Public Affairs Manager

Dwr Cymru Cyf; Cardiff; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

34 days annual leave

Employer pension contributions

Car-leasing scheme

Job summary

Dwr Cymru Cyf is seeking an experienced Corporate Communications professional to develop and deliver the Public Affairs strategy in line with Welsh Water's priorities and regulatory objectives. You will build relationships with Members of the Senedd, MPs, local authorities and key policy influencers, while providing strategic political insight to senior leaders.

You will coordinate engagement with elected representatives, prepare high-quality briefing materials, and represent the company at

Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent professional qualification in community engagement, communications, social impact, marketing, public engagement or a related discipline.
• Experience in a communications environment in a customer-focused organisation/industry.
• Professional accreditation or membership of a relevant body (e.g. CIPR, CIM, IAP2) desirable.
• Experience working in a corporate communications role within a large, complex or regulated organisation.

Responsibilities

• Support the development and delivery of the Public Affairs strategy aligned with Welsh Water's corporate strategy, regulatory priorities and business objectives.
• Build and maintain relationships with political stakeholders, including Members of the Senedd, MPs, local authority leaders and key policy influencers.
• Monitor and analyse political and policy developments across Wales and Westminster, providing timely insight and strategic advice to senior leaders.
• Coordinate engagement with elected representatives, ensuring enquiries are handled professionally within service standards.
• Prepare high-quality briefing materials, including ministerial briefings, speeches, Q&A, consultation responses and stakeholder engagement plans.
• Represent Welsh Water externally at political events and meetings to strengthen relationships with decision-makers.
• Collaborate with Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Community Engagement, Regulation and Operations to ensure consistent messaging.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

Policy analysis

Briefing materials

Media relations

Written communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Strategic advisory

Education

Degree or equivalent professional qualification

Tools

CIPR/CIM/IAP2 accreditation

Job description

• Support with the development and delivery of the Public Affairs strategy aligned with Welsh Water's corporate strategy, regulatory priorities and business objectives
• Build and maintain relationships with political stakeholders, including Members of the Senedd, Members of Parliament, local authority leaders, councillors, UK and Welsh Government officials, and key policy influencers.
• Monitor and analyse political and policy developments across Wales and Westminster, providing timely insight, risk assessments and strategic advice to senior leaders.
• Coordinate engagement with elected representatives, ensuring enquiries are handled professionally, consistently and within agreed service standards, while identifying emerging themes and issues.
• Prepare high-quality briefing materials, including ministerial briefings, speeches, Q&A, consultation responses, parliamentary correspondence and stakeholder engagement plans.
• Represent Welsh Water externally at political events, conferences, stakeholder forums and meetings, building the company's profile and strengthening relationships with key decision-makers.
• Work closely with Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Community Engagement, Regulation and Operational teams to ensure consistent messaging and coordinated responses on high-profile issues and incidents
• Evaluate and report on public affairs activity, measuring the impact of stakeholder engagement, identifying opportunities to influence policy and recommending improvements to support Welsh Water's long-term objectives.
• Provide essential 24/7 service as part of the on-call out of hours press office service.
  Degree or equivalent professional qualification in community engagement, communications, social impact, marketing, public engagement or a related discipline.
• Experience of working in a communications environment in a customer focused organisation/industry
• Professional accreditation or membership of a relevant body (e.g. CIPR, CIM, IAP2) desirable.
• Experience working in a corporate communications role within a large, complex or regulated organisation.
• Experience of developing and delivering stakeholder engagement strategies and plans.
• Strong experience of writing and editing high-quality content for senior audiences
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to explain complex issues clearly and succinctly
• Strong understanding of reputation management and stakeholder communications
• Ability to build credibility quickly and work effectively across organisational boundaries
• Sound judgement and resilience when working under pressure
• Strong planning and organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities
• Experience of evaluating communications activity and using insight to improve performance
• A collaborative, proactive and solutions-focused approach
• Understanding of the political, regulatory and media landscape in Wales
  Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water keep 3 million people healthy each day with safe, reliable water, and take away wastewater to clean, before returning it safely to our beautiful rivers and seas.

To be able to deliver high quality, essential services which help to protect the health of our customers, colleagues and our environment, we need the right people to deliver on our vision. This is achieved by living our core values and demonstrating the core behaviours that underpin them. The security of our people, assets and information is key to us, so we are looking for people who understand and comply with the company's required security objectives. We know that the most successful teams are the most diverse teams. Equality, diversity and inclusion provide the very foundation to our culture at Welsh Water. We want every individual to feel confident, proud and able to bring their whole selves to work. To ensure an improved representation in our workforce, applications are particularly welcome from minority groups including Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people, Females, LGBT+, Non-binary and people with disabilities. Together we continue to build a workplace that not only celebrates the diverse voices of our colleagues but also represents each customer we serve. In essence, ours is a company based on trust, openness, respect, commitment and honesty. A company that our colleagues are proud to work for. Dŵr Cymru Cyf, a limited company registered in Wales No. 2366777. Registered office: Linea, Fortran Road, St. Mellons, Cardiff CF3 0LT © Dŵr Cymru Cyf 2019. Job Segment: Corporate Communications, PR, Marketing Manager, Law, Wastewater, Marketing, Legal, Engineering
As well as a market competitive salary, 34 days annual leave (pro rata, including public holidays), we offer a range of employee benefits and rewards including: Variable pay schemes (your salary band will remain the same, but performance depending, you could receive an incremental within-band increase and a yearly incentive) Option to buy additional annual leave up to 5 days per year Enhanced employer pension contributions - Up to 11% employer contributions Free Mortgage Brokering Services Enhanced family friendly policies Progression opportunities, including the ability to apply for funded training and coaching and mentoring programmes Gym and fitness discounts as well as high street shopping Cycle to work scheme Discount off all Welsh Water visitor attraction centres and gift shops Car-leasing scheme and free on-site parking at all sites Health CashBack scheme and access to an online GP service An employee assistance programme for employees and their immediate family Many more can be found on our website. Due to the nature of the industry, we require satisfactory references, post offer medical clearance, and a criminal records Basic Disclosure check on all new employees joining the business. For some roles there may be additional checks and security clearance required, and this offer is subject to all checks being satisfied. You will receive further information on how to complete these checks via email once you have accepted this offer.