About us
Cappagh Browne Utilities Limited (Cappagh Browne) specialises in repairing and maintaining wastewater (sewer) networks across the south-east of England, serving a total of 4.7 million customers. With more than 100 years’ combined experience in water and sewerage infrastructure to draw on, we know how to get the job done. We aim to do it right, the first time, every time.
Experts in our field, we cover 40,000km of wastewater pipes, stretching from the New Forest to the South Downs, to the Kent coast and the Isle of Wight. Chances are, if you live in the South East, we’ve helped you out at some point – though you might not have realised it.
In 2014 we were appointed by Southern Water to carry out maintenance and repairs on their sewerage and wastewater network – and we continue to do work with them today.
Our 500-plus employees live in the communities we serve, so know exactly how important it is to put customers first and minimise disruption. The combination of our dedicated workforce and large fleet of vehicles means we are perfectly equipped to respond quickly to any incident – whatever or wherever it is.
We began life in 2008 when civil engineering and utility companies, Cappagh Contractors Construction (London) Limited and J Browne Construction Company Limited joined forces to become the sewerage and operational maintenance partner for Thames Water.
Our teams attend 60,000 call-outs every year and pride ourselves on our goal of having the quickest response times in the industry.
Our number one priority is safety, and our values – to be safe, customer-focused, communicative, and dedicated – underpin everything we do. No job is too big or too small – we cover all areas of water and wastewater services.
Find out more about our parent companies:
Cappagh Contractors Construction (London) Limited
www.cappagh.co.uk
J Browne Construction Company Limited www.jbconstruction.co.uk
Our Values
Our vision is to be recognised as leaders in our field. We are dedicated to delivering world class customer service and outstanding health and safety performance. Whether it’s for our customers, employees or local communities, we strive to offer long-term value and adopt best practice in everything we do.
We are: Safe
The health, safety and wellbeing of our customers and employees is our top priority. We have a robust safety culture centred around the importance of looking after each other and our customers.
We are: Customer Focused
Customer satisfaction is at the core of what we do. We know how important it is that we get the job done, quickly and right.
We are: Communicative
We’re easy to contact, easy to talk to, and always responsive.
We are: Dedicated
We know how important the work we do is for our customers. Care and commitment underpin this. We can be trusted to find and deliver solutions, quickly and reliably.
Our Strengths
- We take the best from our parent companies who give us 100 years of experience, cutting-edge technology, resource, and expertise
- We have unrivalled industry knowledge and expertise
- Our company is lean and agile, meaning no job is too big or too small
- We respond quickly, taking our customers along with us by informing them of updates as and when they happen
- Most of our employees come from the local community, so we know the areas we work in like the back of our hand
Our leadership Team
Jeff Birtwhistle
Jeff joined the company in 2017, bringing with him 31 years of experience, including 15 years in heavy civil construction in South Africa, followed by 16 years of utilities industry experience in the UK working across electric, gas, water, wastewater, and telecoms. Since joining the company, Jeff has embarked on a continuous improvement programme with over 90 innovations, initiatives, and improvements introduced. These include increasing the in-house capability, quality, and services delivered to clients. Jeff thrives on helping people and teams to deliver their potential.
Peter Stobbs
Peter joined the company in 2018, with over 22-years of experience in contracting. Before taking on his current role, Peter was Commercial Director for Lanes Group, where he delivered circa £120m of Thames water wastewater maintenance programme in AMP 6. Prior to this, Peter has worked in senior commercial and accounting positions at Amey, as well as within the food manufacturing sector. Peter oversees all commercial activities, from contract reviews at tender stage through to delivery and hand-over, working closely with our operational teams to deliver efficient and high-quality projects. He realises the importance of collaborating with our clients and supply chain to ensure best value and cost certainty. Peter is a qualified Accountant (CIMA member) and has a wide range of accounting and commercial experience working for different sized organisations.
Julie-Anne Stokes
Julie-Anne joined the company in 2019 in the Planned Work Division and became Head of Planned Work in 2021, delivering design and build services for new infrastructure across the Southeast. As a Chartered Engineer, Julie-Anne has over 20-years’ experience in civil engineering and the Water / Wastewater Sector in the UK and Abroad. Since coming to the UK, Julie-Anne has been involved in various infrastructure and non-infrastructure projects, including leading the delivery of the £100m Woolston Wastewater Treatment Works. Julie-Anne is passionate about developing resilient teams to safely deliver outstanding performance.
Louise Powling
Louise has been employed by Cappagh since 2003, following 12 years working for Thames Water. She has over 28 years’ experience in the sector and specialises in processes and systems, working across our business to improve contractual performance. Louise works in collaboration with our clients to deliver efficiency, enrich our brand and enhance customer experience.
Lewis Roberts
Lewis joined the company and the senior leadership team in 2023 as Head of Health, Safety, Security and Environment. Previously, Lewis worked for Southern Water in their HSSW with specific responsibility across safety and security across the operational and corporate estate.
Before entering the world of utilities, Lewis served across the world in the military, and has subsequently gained experience of Health, Safety, Security and Environment in the Corporate Sector and Construction Sector, including large projects such as London 2012 and High Speed 2.
Lewis plans to continue driving CBUL’s corporate safety, security and environment culture forward, protecting our people and business, while ensuring that we protect the contract by delivering above and beyond the client’s expectations.
Barry Woodham
Barry joined the company in 2022 as our Customer Stakeholder Manager. Before this, he held Customer Manager and Stakeholder Manager roles within Southern Water, where he was an integral part of large construction projects and bathing water improvement programmes. Prior to his time in the water industry, Barry has worked in the private sector delivering employment assistance programmes as part of the ‘Welfare 2 Work’ Government schemes. Barry oversees all customer and stakeholder communication for planned capital expenditure and works closely with our field operational teams to support day-to-day customer contact, with his focus firmly on developing effective communications in partnership with Southern Water and providing the highest levels of service to our customer and stakeholders.
Matthew Reid
Matthew Joined the company in 2022, bringing with him over 20 years of transport knowledge and experience. Matthew gained a National CPC in 2008 and has worked all over the UK. His previous experience includes working with AO.COM, the UK’s large white goods retailer, on their logistics. Matthew has operated fleets of over 580 vehicles, ranging from small vans up to 44 tonne articulated vehicles. This includes inhouse workshops and management of fleet maintenance. Matthew brings innovative transport ideas and keeps his finger on the pulse of all new legislation changes.
The Board
Tom Ferncombe
Tom is the company’s founder and Chairman. Tom started the company more than 40 years ago and has grown the group of companies to a combined turnover of £100M. Tom plays a very active role in the company’s operational and strategic affairs.
Michael Ferncombe
Michael is the Managing Director of the Group of Companies, as well as the Son of our Founder, Tom. Michael has been involved in the family business all his working career, beginning as a teenager. He has developed an in-depth knowledge of all aspects of our business. Michael possesses outstanding business acumen and a keen eye for opportunities to expand the company.
Matt Guest
Matt is Managing Director at Cappagh having joined the company in 2008, having already spent 12 years in the utilities industry. Matt’s particular area of expertise lies in the water and wastewater sector, but he is also experienced in other utilities and general civil engineering. Matt is responsible for Cappagh Contractors’ framework contract agreements, in terms of operational and customer delivery, safety and financial performance.
Paul McMahon
Paul is Group Managing Director of Browne. With over 30 years of experience in civil engineering and utility contracting, he has developed and led collaborative frameworks for clients throughout the UK in both Water and Power. He is both a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is passionate about building successful teams, keeping people safe, and delivering for customers.
Steven Williams
Steven joined Browne in 2022 as Finance Director and brings over 7 years of corporate finance experience in the construction sector to the business. Before joining the Group, he held senior finance roles for major contractors working in the UK Highways and Road Infrastructure sector. Previously, he maintained a position as a Chartered Accountant in private practice, before moving into industry and contractual finance. Steven oversees finance activities for the Browne Group companies and joint ventures, working closely with operational and commercial teams. He will continue to develop a strong finance team for the constant growth of the business.
Michael Tarr
Michael joined Browne in 2022 as Commercial Director, bringing with him over 30 years of experience in the civil engineering industry. Michael has managed a broad spectrum of frameworks and standalone projects for multiple clients and believes passionately that teamwork and collaboration is the key to successful project delivery. At Browne, Michael is responsible for all commercial activities to meet the needs of the Group, working closely with our operational staff, supply chain partners and client teams to provide strategic support and commercial expertise for successful project delivery. He is a Member of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and plays an active role in mentoring our people to build meaningful careers in this field.
Jeff Birtwhistle
Jeff joined the company in 2017, bringing with him 31 years of experience, including 15 years in heavy civil construction in South Africa, followed by 16 years of utilities industry experience in the UK working across electric, gas, water, wastewater, and telecoms. Since joining the company, Jeff has embarked on a continuous improvement programme with over 90 innovations, initiatives, and improvements introduced. These include increasing the in-house capability, quality, and services delivered to clients. Jeff thrives on helping people and teams to deliver their potential.