Location
Hybrid - Clearwater Court (Reading, Swindon or Oxford)

Hours
Monday to Friday, 36 hours per week

Salary
Up to £100,000 per annum, depending on skills and experience

About the Role
What could be more professionally fulfilling than leading the team that provides a continuous supply of safe drinking water to millions of customers? That’s the role we are now seeking to fill. As Head of Water Networks in the Thames Valley and the Home Counties, you will be responsible for providing drinking water to over 3 million people from the Cotswolds to Surrey. This is an amazing opportunity to lead a highly motivated and high-performing team delivering life’s essential service across the region.

You will develop, lead, and execute the business plan across your region, ensuring the efficient distribution of a continuous supply of safe, wholesome water. You will continue the transformation in operational performance through your Field Operations team and external suppliers, helping reduce reactive incidents, improve leakage, and enhance customer service, ensuring all activities are delivered safely, efficiently, and on schedule.

Your leadership will drive exceptional service standards, improve network performance, minimise disruption to customers, and manage leak repairs while enabling our biggest ever capital investment programme to sustainably build for the future. You will proactively identify and respond to current and emerging risks to the network or general security of water supplies.

Reporting to the Water Director, you will collaborate closely with internal and external stakeholders, overseeing planning and recommending improvements on critical regional issues.

Key areas of focus include:
- Health and Safety: Champion a safety-first culture, ensure compliance with Health and Safety regulations, and lead continuous improvement in safety behaviours and incident management.
- Operations: Oversee operational performance, resource allocation, and supplier management to deliver high-quality services. Drive continuous improvement initiatives and support long-term asset management planning.
- People: Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing regional team. Foster a culture of excellence, customer focus, and two-way communication.
- Finance: Manage regional budgets, ensuring value for money and commercial accountability. Challenge suppliers on cost and performance, keeping spend aligned with capacity plans.

Experience
- Outstanding leadership experience with a track record of engaging, inspiring, and developing teams.
- Strong ability to influence, negotiate, and collaborate at all levels across a geographically diverse region.
- Experience managing contractor relationships and leading teams through change.
- Evidence of driving cultural change and continuous improvement within a regulated environment.
- Commercial acumen and previous responsibility for managing budgets.
- Exposure to LEAN, Six Sigma, or continuous improvement methodologies (desirable).
- NEBOSH qualification and knowledge of the Road and Streetworks Act (advantageous).

About you
You are an inspiring leader with a passion for operational excellence and customer service. You thrive in a dynamic environment and are forward-thinking, able to steer performance and future resilience of essential services. You foster a culture of safety, excellence, and collaboration, and are committed to making a difference for customers, communities, and the environment.

Qualifications
Relevant leadership experience and qualifications as noted above. NEBOSH qualification and knowledge of the Road and Streetworks Act are advantageous but not essential.