Ofwat
We regulate the water sector in England and Wales,
Requirements of the role
We are Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, a non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating the water sector in England and Wales.
We have an opportunity for a Principal Economist to join our Chief Economist Team within Office of the Chief Executive Directorate.
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.
Job Description
The Chief Economists Team (CET) is part of the Office of the Chief Executive, which is a group of cross cutting teams, also including our legal, communications, corporate governance, secretariat, investor relations and information governance teams that work with teams across the whole of Ofwat, with a diverse approach as to how they are integrated across the Directorate. The CET's goal is to ensure that the quality of Ofwat's economic analysis is the best it can be.
The CET reports directly to the Chief Executive of Ofwat and plays an important role across all areas of Ofwat's work. It leads on the economic input into a number of strategic work programmes, including the transition to the new regulatory framework for the sector. It also leads on mergers and competition work, one-off research/analytical pieces as well as leading on our approach to impact assessments and evaluation. It also supports other teams across Ofwat, for example by scrutinising proposals on price reviews, supporting teams focused on developing markets and supporting regulatory policy development across several areas such as the environment, customers and innovation.
We are looking for four Principal Economists to join us in the Chief Economist's Team.
The Principal Economists will have an important and valuable contribution to enable us to deliver on our regulatory commitments for customers and the environment. This includes responsibility for leading on key areas of CET's work by providing rigorous economic thinking and advice to inform our policies and help Ofwat deliver its strategic objectives, including the transition to the new regime. You will have excellent analytical skills, significant experience in regulatory economics, and experience managing the design, development and delivery of economic projects. You will be supported by an economics director, and have responsibility for managing more junior members of the team.
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Location
Birmingham, London
Contract type
Full time, Loan, Permanent, Secondment
Profession
Economist, Principal
Working pattern
Flexible working, Hybrid
Closing Date
12/10/2025