Graduate Development Programme – Engineering and Project Management

Package Description

Graduate Development Programme – Engineering and Project Management

Location: West Sussex, East Sussex, Kent and Hampshire (travel across regions required)

Contract: 2 year FTC

Hours: 37 hours, Monday–Friday

Salary: £32,913 per year

Find your purpose. Shape your future. Build a career that matters.

Have you completed a degree in an engineering, construction or project‑related discipline? Are you looking for the opportunity to apply what you’ve learned, build confidence in real environments, and contribute to projects that protect communities and the environment?

If so, you’ll feel right at home on our Engineering & Project Management Graduate Development Programme.

Make a meaningful impact from day one

This programme is designed for graduates who want to help deliver essential infrastructure projects and manage assets that underpin vital water and wastewater services across the South East.

You’ll work alongside experienced professionals on real projects - supporting safe delivery, long‑term resilience, and value for customers and the environment. This isn’t just about learning how projects work. It’s about understanding why they matter.

This isn’t just a stepping stone. It’s a platform to build a long‑term career in engineering, asset management or project delivery.

What to expect

Across the two‑year programme, you’ll complete structured placements that give you exposure to both project delivery and asset management environments. You’ll build technical understanding, develop professional confidence, and take responsibility for meaningful work early in your career.

You’ll receive:

• Meaningful responsibility from day one, supported by experienced mentors and placement managers
• Coaching and guidance from engineering, asset and project professionals
• Opportunities to contribute to capital projects, asset planning and improvement initiatives
• Exposure to health & safety, environmental and regulatory frameworks, including CDM
• Access to industry‑recognised development, professional qualifications and training
• A strong graduate cohort community with peer learning and business‑wide networking opportunities

Your pathway

You’ll be aligned to an Engineering or Project Management pathway for the duration of the programme, rotating across teams, sites and projects to broaden your experience and build capability.

Typical Project Management graduate roles and exposure may include:

• Project Delivery (supporting small‑to‑medium capital projects)
• Asset Engineering and Asset Management
• Programme Planning and Project Controls
• Commercial and contract administration support

Across your placements, you may gain experience in:

• Supporting the safe delivery of projects to time, cost and quality expectations
• Applying CDM requirements and supporting site safety and compliance activities
• Preparing project documentation such as risk registers, change logs and reports
• Working with asset data to understand condition, failure risk and lifecycle planning
• Collaborating with operational, maintenance, commercial and delivery teams
• Engaging stakeholders and supporting clear communication across disciplines

Typical Engineering graduate roles and exposure may include:

• Civil Engineer
• Waste Process Engineer
• Mechanical Engineer
• Network Modeller
• Environmental Advisor

Travel requirements & how we support you

Our placements involve travel across regions, so you’ll need a full UK driving licence. To support this, we reimburse business mileage for any travel beyond your normal home to base commute, in line with our Travel & Expenses Policy (e.g., mileage is claimable after deducting home to base allowance).

You’ll receive guidance on claiming expenses, a Permit to Drive where required, and practical support to help you travel confidently and safely between sites.

What’s in it for you

• Relocation support available, so distance doesn’t have to be a barrier to starting your career with us.
• Health and wellbeing support, including access to a health cash plan and employee assistance programme.
• Flexible working options, supporting a healthy balance between work and life.
• 25 days’ annual leave, plus bank holidays.
• Two paid volunteering days each year, giving you the opportunity to make a positive impact in your local community.
• Employee discounts and benefits platform, helping your money go further.

Who we’re looking for

We welcome graduates from engineering, construction, project management, asset management and related disciplines. What matters most is your curiosity, your willingness to learn, and your motivation to contribute to work that has real‑world impact.

You’ll need:

• A predicted or achieved 2:2 degree (or equivalent)
• If not already a driver, you’ll need to be willing to learn how to drive and have access to a car, as travel will be required. Where appropriate, we can support you with driving lessons and your driving test as part of your development.
• Flexibility to travel across Hampshire, Sussex, Kent and the Isle of Wight

We’ll aim to place you as close as possible to your preferred location, but rotations mean travel across regions may be required.

Where this programme can take you

Our Engineering & Project Management Graduate Development Programme are designed to prepare you for a long‑term career within our engineering, asset and project teams. Many graduates progress into roles such as:

• Assistant Project Manager or Project Manager
• Asset Engineer or Programme Planner
• Senior Project or Programme Management roles over time
• Civil Engineer
• Waste Process Engineer
• Mechanical Engineer
• Network Modeller
• Environmental Advisor

Your development will be supported through structured check‑ins, mentoring, coaching, and a tailored end‑of‑programme transition process aligned to your future role.

Ready to get started?

If you’re collaborative, people‑focused, environmentally motivated, and excited by variety, we’d love to hear from you.

Help us build a better future for the South East.

Apply now to join our Engineering & Project Management Graduate Development Programme and take your first steps into a purpose‑led career with real impact.

Everybody Welcome

We value diversity and are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require any reasonable adjustments to facilitate your participation in the recruitment process, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Need flexibility in your work?

Does this opportunity excite you but you’re not 100% sure if you meet all the requirements for the role? Or are you concerned that ‘normal’ office hours aren’t possible given your personal circumstances? Whilst we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we’ll try to find a practical solution. So why not engage with us and find out more about this role?

Main Responsibilities

The Ideal Candidate