Senior Associate Economists - Cost Assessment

Job summary

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 two Senior Associate Economists to join our Cost Assessment Team in Price Review.

The water sector is entering a new chapter. The government has set out a bold new direction, bringing together expertise from across the sector to deliver better outcomes for customers and the environment. We are collaborating with fellow regulators to respond to recommendations in The Independent Water Commission Report, the Welsh Government’s response to the Green Paper, Shaping the Future of Water Governance in Wales, and the Government’s White Paper, A new vision for water.

Ofwat is working with the government and other regulators to help create a new body for England, bringing together our strengths with those of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency and Natural England. We are also continuing to work with the Welsh Government to support decisions on the future arrangements 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.

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.

Job description

We're looking for two Senior Associate Economists to join our Cost Assessment team. These roles are full of influence and exciting challenges.

The cost assessment team plays a pivotal part in shaping price reviews, setting expenditure allowances, and developing policy in areas such as incentive design and improvements to the regulatory framework.

As a Senior Associate Economist, you will lead one of several workstreams within our cost assessment team:

1. Developing econometric models and related policy development for different segments of the water sector value chain.
2. Managing cross-cutting data that supports high-quality regulatory reporting to inform cost assessment and delivery of funded activities.
3. Designing and reviewing incentive tools to encourage delivery and hold companies to account at the next price review.

You will work closely with principals, other senior associates, and graduate associates, and collaborate across teams. Depending on your specialism you will:

• Contribute to policy development in areas such as incentive design, cost benchmarking, and wider improvements to the regulatory framework.
• Support our work to review the price control deliverables (PCDs) framework to address the Independent Water Commission (IWC) recommendations on this subject.
• Contribute to policy development on our supervisory approach and how PCDs and wider delivery incentives will feed into this.
• Work with colleagues to improve our monitoring regime to continue supporting our ability to hold companies to account in a targeted and proportionate way.
• Support the development of our approach to setting expenditure allowances at the next price review, drawing on lessons from PR24 and the recommendations of the IWC.
• Work with colleagues to ensure robust, evidence-based recommendations for expenditure allowances.
• Engage with stakeholders across the sector, including water companies, other regulators, and internal teams.
• Contribute to the robust use of data across the cost assessment team, supporting the entire team with quality assurance, expert knowledge of Ofwat's databases and best-practice modelling tools.
• Providing expert advice to ensure data quality and mitigate risks of error.

This is an exciting time to join the team, with many opportunities to learn, develop, and shape the future of economic regulation, ultimately improving outcomes for customers and the environment. You will work in a supportive, collaborative team with opportunities for professional growth.

If you have previous experience of assessing costs and identifying cost savings for companies (not necessarily water companies), or you have a data science background, this may the perfect opportunity for you.

Key deliverables:

Depending on the role, you can be expected to:

• Develop policy options to address Independent Water Commission (IWC recommendations) on price control deliverables (PCD) framework, cost assessment modelling and related policy issues.
• Provide robust quantitative and qualitative analysis in developing the approach to setting expenditure allowances for our price reviews, including related policy development.
• Present clear, evidence-based policy recommendations on complex issues to senior leaders, ensuring robust and transparent decision making.
• Draft and review reports, publications, discussion papers and consultation documents to a high standard.
• Build and maintain collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders to shape and test new approaches and ensure successful delivery of objectives.
• Present policy papers at internal meetings and senior policy forums to develop different elements of Ofwat's cost assessment and PCD frameworks.
• Contribute to external stakeholder engagement including organising and lead workshops with external stakeholders to support development of policy options.
• Contribute to the professional development of team members and foster a culture of continuous improvement.
• Develop the cost assessment Excel feeder model suite for the price review, ensuring it remains robust, transparent, and fit for purpose. Provide advice on cost assessment data and modelling including defining data requirements.

Person specification

To be successful in these roles you will need the below essential experience, skills, knowledge, and attributes:

Experience, skills and knowledge

1. Lead criterion 1: Experience of applying economics in a regulator, competition authority, consultancy or regulated company, with a strong interest in and aptitude for economic regulation and quantitative modelling (including econometrics).
2. Lead criterion 2: An undergraduate degree in economics and/or a discipline with significant economic/numerate content or equivalent experience including data science.
3. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including experience of identifying, analysing and accurately interpreting a range of data and insights to inform evidence-based decisions and solutions for complex problems.
4. Professional experience of developing, managing and implementing policy.
5. Experience of building and maintaining constructive working relationships with a diverse set of internal and external stakeholders to understand their needs, expectations, and priorities, and to influence and collaborate effectively to deliver desired outcomes.
6. Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to understand and concisely explain complex issues in non-technical language.
7. Ability to effectively plan, prioritise and deliver multiple projects with conflicting deadlines.

Attributes

8. Building Trust
9. Adaptable Thinker
10. Delivers Outcomes

Attributes as per Ofwat's Framework for Success for the relevant salary grade. You can read more about Attributes here.

Benefits

Why You Should Join Us:

Our people are at the heart of Ofwat, and our People Strategy defines the goals that keep this focus central to everything we do. Our 2025 People Survey highlights several key strengths. Nine in ten colleagues say that they are treated with respect and that Ofwat values individual differences. The same proportion say that their work is meaningful and that they are being trusted to carry out their roles effectively. 79% of our people rated their manager highly, and 85% described their team environment as positive.

You will also benefit from:

• Excellent employer pension contributions of nearly 29%.You can find further details about pension schemes under Terms and Conditions in the Candidate Pack.
• 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
• Recognition vouchers scheme
• Generous shared parental leave and pay
• Enhanced sick pay
• Regular development opportunities
• Health and wellbeing initiatives
• Cycle-to-work scheme
• Season ticket loan for home-to-office travel
• Free eye tests and contribution to lenses/spectacles for VDU users

Moving to Ofwat from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Find out more at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

How to apply

Apply through the Civil Service Jobs website where you’ll be asked to create an account and complete an application form (CV and personal statement). If you’re unable to make an electronic application, please contact recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk and we will support you in completing your application.

Please see the candidate guidance on our website for more detail and tips on how to best make your application and prepare for interview.

Please ensure you have submitted your application in full ahead of the deadline listed below. Unfortunately, we won't be able to consider late applications.

Selection timetable

• Closing date: 23.55 on 10 November 2026
• Sifting: 11,13 and 16 November 2026
• Interview date(s): Week commencing 23 November 2026

Assessment process

Sift Stage - Blind Sifting

We operate a blind sifting model to eliminate bias. All candidate identifying information will be removed from applications.

At sift stage we will assess your application (CV and personal statement) against essential criteria 1, 2, 3, and 4 listed below. Please ensure you provide enough evidence in your application form to demonstrate how you meet the criteria.

Use your personal statement to address the below criteria and tell us how your experience, skills and knowledge meet them:

1. Lead criterion 1: Experience of applying economics in a regulator, competition authority, consultancy or regulated company, with a strong interest in and aptitude for economic regulation and quantitative modelling (including econometrics).
2. Lead criterion 2: An undergraduate degree in economics and/or a discipline with significant economic/numerate content or equivalent experience including data science.
3. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including experience of identifying, analysing and accurately interpreting a range of data and insights to inform evidence-based decisions and solutions for complex problems.
4. Professional experience of developing, managing and implementing policy.

*Please note that in the event of receiving a large number of applications, a pre-sift will take place on just the two lead criteria.

** If a high volume of candidates meet the minimum pass mark at sift stage, we will only progress the highest scoring candidates to interview. Candidates not invited to interview, who have achieved the minimum pass mark, will be placed 'on hold' until the final stage of the assessment process is completed. Should the role/s remain unfilled, candidates placed 'on hold' may be invited to interview in merit order.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Interview Stage - Transparent Interviews and Presentation

At interview stage we will test against essential skills, experience, knowledge and attributes set out above.

Our transparent interview process involves candidates receiving a selection 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.

You can read more about attributes and our Framework for success here.

Please note that the interviews will be conducted via video conferencing software (Microsoft Teams).

As part of the interview process, we will require a short presentation. Further details will be provided to candidates upon invitation to interview.

Please ensure anything you present in your interview answers is factually accurate, and you are not presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by AI, as your own. You may expect follow up questions.

It may be necessary for a second stage interview, which will be communicated to the successful candidates, if required.

If the assessment process identifies more appointable candidates than roles available, a reserve list will be created for 12 months from which further appointments in merit order can be made.

If you have any queries about any aspect of this role, selection process, or you require any reasonable adjustments, please email recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) 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 theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk
• Email : recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk

Further information

Complaints procedure - The process of recruitment and assessment embraces the principles of fair and open competition and best practice. The first is to maintain the principle of selection for appointment to the Civil Service on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Recruitment Principles. The second is to promote an understanding of the https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-code/the-civil… which sets out the constitutional framework in which all civil servants work and the values they are expected to uphold, and to hear and determine appeals made under it. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the recruitment principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from us, you can contact the Civil Service Commission at info@csc.gov.uk

Attachments

Candidate Pack - Senior Associate Economist Cost assessment Opens in new window (pdf, 714kB)