Head of Media Relations

We are at the source of everyday life. We are at the source of everyday life. We help the sector build trust and confidence with customers, the environment and wider society: keeping water flowing, ensuring water bills don’t cost a penny more than needed, holding water companies to account. We push hard to improve day-to-day water company performance for customers, including on leakage, sewer flooding and customer service. We drive the sector to take a longer-term view and to take steps now to protect and enhance the environment, using digital and data innovations and making sure our water supplies are secure for future generations. Through our five-yearly price reviews, we oversee billions of pounds of investment into the water sector across England and Wales.
Our work is high-profile and fast-moving, within a dynamic and agile environment. The work that you’ll be involved in every day will help us to deliver our strategy, to make us the regulator we want to be and help the sector to deliver for customers and society.
You can find out more about why you should join Ofwat, our strategy, values and our framework for success in the attached Information for Candidates Pack., You will oversee and drive Ofwat’s media relations, leading a small team of corporate communications professionals. You will have the opportunity to develop and execute brilliant campaigns and programmes of work. With your expert knowledge, you will provide considered, sound advice on media handling to protect and strengthen Ofwat’s reputation.
You will work within a dynamic communications environment where stories move at rapid pace, and you will play a key part of Ofwat’s crisis communications response.
Key Deliverables
In this role you will be expected to:
+ With the Director of Media, oversee and lead Ofwat’s media relations, identifying and delivering impactful media engagement and building relationships with key journalists and outlets.
+ Provide advice and support to Ofwat’s senior leaders.
+ Support Ofwat's senior leaders with positioning advice and preparation for speeches.
+ Build constructive, collaborative relationships with colleagues across Ofwat. Use varied approaches to work in partnership with others, respecting different priorities.
+ Bring a creative, innovative approach; with fresh thinking and ideas to help address new and existing challenges.
+ Design and implement media and engagement plans that maximise our impact and influence.
+ Lead a small team and maintain a culture of equality, diversity, and inclusion, underpinned by our SAILOR values, At longlisting stage, your application will be assessed against essential criteria 1 to 5, listed under the skills, experience, and knowledge section in the professional requirements section above.
Please use your personal statement to showcase clearly how your skills, experience, and knowledge meet essential criteria 1 to 5. Please ensure that anything submitted as part of your application is factually accurate, and you are not presenting the ideas and experience of
others, or generated by AI, as your own.
Interviews with Ellwood Atfield and Shortlisting Stage
Candidates that pass longlisting stage will be invited to interview with Ellwood Atfield to explore their skills, experience, and knowledge (criteria 1 to 8 in the professional requirements section. Following the interviews, shortlisted candidates will be invited to formal face-to-face interviews with Ofwat panel.
Informal chat with Ofwat
As part of the process, we will offer shortlisted candidates the opportunity to meet our Panel for an informal chat, where they can find out more about Ofwat and the role. The chats will be held via Microsoft Teams. This step of the process will not be assessed.
Interview Stage – Transparent Interviews and Presentation
At interview stage we will test against some of the skills, experience, and knowledge, as well as the attributes set out in the professional requirements section.
Our transparent interview process involves candidates receiving a list of attribute-based questions in advance. This has been proven to help neurodiverse candidates and others to perform better at interview and is part of our inclusive culture.
As part of the interview process, we will require a short presentation. Further details will be provided to candidates upon invitation to interview.
Please note that the interviews will be conducted in person in our London Office (5th Floor, Westferry House, 11 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London E14 4HD).
It may be necessary for a second stage interview, which will be communicated to the successful candidates, if required.
If you have any queries about any aspect of this role, selection process, or you require any reasonable adjustments please email Olivia Grant at olivia.g@ellwoodatfield.com
Please read the attached "Candidate Information Pack" for details on terms and conditions.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
+ UK nationals
+ nationals of the Republic of Ireland
+ nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

1. Extensive experience managing media relations for high profile organisations within a dynamic environment.
2. Experience of building effective relationships with external contacts and confidently briefing media at all levels to ensure accurate and informed reporting.
3. Previous experience working with senior leaders and the ability to create clarity and influence stakeholders.
4. Experience of developing and delivering proactive communications strategies that enhance the reputation of an organisation, as part of an integrated communications function.
5. Knowledge and sound understanding of digital, broadcast and print media, and an ability to quickly spot issues that will be of media interest.
6. Ability to rapidly brief on complex issues, presenting in a clear and concise manner and identifying key messages, using recognised insight and evaluation techniques to shape communications and provide measurable results.
7. The ability to confidently build, lead, inspire and empower teams.
8. Highly developed written and oral communications skills, with the ability to use different communication styles depending on the audience.

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

Why You Should Join Us:
We’re forward-thinking, creative, innovative, and ambitious. We constantly push the boundaries and embrace new ways of working.
With us, your work matters, your voice is heard, and your impact is felt. Ours is a culture of trust, flexibility, autonomy, collaboration, and innovation. We all want positive change for water customers, the environment, and the future of water.
But for us, change is more than what happens on the outside – we’ve always pushed boundaries internally, too. From becoming the first Civil Service organisation to achieve ‘Smarter Working’ status, to gaining our prestigious ‘Smarter Working Maturity’ award, we’ve consistently demonstrated our commitment to embracing innovative ways of working. Our people do their best work when given freedom over where, when, and how they work. Which is why we trust our teams to balance meaningful collaboration in the office with the flexibility of working from home.
You will also benefit from:
+ Excellent employer pension contributions of 28.97%
+ 25 days’ annual leave (increasing to 30 with each year of service) plus bank holidays and an extra 2.5 days of privilege leave
+ Access to exclusive discounts on a variety of goods and services, including retail outlets, theatre tickets, holidays, insurance, and a gym membership
+ Flexible working arrangements that suit your lifestyle
+ Fees paid for membership of relevant professional bodies
+ Up to 3 volunteering days per year
+ Generous shared parental leave and pay
+ Enhanced sick pay
+ Free eye tests and contribution to lenses/spectacles for VDU users
+ Regular development opportunities
+ Health and wellbeing initiatives
+ Season ticket loan for home-to-office travel
+ Cycle-to-work scheme