables, dedicated workshops and one- to access issues and they cause air and sound pollution. to-one meetings, we have encouraged customers in nine We have partnered with British energy storage SMEs, targeted postcode areas to express their interest through signing Hyperdrive Innovation and Offgrid Energy, to run the Silent up their assets on the Piclo’s Flex platform. This communicates Power trial, which will see electric vans with on-board energy where and when network congestion is likely to happen, allowing storage systems quietly and cleanly restore power to those providers of energy supply or demand side response to bid for who become most vulnerable during a power cut or essential short-term contracts. This has been positively received with maintenance work. Up to three homes or a small community more stakeholder interest and sign-ups on the platform than centre could be powered with just one van for 24 hours. During any other DNO to date. the two-year trial we will assess the usability, customer benefits and economic viability of the battery inverter generator units.

Potential outcomes and benefits

Enabling more renewable generation, and offering UK consumers Silent power generators have increased reliability compared to estimated savings of £17-£40 billion by 2050 (UK wide savings). traditional diesel alternatives. Multiple opportunities to explore the most efficient approaches Improving the air we all breathe and reducing noise pollution. due to high engagement and interest levels in participation in Many industries need temporary power supplies, this could customer-led flexibility strategy. be shared across other sectors. Reducing the impact of power cuts for vulnerable people across our region. Fit for the future 9

Smart Grid programme – Anticipating faults before Outcomes and benefits they happen

The transition to DSO includes making use of intelligence from data Prevented 196 potential power cuts, saving up to three weeks to develop increasingly active networks that deliver high levels of of engineers’ time to date. reliability and availability for customers. Identifying and preventing Reducing the number of customers experiencing power cuts and potential power cuts before they occur will help us deliver on this reducing disruption to them from road works. ambition, which we know from our round tables is a shared priority for customers and stakeholders. Through our world-firstForesight Efficiency realised through saving time, materials and the pre-fault detection technology, we are responding to this by being disruption caused by digging up roads to replace short faulty able to capture faults on our low voltage (LV) network before sections of cable. they become faults. Foresight is deployed across 136 substations, it enables us to pinpoint potential issues accurately. Rollout is scheduled for the entire network by early 2020.

Building a cleaner transport future Outcomes and benefits

Working proactively on behalf of our customers, we are partnering With 150,000 electric cars on the road in the UK, by harnessing with Nissan in the world’s first large-scale trial to show how electric their batteries to store and release energy when it’s most needed cars can become a key part of our power network. The £9.8 million by the grid, enabling a smart, green and more stable energy grid. project* will see 1,000 smart Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) chargers installed, Development of innovative engagement methods to encourage so electric vehicles (EV) can be plugged into the grid and their customers to engage with and adopt decarbonisation behaviours. batteries used to help manage supply and demand. Potential to save customers money by minimising the energy flow We are investigating whether gamification can stimulate electric through their meter. car drivers to engage with V2G technologies. The trial utilises virtual currencies, competitions and raffles to encourage drivers be part of Greater customer resilience by helping to keep the lights on after Britain’s smart energy grid future. faults in the energy network. *The project received almost £300,000 from Innovate UK, with additional funding The challenge will be how to get all those EV drivers to sign up and be a coming from the partners Northern Powergrid, Ecotricity, Gengame, EnAppSys part of the solution, allowing energy companies and the National Grid and Newcastle University. to harness EV batteries, and even adapt EV drivers' travel plans.

Emerging priorities We regularly check in with our stakeholders to ensure that our shared large business customers, future skills and workforce renewal, big priorities remain in line with changing needs. Through our research, data, decarbonisation, innovation and the future energy transition. engagement and trend analysis of annual priorities research, We continue to engage in how we can meet these needs and already emerging priorities this year include improved relationships with have work underway in many areas.

NEW CASE STUDY Engaging customers to take an active role in the energy transition

The issue Over 2,000 rural and isolated customers who Findings shared nationally including We are investigating alternatives to costly are typically disengaged, actively took part in the trials, errors and triumphs, benefitting upgrades by paying customers to reduce the trial of the game. The more they reduced energy customers across the country consumption at times of high demand. their energy consumption, the more points in the transition to DSO. Many businesses receive payments for they earned, increasing their chance to win An online assessment tool has been providing this demand side response (DSR) cash prizes online. produced to aid industry adoption but there have been few successful trials of DSR gamification. of residential customer DSR. Outcomes and benefits Effective engagement strategy to Follow up project ‘Gen-Drive’ Our approach encourage domestic customers to – incentivising EV drivers to use their We collaborated with Newcastle University participate in the future energy transition. vehicles to support the UK energy grid. and gamification experts GenGame to Customers cut their electricity develop the GenGame mobile game. consumption by an average of 11%.

NEW CASE STUDY Battery storage provision for our most vulnerable customers The need for palliative care is likely to assessed the practicality of delivering the increase over the next decades with many project technically, its potential social receiving care at home, with an increased impacts and other risks. reliance on electricity. The potential outcomes and benefits What we did Addressing longer-term social issues As part of our energy transition, we are like affordability as well as uninterrupted considering how we use low carbon supply for electrically medically technologies such as batteries to better dependent customers. support the needs of customers in As an incidental benefit, it may be maintaining a consistent power supply. possible to transfer some of the customer The needs/insights Working with the NEA, we are installing electricity use to lower tariff periods We have a significant number of medically 30 batteries in customer homes, at our cost, (e.g. economy 7), so reducing customers' dependent customers on our PSR. to understand the capability of batteries to electricity bills. maintain power. The feasibility study has Fit for the future 10

NEW CASE STUDY “Just Transition” future workforce

What we did Work with education charities, schools and We have partnered with Prospect, EDF colleges to promote Northern Powergrid and Sellafield to examine the implications and the roles we offer, and to address the of decarbonisation on available skills. gender imbalance we have in the business. As part of this work, we sponsored research Partnering with WISE to address the by IPPR on the changing energy landscape challenges faced by women and girls and presented the interim report to looking to careers in STEM. stakeholders at our annual summit – with a dedicated workshop looking at Outcomes and benefits how we can secure the skills of the future. A better understanding of the current We then presented the report findings, skilled workforce available in our area and alongside IPPR, to MPs, Lords, academics, where to target recruitment/re-skilling. The issue education experts, business and industry Helping policymakers understand the Decarbonisation presents opportunities colleagues in parliament, where we set and risks to the North of England: 28,000 out our commitment to developing the challenges and what is needed to prepare jobs are at risk by 2030 as the energy system skills base, generating new employment the North of England to take advantage moves away from fossil fuels, while a opportunities and ensuring prosperity for of future energy changes. potential 46,000 new jobs could be created people in our communities. Some of the Well informed workforce renewal in low carbon power by the same date. vital work we are undertaking to achieve strategies that incorporate the This situation creates uncertainty for this includes: regional needs and challenges workers, communities and businesses as Our regional recruitment policy, with throughout RIIO ED2. they look ahead at future skills needs. a specific focus on rural/socially Supporting the recruitment of a skilled deprived communities so our homegrown workforce that reflects the communities talent is as diverse as the communities that we serve. we represent.

NEW CASE STUDY

Understanding our customers’ views on data-informed policies and approaches

Survey findings in summary People are more comfortable sharing their utilities data than biometric or car registration data but they still want to know what it will be used for and the benefits for them. Following education (video), people are significantly happier sharing their data – most people whose opinion changed were those who initially had reservations but then became completely willing to share their data. Most would be happy to share their data at a household level with a third preferring sharing at an aggregated house or street level. The issue an educational video and discuss their As an emerging priority for us and our thoughts on the acceptability of sharing Additional learning and added value customers, we needed to understand our smart meter data. Shared findings with other DNOs, customers' views to ensure our approach Development of smart metering BEIS, Ofgem, NGOs and other to privacy data and security meets their educational video – Producing simplified interested organisations electronically needs. Access to data and DNO use of messaging to convey a complex message through deliberative events to discuss data is a complex issue to explain in a short to ensure we were getting an informed the results, what they mean and action space of time to domestic customers. and educated response to quantitative planning/learning. Previous research into consumer attitudes information. Reducing time to convey key to sharing smart metering consumption messaging and understanding from 2hr or Outcomes and benefits data consisted of a small number of ½ day workshop to a 3-minute animation. Post Cambridge Analytica and GDPR, research giving a more accurate/current time-expensive qualitative interviews. Cognitive testing – nine in-depth reflection of attitudes with a more interviews – Testing out the logic of all informed/wary audience. What we did questions to ensure all ambiguity was Conducted the most significant piece of addressed, reviewing the questionnaire and Getting the full investment value for smart metering consumer research to date the reasoning behind answering particular customers through sharing approach and using and testing best practice approaches questions. This process ensured that all findings with UKPLC – others can see the to research and engagement, as follows: questions were interpreted correctly. information and interpret the feedback/ learning/insight in different ways. Four focus groups with 40 people – Online survey with 1,008 customers split smart meter owners and non-smart equally between smart meter owners and Greater understanding of our consumer meter owners – During these sessions, non-owners, it was geographically and attitudes and how to address concerns in we educated groups about Northern socio-economically representative – future communications and engagement. Powergrid, smart meters and their views Watching the educational video and Data privacy policy and strategy are on data sharing. These groups were questions to evaluate the impact and informed by the voice of our customers. reconvened a week later to evaluate attitudes to sharing smart meter data. Notes Notes

Northern Powergrid 98 Aketon Road Castleford WF10 5DS