diff --git a/packages/catalog-client/src/CatalogClient.ts b/packages/catalog-client/src/CatalogClient.ts
index 3a4c0455ad..b2420bc71b 100644
--- a/packages/catalog-client/src/CatalogClient.ts
+++ b/packages/catalog-client/src/CatalogClient.ts
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import {
   Location,
   LOCATION_ANNOTATION,
   ORIGIN_LOCATION_ANNOTATION,
+  parseEntityRef,
   stringifyEntityRef,
   stringifyLocationReference,
 } from '@backstage/catalog-model';
@@ -50,13 +51,7 @@ export class CatalogClient implements CatalogApi {
     request: CatalogEntityAncestorsRequest,
     options?: CatalogRequestOptions,
   ): Promise<CatalogEntityAncestorsResponse> {
-    const { kind, namespace, name } = Object.fromEntries(
-      Object.entries(request.entityRef).map(([k, v]) => [
-        k,
-        encodeURIComponent(v),
-      ]),
-    );
-
+    const { kind, namespace, name } = parseEntityRef(request.entityRef);
     return await this.requestRequired(
       'GET',
       `/entities/by-name/${kind}/${namespace}/${name}/ancestry`,
diff --git a/packages/catalog-client/src/types/api.ts b/packages/catalog-client/src/types/api.ts
index 234c49c779..c7025e9452 100644
--- a/packages/catalog-client/src/types/api.ts
+++ b/packages/catalog-client/src/types/api.ts
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ export type CatalogEntitiesRequest = {
 
 /** @public */
 export type CatalogEntityAncestorsRequest = {
-  entityRef: EntityName;
+  entityRef: string;
 };
 
 /** @public */
diff --git a/plugins/catalog/src/components/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel.tsx b/plugins/catalog/src/components/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel.tsx
index 65e594fb3b..0efc9d5b03 100644
--- a/plugins/catalog/src/components/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel.tsx
+++ b/plugins/catalog/src/components/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel/EntityProcessingErrorsPanel.tsx
@@ -16,8 +16,6 @@
 
 import {
   Entity,
-  EntityName,
-  getEntityName,
   stringifyEntityRef,
   UNSTABLE_EntityStatusItem,
   compareEntityToRef,
@@ -51,7 +49,7 @@ type GetOwnAndAncestorsErrorsResponse = {
 };
 
 async function getOwnAndAncestorsErrors(
-  entityRef: EntityName,
+  entityRef: string,
   catalogApi: CatalogApi,
 ): Promise<GetOwnAndAncestorsErrorsResponse> {
   const ancestors = await catalogApi.getEntityAncestors({ entityRef });
@@ -78,7 +76,7 @@ export const hasCatalogProcessingErrors = async (
   }
 
   const errors = await getOwnAndAncestorsErrors(
-    getEntityName(entity),
+    stringifyEntityRef(entity),
     catalogApi,
   );
   return errors.items.length > 0;
@@ -89,11 +87,11 @@ export const hasCatalogProcessingErrors = async (
  */
 export const EntityProcessingErrorsPanel = () => {
   const { entity } = useEntity();
+  const entityRef = stringifyEntityRef(entity);
   const catalogApi = useApi(catalogApiRef);
-
   const { loading, error, value } = useAsync(async () => {
-    return getOwnAndAncestorsErrors(getEntityName(entity), catalogApi);
-  }, [stringifyEntityRef(entity), catalogApi]);
+    return getOwnAndAncestorsErrors(entityRef, catalogApi);
+  }, [entityRef, catalogApi]);
 
   if (error) {
     return (