Annual whistleblowing and prescribed person report 2025-26
This report provides detail of all Whistleblowing disclosures received by NRW during the 2025-26 financial year and any associated actions or recommendations.
We encourage individuals to raise concerns about wrongdoing. We are committed to the highest standards of openness, integrity, and accountability. There is an expectation that all those who work for us who have serious concerns about any aspect of our work is able to come forward and voice those concerns. We are committed to taking whatever action is necessary to address any wrongdoing which is uncovered.
Concerns can be raised confidentially, including anonymously, and are reviewed independently by the Head of Internal Audit and the Head of Governance. A Board member is nominated as Whistleblowing Lead to support escalation where required.
Internal Audit oversees the handling of whistleblowing concerns and any related investigations and provides assurance on the effectiveness of these arrangements.
During 2025-26, 57 concerns were raised through NRW’s whistleblowing channels. All were initially assessed by the Head of Internal Audit and the Head of Governance both of whom were independent of any of the areas of concern that were raised, using the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) guidance.
Of these:
- 7 met the criteria to be treated as potential whistleblowing cases
- the remaining 50 cases did not meet the criteria and were handled through other appropriate processes, such as complaints or incident reporting
- of the 7 cases identified as potential whistleblowing cases, 5 related to matters outside NRW in its role as a prescribed person. Of the 2 cases relating to NRW, none were upheld during the year, with one still under review and one not upheld.
Number of whistleblowing cases
Initial case handling
| Type | 2025-26 | 2024-25 | 2023-24 | 2022-23 | 2021-22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concerns raised | 57 | 53 | 31 | 20 | 4 |
| Referred to existing NRW procedures | 50 | 48 | 27 | 10 | 0 |
| Reviewed by prescribed person (external) | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
Referred to stage 1 case review
| Type | 2025-26 | 2024-25 | 2023-24 | 2022-23 | 2021-22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concerns raised | 57 | 53 | 31 | 20 | 4 |
| Stage 1 whistleblowing reviews | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 3 |
| Referred to other NRW procedures | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 3 |
| Formal whistleblowing investigations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
NRW as a prescribed person for whistleblowing
A prescribed person is an organisation designated in law to receive whistleblowing disclosures about matters within its remit. This allows individuals to raise concerns directly with a regulator or public body, where this is more appropriate than reporting through an employer.
We were designated as a prescribed person in 2020, following a recommendation by Welsh Government to the UK Government, and have subsequently been included in the relevant law. As a prescribed person, we can receive external disclosures relating to environmental and regulatory matters within our remit.
During the year we received five whistleblowing disclosures in our capacity as a prescribed person. Of these cases:
- 1 case was referred to another organisation to be dealt with, as it did not fall within NRW’s remit
- 2 cases were reviewed and not upheld, and have now been closed
- 2 cases remain under review
All disclosures are considered independently to determine whether they fall within NRW’s remit and how they should be handled.