Senior Project Design Lead

Closing Date

Job Title: Senior Project Design Lead

Location: Falmer (Hybrid Working

Salary: from £65k

Are you a natural collaborator who thrives in team environments and enjoys solving complex challenges with others? Do you bring technical expertise in engineering and construction, and a passion for working across disciplines to deliver meaningful infrastructure projects?

Southern Water is looking for a Senior Project Design Lead to join our high performing Engineering and Technical Solutions team,this role is ideal for someone who values teamwork, open communication, and shared success.

Job Overview

You'll work alongside a wide network of internal and external stakeholders, creating a space where ideas are shared, challenges are tackled together, and solutions are co-created. You will lead multi-disciplinary teams, ensuring that everyone is aligned and empowered to contribute their expertise.  A key to this role is the ability to facilitate discussions, balance perspectives, and guide the team toward informed, confident decisions as well as champion new ideas and digital design approaches, encouraging input from across the team to drive continuous improvement.

Responsibilities will include:

• Team Leadership & Coordination: Unite engineering disciplines and project teams to deliver technically sound, cost-effective solutions.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Build strong relationships across Operations, Environmental Enabling, and Engineering & Construction, ensuring all voices are heard.
• Design Oversight: Manage design quality, timelines, and compliance with technical standards and CDM regulations.
• Health, Safety & Environment: Promote safe, sustainable design practices and lead the development of H&S strategies.
• Financial & Programme Delivery: Support project managers with design cost forecasting and ensure realistic, achievable delivery plans.
• External Representation: Represent Southern Water at industry events, sharing insights and promoting collaborative achievements.

You will be a part of our largest ever capital programme this AMP with a huge range of high-profile, complex and innovative projects and good opportunity for someone to get their teeth into a challenge.

About You

We're looking for someone who blends strong technical capability with emotional intelligence—an individual who leads with empathy, communicates clearly, and brings teams together to achieve shared goals. The ideal candidate will hold an MEng, BEng, or BSc in Engineering, Environmental Science, or a related field, and have solid experience in construction and infrastructure delivery. They should be confident in leading and collaborating across multi-disciplinary teams, with excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.

While not essential, it would be advantageous for candidates to hold or be working towards membership of a relevant professional institute, have experience in the water or wastewater sector, and be familiar with project management tools and methodologies such as NEC contracts and BIM. Certifications such as APM, MSP, or NEC for Project Managers would also be beneficial.

Package

This role will be full time Monday to Friday 37 hours a week.  

Southern Water operate a hybrid approach to working between our Falmer office and home.

We are offering a salary from £65k per annum depending on skills and experience as well as other benefits including:

• Company and performance-related bonus

• Generous pension up to 11% company contribution

• 25 days annual leave

• Life assurance equal to 4x salary

• Salary sacrifice electric car scheme (after 6 months service)

• Health Cash Plan

• Full funded eye tests

• Two paid volunteering days a year

• Occupational health service

• Discounts with over 800 popular retailers

• Digital GP service

• Study support may be available for job-related qualifications

• Competitive maternity leave and flexible return to work options

• Cycle to work scheme

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?

Our customers are at the heart of everything we do, because delivering water for life is our core purpose. To achieve this, we need 24/7 support in place to resolve incidents quickly and efficiently. All our employees understand the importance of out-of-hours incident support – because when problems appear, fixing them is our top priority. That's why our people join together and support when and however needed to make sure our customers get the service they deserve. Joining the Southern Water family means you'll become part of our incident support team. During your interview, your manager will speak to you about any incident support rotas that apply to your position.

Privacy Statement:

Please note: If you are an existing Southern Water employee, you will need to confirm within your application that your Manager is aware of your application.

All applicants must be eligible to live and work in the UK. You will need to provide evidence of eligibility (e.g. a passport or long birth certificate and proof of NI) and current proof of address (dated within the last 3 months), will be required as part of the recruitment process. If you do not meet these criteria, your application will not be considered.

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