Policy Professional Placement Programme 2026

We are Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, a non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating the water sector in England and Wales. 

As the economic regulator of water and wastewater companies in England and Wales, our role is to enable, incentivise and hold companies to account for providing the very best for customers, communities and the environment. We also oversee the markets in the water sector to ensure they’re working for customers.

The water sector is entering a new chapter. Following the Independent Water Commission’s final report, the UK government has set out a bold new direction - one that brings together expertise from across the sector to deliver better outcomes for customers and the environment.

Ofwat will be working in collaboration with the government and other regulators to help establish a new body for England, combining our strengths with those of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency, and Natural England. We’re also continuing to engage with the Welsh Government to support future decisions for Wales.

While these changes take shape, our mission remains the same: to hold water companies to account, drive performance, and ensure the sector delivers real value for customers, communities, and the environment. If you’re passionate about making a difference, this is a unique moment to join us and help shape the future of water, and together we can continue to make a positive impact.

You can find out more about why you should join Ofwat, our strategy, SAILOR Values and our Framework for Success in the attached Candidate Pack.

About the Professional Placement Programme

As a professional placement student at Ofwat, you’ll use the tools you've developed throughout your degree to help tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the water industry. This unique placement offers the perfect balance between hands-on experience and structured support, allowing you to put your theoretical knowledge into practice whilst benefitting from tailored development opportunities. You'll enjoy the best of both worlds, gaining invaluable exposure to the water sector and setting yourself up with a fantastic launch-pad for your future career.

You’ll be learning and growing in a dynamic environment, alongside apprentices and graduates in our Early Careers community, an important talent pipeline for the sector and a group we truly value.

The policy professional placements sit within our Wales & Government Engagement team. The Government Engagement team acts as the gatekeeper for the UK and Welsh governments to engage with Ofwat. Our strategic priorities are to ensure a consistent, connected, and strategic interactions with UK and Welsh governments, and support Ofwat’s Senior Leadership Team and Directors to hold constructive relationships with key partners. We lead on engagement with government in cross-cutting policy areas (e.g. regulatory reform), helping to shape and inform policy to deliver the best outcomes for the consumer. We also analyse legislation and policy to provide impact and risk analysis and support the development of government consultation responses.

This will be a busy time for Government Engagement, and you will help deliver and facilitate a consistent, connected, and strategic relationship with, primarily, UK Government but also other key regulatory stakeholders as required. You will be supporting work to engage with the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as they prepare and then take through Parliament a new Water Bill, that will set out the future legislative environment for the water industry and for Ofwat's successor regulator.  

Learning and development 

During your professional placement, you’ll benefit from a comprehensive blend of personal and professional development designed to help you thrive. You’ll take part in Ofwat Essentials, our core learning programme delivered by in-house experts, alongside monthly training sessions provided through our early careers team.

You’ll have the chance to deliver and support meaningful internal and external projects, gaining the knowledge and confidence to make a real impact. Your placement will give you valuable insight into how our organisation works and help you grow your creativity, leadership and strategic thinking, setting you up to achieve your aspirations beyond the programme.

In addition to ‘on-the-job' learning, you’ll have access to technical training tailored to your development needs, as well as wider learning opportunities including conferences and visits to water companies’ operational sites. You’ll be equipped with the tools, experiences and support you need to flourish in your profession and build a strong foundation for your future career.

You will also be supported by a wide network of stakeholders across Ofwat, including your people leader, the early careers team and a dedicated buddy. In addition, you’ll have the option to work with one of our internal coaches, offering personalised guidance to help you make the most of your development journey with us.

Person specification

Professional requirements - Essential criteria

To succeed in this role, you will need the following qualifications, attributes, experience, skills and knowledge.

Experience, skills and knowledge

• Lead Criterion: A strong understanding of various policy concepts and their application, with a particular motivation for working in regulatory economic environments.
• Good numerical and analytical skills and a good understanding of qualitative values and analysis. 
• Ability to demonstrate effective problem solving,  critical thinking, decision making and information processing.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to write clearly and concisely

Attributes 

Ofwat's Attributes underpin our SAILOR values. Throughout the selection process, we will assess you on the following attributes that are essential for success on the programme. These are defined more fully in our Framework for Success (associate grade).

• Committed Learner – "I'm flexible, curious and adaptable, committed to my own growth and development."
• Makes Relationships Count – "I contribute to a supportive team environment, showing empathy and building effective relationships to achieve progress."
• Creates clarity – "I'm adept at communicating clearly, simplifying complexity, considering the needs of my audience, and tailoring my written and verbal communications to meet their needs."
• Adaptable thinker – "I identify problems and seek out information to find solutions. I do this in a way that considers the needs of others, and I'm flexible to adapt my approach as parameters or goals change."
• Delivers outcomes – "I achieve my objectives in a timely manner, keeping people updated, and taking accountability and responsibility for outputs and outcomes. I link my work to the bigger picture and ask for clarification when it's needed, striving always to improve my delivery to customers (whether internal or external)."

Qualifications

You should have, or be on track to achieve, at least a 2:2 degree in Politics, International Relations, Public Policy, Law, History, Geography, Environmental studies Engineering (or a related discipline) from a UK university.

We also welcome applicants who have completed a Level 3, 4, or 5 apprenticeships in economics or a related subject that includes substantial industrial organisation or financial economics content, as well as applicants with a relevant postgraduate qualification.

As this is a placement programme, you must either be studying on a degree that includes a sandwich year or be a recent graduate/ apprentice with no more than three years of post-graduation work experience.