Head of Bioresources

Pennon Group; Exeter; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave + bank holidays

Bonus

Private Healthcare

Company car or cash for car allowance

Competitive pension

Share-save scheme

Health benefits & wellbeing support

Job summary

Pennon Group, Exeter office, seeks a Head of Bioresources to lead the long-term bioresources strategy and asset performance for our water subsidiaries. You will shape investments, drive innovation, and ensure regulatory compliance across wastewater bioresources assets.

You’ll oversee AD technologies, sludge handling, and cross-functional collaboration with engineering and operations to deliver reliable, sustainable services. Regular Exeter presence is required.

Qualifications

• Significant leadership experience in wastewater or water sector.
• Experience managing bioresources, sludge treatment or related asset portfolios.
• Knowledge of anaerobic digestion technologies and regulatory frameworks.
• Understanding of asset management, investment planning and regulatory processes.
• Experience developing long-term strategies and investment cases for complex assets.
• Strong commercial awareness and whole-life cost understanding.
• Excellent stakeholder management with senior-level influence.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and delivery of long-term bioresources strategy.
• Oversee capital maintenance, growth and enhancement programmes.
• Own and evolve the AD strategy to meet capacity and compliance needs.
• Sponsor major investments through full project lifecycles.
• Provide technical leadership on sludge treatment and biosolids recycling.
• Shape regulatory submissions and price review planning.
• Use data to identify optimal investment opportunities.
• Collaborate with operations, engineering and regulatory teams.
• Build and lead a high-performing team.

Skills

Leadership experience

Bioresources management

Anaerobic digestion technologies

Asset management principles

Investment planning

Commercial awareness

Stakeholder management

Education

Degree in Chemical, Process, Environmental Engineering or related

Chartered Engineer status (or working towards) with IChemE/CIWEM

Job description

Powered by Water, Driven by Purpose

At Pennon Group, we’re proud to serve communities while protecting the environment. Together with our subsidiaries, South West Water, Bristol Water, Bournemouth Water, SES Water, Pennon Water Services and Pennon Power, we’re leading the way in water and renewables.

Powered by Water, Driven by Purpose

At Pennon Group, we’re proud to serve communities while protecting the environment. Together with our subsidiaries, South West Water, Bristol Water, Bournemouth Water, SES Water, Pennon Water Services and Pennon Power, we’re leading the way in water and renewables.

We’re proud to be recognised as a leader in the UK water sector, working towards a greener future. Our goals? As well as lowering our carbon footprint, we’re working with partners to plant 300,000 trees, restore peatlands and supporting farmers and landowners to improve water quality and wildlife.

Whether you’re starting out or seeking a new challenge, our scale and ambition create opportunities for you to shape your own career.

Ready to make a splash? Join our team today.

Turn Waste into a Valuable Resource

At South West Water, we're investing in the future of wastewater treatment, sustainability, and environmental protection. As our Head of Bioresources, you'll play a pivotal role in shaping how we manage, optimise and transform one of our most important asset portfolios.

This is a rare opportunity to lead the strategy, planning and performance of our bioresources operation, ensuring we deliver safe, resilient and compliant services while unlocking opportunities for innovation, efficiency and environmental improvement.

If you're passionate about sustainable resource management, emerging environmental challenges and influencing major investment decisions, we'd love to hear from you.

Due to the nature of the role and the need to build strong relationships across the business, regular presence in our Exeter office is required.

What You'll Be Doing

As Head of Bioresources, you'll lead the development and delivery of our long-term bioresources strategy, ensuring our assets can meet current and future regulatory, environmental and operational requirements.

You'll

• Lead strategic planning for bioresources assets across capital maintenance, growth and enhancement programmes.
• Develop and implement long-term asset strategies, investment plans and improvement programmes.
• Own and evolve our Advanced Anaerobic Digestion (AAD) strategy, ensuring performance, compliance and future capacity requirements are achieved.
• Sponsor and oversee major investment programmes through the full project lifecycle.
• Provide technical leadership on key challenges including sludge treatment, biosolids recycling, PFAS and emerging environmental risks.
• Shape business planning submissions and regulatory programmes, including future price reviews.
• Use asset health, risk and whole-life cost data to identify the most effective investment opportunities.
• Work closely with operational, engineering and regulatory teams to drive performance and continuous improvement.
• Build and lead a high-performing team with the expertise needed to meet future challenges.

What We're Looking For

We're looking for a strategic leader with a strong technical foundation and a proven track record in wastewater, bioresources or related infrastructure environments.

You'll Bring

• Significant leadership experience within the wastewater or water sector.
• Experience managing bioresources, sludge treatment or related operational and asset portfolios.
• Strong understanding of anaerobic digestion technologies and associated regulatory frameworks.
• Knowledge of asset management principles, investment planning and regulatory business planning processes.
• Experience developing long-term strategies and investment cases for complex infrastructure assets.
• Strong commercial awareness with an understanding of whole-life cost, risk-based decision making and performance optimisation.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence at senior levels.

Qualifications

• Degree in Chemical, Process, Environmental Engineering or a related discipline.
• Chartered Engineer status (or working towards chartership) with IChemE, CIWEM or an equivalent professional institution.

Why join us?

This is an opportunity to influence strategic investment across a critical infrastructure portfolio while helping to deliver a more sustainable future for the South West.

• 30 days annual leave + bank holidays
• Bonus
• Private Healthcare
• Company car or cash for car allowance
• Competitive contributory pension
• Share-save scheme
• Health benefits & wellbeing support programmes
• Group discounts
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Financial support services
• Development and training opportunities … and much more!

Closing Date: 5th November 2026

We may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

Please note that the successful candidate will be subject to a mandatory DBS check as part of the onboarding process.

Be yourself, we like it that way.

Together, we will build a culture of belonging, where inclusion is instinctive. Diversity is our strength and a reflection of our communities. We care, we value everyone, we celebrate uniqueness.

Our core values, which are essential to our success, are:

Be Rock Solid - Build trust and be trusted. Be the one we all look to and can depend on.

Be You - We want you to bring your best everyday. Be yourself and make your mark in your individual way.

Be the Future - Embrace change. Drive Progress. Own the challenge.