Water Distribution Lead - Operations & Safety

South East Water; Detling; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stakeholder pension

Holiday entitlement

Flexible leave

Volunteer days

Cycle to work

Health cash plan

Life assurance

Wellbeing benefits

Job summary

South East Water is seeking a Distribution Manager to lead a team of technicians and oversee a section of the clean water network, ensuring a reliable supply for customers and strict health and safety adherence.

You will drive performance, manage an operational budget, and coordinate incident response, including out-of-hours work, while guiding contractors to deliver safe, high-quality work and promoting efficiency improvements across the network.

Qualifications

• Good standard of secondary education and numeracy/literacy.
• Proven ability to foster strong relationships and deliver exceptional service to internal and external stakeholders.
• Good communication skills to articulate operational objectives and performance outcomes.
• Knowledge of relevant legislation, preferably including water regulations and highway legislation for utility works and infrastructure maintenance.
• Experience in managing a network system and leading a team.
• Experience in managing an operational budget.
• Experience in diagnosing and resolving complex operational challenges within water distribution networks, with a demonstrated focus on implementing process improvements and driving continuous efficiency gains.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of technicians to maximise efficiency and reliability.
• Imbed health and safety culture and ensure contractors deliver safe, quality works.
• Maintain a reliable water supply and meet regulatory targets; participate in out-of-hours rota and lead field activities during incidents.
• Review operational processes and drive change initiatives to improve customer journeys and network resilience.
• Provide technical support to technicians to resolve complex inquiries.
• Manage the operational budget, including forecasting spend and identifying financial risks and opportunities.

Skills

Team leadership

Budget management

Health & safety

Water regulations

Stakeholder management

Contractor management

Communication

Problem solving

Education

Secondary education

Job description

South East Water is seeking a Distribution Manager to lead a team of technicians and oversee a section of the clean water network, ensuring a reliable supply for customers and strict health and safety adherence.

You will drive performance, manage an operational budget, and coordinate incident response, including out-of-hours work, while guiding contractors to deliver safe, high-quality work and promoting efficiency improvements across the network.