Lead Ecologist

Lead Ecologist – Major Projects and Programmes Team

Are you passionate about ecology and ready to make a real impact in the water and wastewater sector?

As a Lead Ecologist within our Major Projects and Programme team, you'll be pivotal in shaping environmental aspects for projects across Greater London, the Home Counties and beyond.

Working closely with our Environmental Assurance Engineers, you'll ensure ecological best practices and legislation are embedded in infrastructure projects, driving sustainability and compliance while protecting biodiversity.

What you’ll be doing as a Lead Ecologist

• Support the Principal Environmental Engineer in delivering assurance across a portfolio of projects in both waste and water.
• Your key responsibility will be to assure de-risking, impact assessment and mitigation activities throughout the project lifecycle with a specific focus on ecology-related risks. In this role, you will work closely with multidisciplinary teams, fostering a collaborative environment. Your support for proactive initiatives such as conducting ecological walkovers for protected species will be crucial, making you an integral part of the team.
• You will collaborate with project teams to ensure smooth project delivery. A crucial part of your role will be reviewing contractors' biodiversity and Protected Species documentation, including Method Statements for ecological surveys, Preliminary Ecological Appraisals, biodiversity net gain (BNG) assessments, and protected species licencing to ensure they meet the required standards. You will also play a significant role in supporting BNG commitments across major capital projects and Thames Water.
• You will act as a critical interface between Major Projects and Programmes and the various internal and external stakeholders. You will play a significant role in enhancing biodiversity. Your efforts in driving the Contractor’s compliance in BNG, protected species and habitats legislation and promoting ecological awareness to embed a culture of environmental responsibility will give you a strong sense of purpose and contribution.
• You will support managers' relationships with regulators such as Natural England, environmental groups, and stakeholders, ensuring compliance with relevant environmental legislation at project and programme levels.

The role advertised is a hybrid position based at Clearwater Court, Reading. On average, two days a week you will spend at our operational sites or offices, with the rest of your working time spent working from home.
36 hours a week, Monday to Friday.

Successful candidates must have a driver's licence and access to a car.

What you should bring to the role

• Passion for protecting and enhancing the environment.
• Be educated to degree level (or equivalent) in an appropriate ecological/environmental discipline or possess equivalent role-specific experience.
• Protected species and habitat survey, impact assessment and mitigation knowledge.
• Experience with the industry standard Biodiversity net gain Metric.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills to confidently interact with colleagues and stakeholders of all levels.

Extra qualities that would be a great fit for our team

• An understanding of the regulatory environment we work in to achieve compliance with our environmental regulatory requirements.
• Full member of the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management. (CIEEM).
• Experience working with the Utilities industry.

What’s in it for you?

• Competitive salary from £53,000 - £63,000 per annum, depending on skills and experience.
• Annual Leave - 26 days holiday per year, increasing to 30 with the length of service. (Plus, bank holidays).
• Performance-related pay plan directly linked to company performance measures and targets.
• Generous pension scheme through AON.
• Access to lots of benefits to help you take care of you and your family’s health and wellbeing, and your finances – from annual health MOTs and access to physiotherapy and counselling, to Cycle to Work schemes, shopping vouchers and life assurance. 

Find out more about our benefits and perks

Who are we?

We’re the UK’s largest water and wastewater company, with more than 16 million customers relying on us to supply water for their taps and toilets. We want to build a better future for all, helping our customers, communities, people and the planet to thrive. It’s a big job and we’ve got a long way to go, so we need help from passionate and skilled people, committed to making a difference and getting us to where we want to be in the years and decades to come.

Learn more about our purpose and values

Working at Thames Water

Thames Water is a unique, rewarding and diverse place to work, where every day you can make a difference, yet no day is the same. As part of our family, you’ll enjoy fast-tracked career opportunities, flexible working arrangements and excellent benefits.
Whether you’re interested in a role in one of our call centres or science labs, we’re looking for people like you with real passion and a burning desire to make things better.

So, if you’re looking for a sustainable and successful career where you can make a daily difference to millions of people’s lives while helping to protect the world's water for future generations, we’ll be here to support you every step of the way. Together, we can build a better future for our customers, our region and our planet.

Real purpose, real support, real opportunities. Come and join the Thames Water family. Why choose us? Learn more.

Our overarching aim is to ensure that Thames Water is a great, diverse and inclusive place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and offer extra support for those who need it throughout the recruitment process. We aim to remove any real or perceived barriers to success, so if you need assistance, we’re here to help and support.

When a crisis happens, we all rally around to support our customers. As part of Team Thames, you’ll have the opportunity to sign up to support our customers on the frontline as an ambassador. Full training will be given for what is undoubtedly an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s also a great opportunity to learn more about our business, meet colleagues and earn some extra money along the way.

Disclaimer: Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.