Director of Regulatory Reporting & Assurance

It is an exciting time for Thames Water.

The Company has just been awarded £20.5bn of customer funding in Ofwat’s 2024 price review, covering 2025-30.  This is the largest funding settlement in the industry’s history.  It should enable the Company to deliver significant improvements for customers and the environment, including a 22% reduction in leakage (compared to Ofwat’s 2019/20 baseline) and a 30% reduction in pollution by 2030.  Ofwat recently rated the Company’s support for vulnerable customers as ‘exemplary’ and it expects to double the number of customers receiving support with bills over the next 5 years.

Thames Water does not underestimate the scale of the challenge it faces in delivering all of this.  The Company has the oldest and most complex asset base in the industry and needs to invest more than ever before to maintain and improve the condition of those assets.  The Company also has an unprecedented programme of investment in new assets to deliver, including investment to reduce pollution from its wastewater estate and to ramp up the roll out of water meters to help reduce demand.   Delivering this work requires the Company to secure more resources from the supply chain than ever before, at a time when others across the sector are doing the same.

Much of the funding needed to make this investment can only be unlocked from Ofwat if the Company makes successful submissions on the scope and cost of the work it wishes to do at key ‘stage gates’, and on the Company’s ability to demonstrate progress on delivery of its plans.  This investment also requires financing, and the Company is currently progressing through a complex refinancing process, involving seeking c. £3.3bn of new equity and discussions with its creditors.

All of this comes at a time when Thames Water, and the sector, are under more scrutiny than ever before.  A wide variety of stakeholders, including government and regulators, but also environmental and customer groups are keen to hold us to account for our performance.  The external environment in which we operate is also changing.  A new water bill is progressing through Parliament, and we expect further legislative and policy changes before our next price review in 2029.  To build trust with our stakeholders and influence our future, we need to communicate effectively about our plans, how we are delivering against them and what we are achieving.

At Thames Water, we provide life’s essential service so our customers, communities and the environment can thrive.  We acknowledge the challenges we face in delivering our purpose.  But we are united in our determination to do so, and our energised about our future.

What you’ll be doing as Director of Regulatory Reporting & Assurance

As Director of Regulatory Reporting and Assurance, you will be accountable for delivering the Company’s Regulatory Reporting requirements, including the twice-yearly delivery reports required by Ofwat in the PR24 determination, the annual performance reports to Ofwat, including management of financial and non-financial submissions, and working with the communications and investor relations team to ensure effective messaging and engagement across all our regulatory reporting.

You will be responsible for ensuring that teams across Thames Water are aware of what they need to do to enable the delivery of reports to the Company’s regulators (Ofwat, Environment Agency, Drinking Water Inspectorate) in a timely fashion and to a high quality that inspires confidence in the Company’s progress.

You will be accountable for developing and implementing processes to assure price review and any submissions to Ofwat to reopen the price review (so-called ‘IDoKs’), including analysis and materials supporting board assurance statements, assurance of data table submissions and any other assurance requirements, including provision of third-party assurance as appropriate.

You will also be accountable for developing and implementing processes to ensure submissions are provided to Ofwat as part of the various gated processes and contingent funding applications put in place as part of PR24, which govern almost £4bn of the company’s proposed expenditure in the next regulatory period, including the provision of third-party assurance as appropriate.

You will play a key role in Thames Water’s PR29 submission, being accountable for the development and delivery of the process to ensure data we provide to our regulators, including data tables, board assurance statements and other external requirements, including third-party assurance as appropriate.

In all of this work, you will be required to develop and deliver presentations to the Thames Water executive and board.  You will also be required to lead discussions at the senior level (typically Senior Director) with our regulators to shape their requirements and expectations concerning reporting and assurance.  You will also have close involvement with the Monitor appointed by Ofwat to oversee Thames Water’s work to restore its investment-grade credit ratings.  This will include in particular supporting the Company’s Chief Risk and Compliance Officer in providing information to the Monitor about Thames Water’s delivery and performance and its improvement plans.

As a leader in the Strategy and External Affairs (S&EA) team, you will contribute to the team’s vision, structure and ways of working and will provide leadership in support of the whole team in line with these.  As a member of the S&EA leadership team, you will support Thames Water to improve its relationships with all our regulators and key external stakeholders and will work actively to support the culture change needed to achieve this. You will also work in this capacity to disseminate the work of the S&EA team across Thames Water and build effective relationships for the team.

As the leader of the Reporting and Assurance team, you will set out a clear vision with clear roles and responsibilities for your team.  You will support your team to deliver against these in line with the Company’s values and behaviours, including ensuring appropriate professional development.

What you should bring to the role

• Degree educated or equivalent.
• Successful track record of building and delivering complex, high-profile company-wide programmes to challenging deadlines.
• Proven stakeholder management skills at a senior level, with the ability to navigate complex external environments and large organisations and different interests.
• Proven track record in promoting successful collaborative working and delivering through others, including delivering outside the line and building consensus in the face of competing interests.
• Excellent influencing and advocacy skills, appropriate to different audiences and levels, including credibility in recommending action at the executive and board levels and with key external stakeholders.
• Ability to assimilate large quantities of technical information and data, and articulate key conclusions and issues for non-technical audiences.
• Proven ability to evaluate problems and identify solutions.
• Ability to prioritise tasks and workloads.
• Ability to lead and manage delivery in the face of ambiguity and through change.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, high level of numeracy, and first-class presentation skills.

 What’s in it for you?

• Competitive salary up to £125,000 per annum.
• Annual Leave - 26 days holiday per year increasing to 30 with the length of service (plus bank holidays).
• Car Allowance.
• Annual Bonus.
• Private Medical Health Care.
• Access to many benefits to help you take care of your and your family’s health and well-being, 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 every day 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 of 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.

The 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 you.

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.