The UK water industry faces a significant workforce challenge. An ageing workforce, rising regulatory expectations, and increasing technical complexity demand new skills and ways of working. However, recruitment still focuses on fitting people into established roles rather than redesigning roles to attract broader and more diverse talent. These options can help.
Flexible working by design, not concession
Flexible working is often promoted attracting more women into the industry, especially into technical and operational roles. Too often, however, it is framed as an adjustment to a normal role. This matters. Adjustments imply exception and reinforce the idea that women or carers need special concessions to participate.
A more effective approach is to design flexibility into roles from the outset. Predictable shift patterns, job sharing, hybrid working where tasks allow, and clearer boundaries around on-call duties all widen who can realistically apply. When flexibility is normalised, it benefits everyone — parents, carers, older workers, and those balancing work with study or health needs — without singling out women as different.
This is not about lowering standards. It is about recognising that rigid working patterns are often inherited habits rather than real operational necessities. Designing roles around people removes an early and often invisible barrier to entry.
Disadvantaged young people: structure as opportunity
Many young people leave school without strong qualifications, confidence, or direction. Once labelled as underperformers, they struggle to access stable employment or structured training, despite having significant potential.
The armed forces offer an uncomfortable but instructive comparison. The UK Army recruits from the age of 16, providing pay, structure, training, and a strong sense of purpose. While controversial, this approach demonstrates a simple truth: structure, expectation, and investment can transform outcomes for young people who might otherwise drift.
The water industry could adopt a civilian equivalent without the ethical complexity of military service. Paid foundation years, extended apprenticeships, or pre-employment programmes could give disadvantaged young people time to mature, build practical skills, and develop workplace discipline. These schemes must be demanding, with real work and clear progression, rather than remedial and can provide real bottom-line benefits.
“Prickly” people: the cost of avoiding challenge
Most organisations quietly filter out people who challenge authority, question decisions, or struggle with organisational politics. These “prickly” individuals are often seen as high risk.
Yet many possess exactly the qualities the water industry needs: technical depth, strong principles, and a refusal to accept poor practice. In a safety-critical and highly scrutinised sector, these traits are assets. The issue is rarely competence; it is management confidence.
Harnessing such people requires clearer role design, coaching, and leaders willing to tolerate constructive dissent. Promoting only the most agreeable personalities risks creating cultures that avoid challenge.
Ex-forces recruitment and progression
Ex-forces personnel bring leadership experience, safety awareness, and resilience under pressure — all directly relevant to water operations and incident response. However, recruitment often limits veterans to narrow frontline roles.
With better onboarding and recognition of military experience, many could thrive in supervisory, project, and leadership positions.
Conclusion
The UK water industry does not lack potential recruits; it lacks imagination in how roles are designed and talent is judged. Flexible working by default, structured routes for disadvantaged young people, openness to challenge, and smarter use of ex-forces talent together offer a practical way to build a workforce fit for the complexity and scrutiny the industry now faces.
Finaly
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