Team Leader - Water Industry Regulation x2

Salary: £41,617
Grade: G5
Location(s): Welwyn Garden City / London Abbey Wood (+£2,117 PA outer London weighting for this location only)
Number of roles available: 2
Post Type: Permanent, Full-time (part-time to be considered on a case-by-case basis)
Advert close: Monday 29th September
Interviews to be held:  w/c Monday 20th October, w/c Monday 27th October

About us

Are you ready to take on a leadership role that makes a real difference? Join the Environment Agency’s new water industry regulation teams and help lead the fight against growing and increasingly complex environmental crime.

We continue to change the way we regulate water companies. Our regulation teams work to hold underperforming operators to account and ensure compliance with environmental law. While we recognise their crucial role in managing the water cycle - collecting, treating and returning water to the environment - it’s essential they do so without causing environmental harm.

Our work includes preventing pollution, the regulation of sewage treatment works, storm overflows and ensuring compliance across the sewerage network. With increased scrutiny of sewage pollution and its effects, we’re more determined than ever to raise standards, strengthen regulation and protect the environment. We’re driving improved performance, accountability, and better use of our resources to create lasting environmental outcomes.

We’re recruiting now because the work is urgent and growing - this is a pivotal moment to join the Environment Agency, as we’re actively involved in shaping the future of water regulation in England.

What’s in it for you? 

You’ll be part of a supportive organisation that values difference and promotes inclusivity, as well as having the flexibility and trust to make a meaningful impact.

We also offer:

• A salary of £41,617 per annum
• A generous pension scheme (currently 19% of pensionable pay)
• 27 days annual leave, plus 8 bank holidays
• Standby and incident response payments
• Flexible and hybrid working options
• Two paid environmental outcome days each year to volunteer in your community
• Extensive training and career development
• Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave

Part-time working will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Why choose us?

Make a meaningful impact: At the Environment Agency, your work has a real and lasting effect on the quality of our environment. Regulating the water industry is a key priority. By promoting responsible water use and protecting vital ecosystems, your role helps preserve the natural world for future generations.

Dynamic and rewarding work: Join a proactive, passionate team tackling environmental challenges on a national scale. You’ll collaborate with like-minded professionals in a supportive and forward-thinking environment, where your input truly makes a difference.

Focus on results: Our work delivers real-world change. Whether it’s enforcing regulations or restoring damaged water environments, we take action that benefits both people and nature.

Continuous development: We’re committed to developing your skills and knowledge. With tailored training, mentoring and access to the latest tools and technologies, you’ll be supported in developing your skills and progressing your career in environmental regulation.
 
Values-driven organisation: Integrity, transparency, and environmental responsibility guide everything we do. You’ll be part of an organisation that’s genuinely committed to building a more sustainable and resilient future.

What will you do?

The Team Leader will lead a team of officers with the sole focus on the regulation of water company activities, working alongside a network of colleagues in national and local teams.

Your team will have a critical operational role to protect the environment, helping create a cleaner, safer and healthier environment for people and wildlife.

Your team will address incidents and enforcement issues in the water industry, including those of reputationally and environmentally high risk. Such a broad scope of work calls for diverse, multi-skilled teams.

As Team Leader:

• You will manage and motivate experienced officers as well as those new to the business, so you’ll need to have good team management, performance and work delivery skills.
• You’ll work with compliance, enforcement and legal teams to establish and embed new ways of working.
• Maintain the health, safety and wellbeing of your team, supporting them to develop themselves, identifying training needs and managing ways of working to ensure we can meet the needs of the future.
• You will balance the work within your team to ensure that they are focussed on the areas that will deliver the greatest environmental benefit.

You will mostly be office based with occasional site visits. You'll be recruited into a specific area with a designated office base, but flexibility is important - you may be required to work with teams in other locations or adapt to changing priorities across different areas.

What do you need?

We’re looking for an experienced and motivated leader who can inspire and develop others, manage operational demands and support regulatory outcomes.

Essential:

• A full UK driving licence, as the role may involve travel across a wide geographic area.
• Strong leadership experience, with a proven ability to lead and motivate teams to deliver shared goals.
• A track record of working collaboratively across teams or organisations.
• Working knowledge of health, safety and wellbeing best practices.
• Experience in identifying, addressing, and resolving performance challenges constructively, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and accountability.

Desirable

• In addition, it would be advantageous if you bring a coaching and mentoring approach to developing people, along with the ability to prioritise effectively and balance team needs with wider organisational goals.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills, combined with a flexible, problem-solving mindset and evidence-based decision-making capability, will further support your success in the role.

Additional information

The Environment Agency are fully committed to having an inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve. We don’t just talk about diversity; we seek it, embrace it and live it, for the benefit of our staff, our communities and our environment.

Everyone joining a new role will receive a warm welcome and full support, including the equipment, training and guidance needed to thrive.

You will be required to take on an incident role to help us respond effectively to incidents or support business continuity. These roles may attract additional pay, with full training and flexible working arrangements provided. We offer a range of incident roles and will work with you to find the best fit.

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Please note that providing false or misleading information at any stage of the application or recruitment process may result in withdrawal of your application, or where applicable, disciplinary action in line with internal processes.

We will maintain a reserve list for 12 months and may offer similar roles at other locations linked to this position.

Please note: Candidates selected for interview will be notified by email at least five days in advance. Please check both your inbox and junk mail folders to ensure you don’t miss our message.