Design Manager - Water & Wastewater

Carrington West; East Midlands; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Carrington West is recruiting a Design Manager to lead the delivery of complex water and wastewater projects. You will own the full design lifecycle, guiding multidisciplinary teams from concept through to detailed design and delivery, ensuring technical quality and regulatory compliance.

The role is hybrid with a minimum of three days in the office each week. You will drive design performance, implement best-practice processes, and collaborate closely with engineering, project, and construction

Qualifications

• 8–10 years of experience in design management or design delivery.
• Experience in water and wastewater projects preferred.
• Strong understanding of water treatment processes and regulatory compliance.
• Experience monitoring design performance using EVA.
• Experience managing design change and CDM compliance.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate multidisciplinary design teams across multiple projects.
• Oversee the full design lifecycle from concept through to delivery.
• Monitor design performance using KPIs and EVA.
• Manage design change processes and ensure effective control measures.
• Ensure compliance with CDM regulations, industry standards, and best practice.
• Maintain robust quality assurance processes across all design outputs.
• Collaborate closely with engineering, project, and construction teams.
• Manage design budgets, schedules, and resource allocation.
• Provide leadership, guidance, and support to design teams.

Skills

Leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Communication

Organization

Prioritisation

Analytical skills

Problem-solving

Decision making

Collaborative approach

Education

Engineering, Design, Architecture or related field

Chartered status or working towards

Tools

Earned Value Analysis (EVA)

Job description

Design Manager - Water & Wastewater

Location: Hybrid (minimum 3 days per week in office/site)

Type: Permanent

An excellent opportunity has arisen for a Design Manager to lead the delivery of complex, high-impact water and wastewater treatment projects. In this role, you will take ownership of the full design lifecycle, managing multidisciplinary teams from concept through to detailed design and delivery. You will ensure projects are delivered to the highest standards of technical quality, regulatory compliance, and efficiency. You will play a key role in driving design performance, implementing best-practice processes, and ensuring alignment between design, engineering, and construction teams. This is a pivotal position where your leadership will directly influence project success and the delivery of sustainable infrastructure solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate multidisciplinary design teams across multiple projects
• Oversee the full design lifecycle from concept through to delivery
• Monitor design performance using KPIs and tools such as Earned Value Analysis (EVA)
• Manage design change processes and ensure effective control measures are in place
• Ensure compliance with CDM regulations, industry standards, and best practice
• Maintain robust quality assurance processes across all design outputs
• Collaborate closely with engineering, project, and construction teams
• Manage design budgets, schedules, and resource allocation
• Provide leadership, guidance, and support to design teams

Experience Required

• 8-10 years' experience in design management or design delivery
• Ideally within water and wastewater projects
• Strong understanding of water treatment processes
• Experience in monitoring design performance, including use of EVA
• Proven experience managing design change and regulatory compliance, including CDM

Skills & Competencies

• Strong leadership and stakeholder engagement skills
• Excellent communication with the ability to influence at all levels
• Highly organised with strong attention to detail
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines under pressure
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities
• Confident decision-maker with a collaborative approach

Qualifications

• Degree in Engineering, Design, Architecture, Construction Management, or related field
• Chartered status or working towards
• Strong understanding of CDM responsibilities and design governance