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The aim of the list is to recognise the contribution of kind leaders to business, the economy and society. Others recognised include England manager Gareth Southgate and Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever.

Liv said: “It’s wonderful to be recognised in this way, especially as it recognises that there’s more to the world of business than just profits and productivity.

“That fits in perfectly with Severn Trent, where we want to be a socially responsible company which means ensuring we do the right thing for the communities in which we live and for all of our stakeholders.”

“At Severn Trent we pride ourselves on creating a fantastic place for our teams to work while also doing the best possible job for our customers,” added Bronagh.

“By doing both of those things we believe that we can do the right thing for everyone whose lives we touch.”Among the community initiatives Severn Trent is proposing for the coming years are:

• Every primary school in the region will have the opportunity to receive a visit from innovative educational roadshow about water;
• Positive impact on the local environment, including improving up to 2,100km of the region’s rivers; and
• Community dividend given to local communities through volunteering, donations to the Severn Trent Trust Fund, and a new commitment to use 1% of company profits for community schemes.

Already this year, Severn Trent has helped 50,000 of its most vulnerable customers through a variety of measures and, over the past 12 months, around 40% of its people have volunteered in the communities in which it operates.

After being named on the list, Liv and Bronagh helped open the London Stock Exchange today.

Nominations for ‘Kindness & Leadership, 50 Leading Lights’ were received between June and August this year from a broad range of companies and organisations, responding to an open call for applications. To select the final 50, a panel made up of representatives from different industry sectors reviewed the entries and agreed the list of 50 leaders.

The list forms part of the Week of Women organised by the Women of the Future Programme, working alongside the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the GREAT Britain Campaign to support a number of initiatives from 12-15 November.