Senior PR and Campaigns Manager

This exciting role will be part of the Thames Water Strategic Resource Option (SRO) team, who are responsible for the development of several infrastructure projects designed to improve drought resilience and minimise interruptions to water supplies in the South East of England, with a key focus on protecting the environment.
These projects may include a new reservoir and transfer projects between different river catchments, both of which would involve high level interaction between Thames Water, it’s contractors, customers as well as local community and political organisations.

We all need water, and Thames Water has a vital role to play in ensuring there’s enough for households and businesses across our region in the future. Climate change and population growth are affecting our supply levels, but these projects will deliver a broad range of benefits for the environment, the economy and wider society. And this role represents a real opportunity to bring the vision behind our work to life.

What you’ll be doing as a Senior PR and Campaigns Manager

• We’re looking for a skilled communicator, with a creative flair, to develop and execute a programme of PR campaigns to raise awareness of the projects we are developing.
• You will have an eye for a good story and know how to position our latest news and developments to customers and target audiences.
• Working alongside the External Affairs Lead, you will develop and deliver a programme of cross-channel external communications activity to raise the profile and reputation of Thames Water’s SRO team.
• Work closely with colleagues in the press office, responding to reactive media enquiries about the programme of work, and pitching stories to national, regional and trade media to generate positive coverage.
• Working with our technical partners and specialist teams, you will also identify opportunities for media and stakeholder site visits and play a lead role in their co-ordination.
• Support the SRO team’s messaging manager and digital engagement officer to ensure our brand identity is consistently translated across all communications and campaigns products.
• Liaise with design teams and PR agencies to ensure our communications collateral is compelling, impactful and follows Plain English Campaign guidelines.
• Create a plan that ensures we never miss an opportunity to promote our project milestones, successes and achievements to our partners, regulators, key stakeholders and customers.
• The role will work closely with the corporate public affairs team to ensure alignment of engagement, campaigns and messages.

What you should bring to the role 

• Educated to degree level in Communications, Journalism, Marketing, Public Relations or a related field.
• Significant experience working in media relations.
• Strategic thinking with experience of tactical campaign planning and brand management.
• Content development for a range of platforms, including web, social media, traditional media and internal channels.
• Experience of working with, engaging and influencing a range of stakeholders with conflicting views and priorities at all levels of the business and externally.
• Ability to work flexibly and multi-task whilst maintaining excellent communication skills.
• Able to translate complex information into compelling narratives and visual aids.
• Be comfortable travelling across our region to support project activities.
• Be a supportive team-player who is flexible and resilient to deal with project challenges and conflicting deadlines.

Valid UK drivers licence as travel around sites will be required.

What’s in it for you?

• Competitive salary between £55,000 - £62,000 per annum, depending on level of experience.
• Annual Leave of 26 days holiday per year increasing to 30 with the length of service (plus bank holidays)
• Contributory pension – Defined Contribution - Maximum of 12% -2x employee contribution
• Personal Medical Assessments – Open to all once a year
• Wider benefits scheme including our benefits hub, which is packed full of offers and information to save you money and support your wellbeing

Who are we?
At Thames Water, our purpose is crystal clear - to deliver life’s essential service so our customers, communities and planet can thrive.

Water is life’s great leveller. Every living thing needs it, every single day. From people to plants, birds to bees, farms to factories, we all need it to thrive, and we’re committed to taking care of it for us all.

But keeping water flowing is becoming harder. From scorching summers to wetter winters, extreme weather affects everything from our pipes to our local rivers. We need to keep millions more kettles boiling, public services operating, washing machines spinning, showers running and more, so every drop is more precious than ever. Are you ready to play your part? 

Working at Thames Water
At Thames Water we recognise that people are at the heart of our business. To help us succeed in providing life's essential service, we need a range of skills and capabilities, representative of society throughout our business. 

We seek to attract and retain a cultural mix of people who can offer different but complementary attitudes, values, talents, and knowledge. We understand the importance of appreciating and harnessing the unique skills, experiences, background, and differences that each individual brings. 

Our over-arching diversity and inclusion aim is to ensure Thames Water is a diverse and inclusive great place to work. We encourage applications from everyone and offer extra support for those who need it throughout the recruitment process. 

Find out more about working at Thames Water.

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.