Catherine Darby Roberts is an Associate Director at Arup and a Chartered Civil Engineer, with extensive experience supporting industrial regions through periods of transition and growth. Her work focuses on the interface between water, energy, land and industrial development, helping clusters respond to increasing pressure on water supply and wastewater systems.

Catherine specialises in moving water beyond a project-by-project consideration, advocating for strategic, coordinated approaches that enable long-term industrial development and investment. She works with industry, local authorities, regulators and infrastructure providers to develop shared water infrastructure, including private water networks, water reuse systems and cross-sector planning. Her work also explores innovative delivery and financing models, including public–private partnerships and design–build–finance–operate approaches, to unlock investment at scale.

As author of the Water Security for Industry and Energy report, Catherine brings a systems-led perspective shaped by deep regional engagement. She has been closely involved in advancing multi-user industrial water network concepts, particularly in the Humber.

Her work supports industrial clusters to become more resilient, water-efficient and investment-ready, enabling both existing industry and emerging low-carbon sectors to thrive within coherent, long-term water strategies.