Sir Andy Mitchell recognised with knighthood after leading Thames Tideway success

Former Tideway Chief Executive Sir Andy Mitchell has been awarded a knighthood in the 2026 King's Birthday Honours in recognition of his outstanding services to the construction industry. The honour follows more than a decade leading the delivery of the Thames Tideway Tunnel, one of the UK's largest and most complex infrastructure projects.

Known as London's "super sewer", the 25 km tunnel was built to tackle sewage pollution in the River Thames while leaving a lasting environmental and social legacy. Under Sir Andy's leadership, the £5 billion project was delivered largely on time and within budget, and has already prevented more than 20 million tonnes of storm sewage from entering the river.

Beyond its engineering success, Tideway became recognised across the construction sector for its commitment to health, safety and wellbeing. The project embedded a proactive safety culture, encouraged collaboration across the supply chain and placed equal emphasis on workers' mental health as well as physical safety. These approaches have since been widely recognised as examples of industry best practice.

Congratulating Sir Andy on the award, Tideway Chair Michael Queen described the knighthood as a fitting recognition of a career dedicated to delivering major infrastructure that improves people's lives. Sir Andy's leadership has left a lasting legacy, not only through the successful completion of the Thames Tideway Tunnel but also by demonstrating how major projects can be delivered safely, collaboratively and with people at the heart of every decision.