Water companies in England and the UK Government have today agreed to an unprecedented series of actions to enable a huge increase in employment and a boost to workforce skills.

These commitments come as the water industry embarks on a record £100 billion programme of investment.

With the water industry now the second largest source of private investment in the economy, the UK Government declared water to be a ‘priority sector for economic growth’ at Water UK’s Skills Summit in central London.

Ministers will also signed a ‘Water Skills Pledge’ at the event to ensure that every part of Government supports the skilled workforce required to deliver £100bn investment across England.

Photo: Environment Secretary Steve Reed MP

Government and the water industry will also announce an historic set of actions that will see:

• 50,000 people recruited to join the water sector by 2030 – an increase in the water industry’s workforce equivalent to adding all the UK staff of oil and gas companies, or of wind energy companies.
• Recruitment of up to 5,000 apprentices and up to 2,000 further young people via a new ‘Water Academy Work Programme’.
• Support for over 100,000 long-term unemployed, care-leavers and veterans through ‘Untapped Talent’ initiatives which provide skills and access to jobs.
• Thousands of work experience opportunities for young people each year.
  The creation of a new £25,000 ‘Watershot’ Prize to encourage graduate scientists to develop the technologies of the future and bring their expertise to the water sector.
• Continuing to progress ‘Water Skills Bootcamps’ – 16-week courses that offer a guaranteed interview to anyone successfully completing the course.

David Henderson, Water UK Chief Executive, said:

“The water industry needs 50,000 new people over the next five years to deliver new infrastructure which is vital for new homes and business expansion. Today’s announcement shows real commitment from both government and water companies to developing the workforce for the future.  We cannot delay upgrading and expanding vital infrastructure any longer and, with the right skills in place, we will deliver for consumers, the environment and the economy.”

Environment Secretary Steve Reed MP said:  

“This government’s Plan for Change is delivering the largest investment in water sector history, securing £104bn of private sector investment.

“This fresh chapter of growth and opportunity has to be underpinned by delivering skills and an expanded workforce, so a new generation of frontline workers can clean up our waterways and build new infrastructure to serve customers and the environment.” 

The full list of commitments made by Government and the Water Companies can be found below:

• The Water Skills Pledge, signed by ministers, is a Memorandum of Understanding entered into by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). It outlines the shared intent to collaborate on workforce development in the water sector and sets out the principles and commitments that will guide this partnership. The Memorandum of Understanding will establish a shared commitment to support workforce development and recruitment in the water sector, aligned with the delivery of the £100bn investment programme in England over the next five years.
• Government will consider whether regulatory benchmarks for skilled frontline staff costs are sufficient to retain staff in the face of growing competition for skilled workers from other sectors and countries.
  Government’s Office for Clean Energy Jobs will engage with the water sector to explore their needs in the broader clean energy agenda
• Government commits to improve the public’s recognition of the efforts of the frontline workforce.
  Building on existing work with water companies, the Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC, which is the national body for careers education in England), and the National Careers Service will continue to explore further educational materials about the water industry, what it does and what roles are available within it.
• Government will continue to encourage Skills Bootcamps (16-week courses for 19+) on water industry skills. They are co-designed with industry and offer a job interview for eligible participants on completion (some companies already have some involvement). DWP will examine funding for a specified number of places on their sector-based work academy programme (SWAP).

Water companies have committed to:

• Offering up to 5,000 high-quality apprenticeship placements by 2030. This is a 25% increase since water companies originally submitted their business plans to the regulator in October 2023.
• Helping over 100,000 ex-offenders, long-term unemployed and care leavers to join the sector, the supply chain and the local economy via targeted schemes like ‘learning employability and preparation’ programmes.
• Launching a ‘National Watershot Prize’ to support aspiring graduates working in the field of water. This new £25,000 annual prize fund will be awarded to the most promising graduate researcher, or team of researchers, working on tackling the challenges relevant to advanced research and technology in the water industry and encourage them to bring their talents to the sector.
• Taking immediate action to rapidly support unemployed people to join the sector. All suitable jobs will now be advertised via Job Centre Plus ‘by default’, and where there is the opportunity to do so companies will run a range of outreach and training events with job centres to reach those who are most in need. Charities and other organisations will also see companies collaborating with them to provide individual support and coaching.
• Investing heavily in early career outreach. This will see individual companies offering work experience for up to 1,000 students a year and running education sessions in thousands of schools.
• Strengthening links with armed forces leavers. Companies will sign the Armed Forces Covenant, explore the creation of specific apprenticeship schemes for veterans, or ensure that applications are accessible and open to those leaving the armed forces.
• Signing up to the Disability Confident employer scheme. In addition, where there are regional opportunities to do so, some companies will find opportunities to work with neurodivergent young people to provide learning and support for joining the sector.
• Supporting the new government and Skills England-led needs assessments to identify the most urgent skills, define new occupation standards and work on new training schemes.