Water Network Science Manager

South East Water Limited; Pembury; On-site; GBP 54,000 - 66,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stakeholder pension (up to 10%)}

5 weeks holiday + bank holidays

Flexible annual leave policy

Volunteer days

Cycle to work

Health cash plan

Life assurance

Wellbeing benefits

Job summary

South East Water Limited seeks a Water Network Science Manager to lead a specialist technical team safeguarding water quality from treatment works to customers’ taps. You will own network performance, identify risks early, and ensure safe, resilient drinking water with long-term maintenance strategies.

You will bring proven water quality or distribution science experience, strong leadership, and a proactive risk-management approach to ensure compliance and protect customer trust across the

Qualifications

• Excellent team management and communication skills.
• Proficiency in Word/Google Docs and Excel/Google Sheets.
• Full UK driving licence required.
• Self-motivated, committed and organized.
• Ability to prioritise and adapt workload for self and team.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and technical direction to the Distribution Science team, focusing on monitoring and management of the water distribution network.
• Develop and implement proactive strategies to identify, control, and mitigate water quality risks within the network.
• Oversee performance analysis of the distribution system, using data to drive improvements in water quality and network health.
• Optimise team workload by delegating tasks and streamlining workflows to reduce reactive pressures.
• Collaborate with operational teams on flushing programmes, network maintenance, and customer water quality contacts.
• Ensure all distribution activities align with regulatory requirements and internal quality assurance standards.
• Provide technical oversight during distribution-related water quality incidents, ensuring rapid mitigation.
• Coach and mentor team members to build capability and ensure robust scientific support.
• Act as a technical SME in network infrastructure and water quality projects.
• Evaluate and evolve SOPs for network maintenance to minimise impact on water quality.

Skills

Team leadership

Communication

Data analysis

IT skills

Driving licence

Job description

Summary: As the Water Network Science Manager, you'll lead a specialist technical team dedicated to protecting water quality from our treatment works right to the customer’s tap. Reporting directly to the Water Quality Manager, you'll take ownership of network performance by proactively identifying potential risks before they impact supply and ensuring the continuous delivery of safe, wholesome drinking water. In this role, you will balance fast-paced operational demands with long-term maintenance strategies to optimise the network's overall resilience. You will bring proven experience in water quality or distribution science, strong leadership skills to guide technical experts, and a proactive, analytical approach to risk management that guarantees compliance and maintains customer trust.

Main responsibilities

• Provide leadership and technical direction to the Distribution Science team, focusing on the monitoring and management of the water distribution network.
• Develop and implement proactive strategies to identify, control, and mitigate water quality risks within the network.
• Oversee performance analysis of the distribution system, using data to drive improvements in water quality and network health.
• Optimise team workload by effectively delegating tasks and streamlining workflows to reduce reactive pressures.
• Collaborate closely with operational teams on flushing programs, network maintenance, and the management of customer water quality contacts.
• Ensure all distribution activities align with regulatory requirements and internal quality assurance standards.
• Provide technical oversight and support during distribution-related water quality incidents, ensuring rapid and effective mitigation.
• Coach and mentor team members to build technical capability and ensure robust scientific support across the region.
• Act as a technical subject matter expert in network infrastructure and water quality projects.
• Evaluate and evolve standard operating procedures for network maintenance to minimize impact on water quality and consumer supply.

What you’ll need

• Excellent team management and communication skills.
• Good general IT skills, including proficiency in Word/Google Docs and Excel/Google Sheets.
• A full UK driving licence is required.
• Must be self-motivated, committed, and organised.
• Ability to work independently, demonstrating initiative in finding solutions and proactively identifying and proposing solutions for departmental processes and policies.
• Required to demonstrate task prioritisation and flexibility in changes to workload for themselves and the team.
• Strong attention to detail is necessary to ensure the integrity of collected information, including data analysis and handling.
• Must provide a positive image of South East Water and inspire the direct team and other departments to meet goals.
• Must be a strong manager and team player, capable of producing quality outputs in line with required deadlines and company procedures.
• Minimum of 3 years' experience in water network distribution or water quality management is essential.
• Preferably hold a recognised management qualification.

Please note: This role includes participating in the Duty Science Manager call-out rota on a 1 in 5 basis, providing phone-based escalation support to the duty scientist.

Grow a career with a meaningful purpose.

We know the communities we serve are diverse. We recognise creativity comes from diversity not similarity. That's why we are enthusiastic about creating inclusion across age, race, gender, ethnicity, religion and identity. You will experience our dedication to equal opportunities and fair treatment for all: through your recruitment, employment and career progression with South East Water.

Benefits package

• Excellent Stakeholder pension scheme, up to 10% employer contribution
• 5 weeks holiday plus bank holidays per annum, increasing to 6 weeks with length of service
• Flexible annual leave policy to buy or sell holiday leave
• Paid volunteering days
• Cycle to work scheme
• Health cash plan
• Life assurance
• Wellbeing related benefits

Compensation package

Up to £60,000 p.a. (dependent on experience)

Be you, belong and valued.

We supply top-quality drinking water to 2.3 million customers in the southeast of England. Through a network of 9,000 miles of pipe, we deliver 544 million litres of water every day. It's the skill and expertise of our employees that ensures our water meets the highest standards. We make sure we can meet the needs of our customers both now and in the future.

Grow a career with a meaningful purpose.

• Come to work to be safe, valued, and trusted.
• We'll encourage you to create and pursue new opportunities for personal growth.
• A place to be the real you, build deeper connections and enjoy a sense of belonging.
• Be invested in helping us to create a sustainable water supply for now, and in the future.