Lead Ecologist

As a Lead Ecologist within the Capital Delivery team in London and the surrounding areas, you will play a crucial role in the Technical Assurance team, collaborating closely with Environmental Technical Assurance Engineers. This position offers the opportunity to contribute to various engaging projects within the water sector and provides a platform for significant career growth. Join us for a rewarding and impactful career with limitless growth potential.

What you’ll be doing as a Lead Ecologist

• Your key responsibility will be to oversee de-risking and mitigation activities throughout the project lifecycle from Preliminary Design through completion, 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' Ecology and Protected Species documentation, including Method Statements for ecological surveys, PEAs, and biodiversity assessments, to ensure they meet the required standards. You will also play a significant role in supporting biodiversity net gain commitments across major capital projects.
• You act as a critical interface between Capital Delivery and the various internal and external stakeholder groups involved in BNG. You will play a significant role in enhancing biodiversity. Your efforts in driving the Contractor’s compliance with achieving biodiversity net gain and promoting ecological awareness to embed a culture of environmental responsibility will give you a strong sense of purpose and contribution.
• Support manages relationships with regulators such as Natural England, environmental groups, and stakeholders, ensuring compliance with relevant environmental legislation at project and programme levels.

Based in Hybrid, Hampton, one day a week, you will be required on-site as part of your role requires you to.
36 hours a week, Monday to Friday. 

What you should bring to the role

• Degree or a master's in Ecology, Conservation, Earth Sciences or a related topic.
• Full member of the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management. (CIEEM) (preferred).
• Protected species survey knowledge.
• Expertise with the industry standard Biodiversity Metric.
• Confidence to speak to all levels of internal and external stakeholders.
• Background of working on large projects.

What’s in it for you?

• Competitive salary from £50,000 to £60,000 per annum.
• 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.
• A wider benefits scheme includes our benefits hub, which is packed with offers and information to save money and support your well-being.

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, backgrounds, 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.