Environmental Projects Assistant - Placement

Overview

Affinity Water is the UK’s largest regulated water only supply business operating in three regions in the southeast of England. We provide on average 936 million litres of water each day, serving around 3.8 million people. We operate 91 water treatment works and distribute our water through a network of mains 16,900 km long. It is our vision to be the leading community focused water company in the UK.

Purpose: We have taken a placement student to cover the placement position for some 28 years. Placements run from late July of one year to the end of August the following year, as this allows a handover from one student to another. It is a paid position within the Water Resources & Environment department, based at our head office in Tamblin Way, Hatfield, Hertfordshire.

• Environmental monitoring of river flows, lake levels, rainfall and groundwater levels within the Affinity Water supply area.
• Collation and analysis of environmental data from both internal and external sources e.g. Met Office and Environment Agency.
• The screening of planning applications for potential impact on the Company.
• Water quality sampling from various sites in our supply area, including lakes, boreholes, rivers and in-situ analysis.
• The taking of river photos at set locations around our supply area.
• Support to other team members on data collection where required.
• Data analysis and interpretation, including use of GIS.
• A placement project report is completed by end of placement, on a subject of the placement student’s and Company interest.

• Full driving licence valid in the UK.
• Awareness of health and safety procedures.
• Awareness of environmental standards and how changing water levels may affect the company and the environment.
• Competent computer literacy in the use of word processing and spreadsheet software (MS Office and preferentially GIS).
• Willingness to work outside in the field.
• Accurate updating of databases, analysis of river flows, groundwater, and rainfall to produce monthly reports.
• Ability to produce concise, clear and accurate interpretations and report on them.
• The willingness to see jobs through to completion.
• Patience when jobs take a long time, or when data is not retrievable for certain periods.
• The ability to work both as part of a team and independently, to meet deadlines.

• Opportunities for networking with a possible future employer
• Gain experience of working in an office environment
• Gain experience of environmental data collection in the field
• Finish university with a year’s relevant work experience

If you are interested in this post, please send your CV and covering letter with a brief description of why you are interested in this position, to: h by the 31st of January 2026.

Interviews to take place end of February 2026.

As a Disability Confident employer, we’re committed to offering interviews to disabled candidates who meet the essential criteria and opt in on the application form. Ask the Talent Acquisition lead for the full job description to see all the criteria. If we have a very high volume of applicants and we’re not able to offer interviews to all, we’ll take a fair and proportionate number of disabled candidates through.

Affinity Water recognises the benefits of greater diversity in our workforce to better reflect the communities we serve. We are committed to building a more inclusive culture where every member of our workforce can thrive.

You can find out what it’s like to work at Affinity Water through our career site

where our colleagues share their career development stories and you can get a feel for our company culture.