Asset Manager Surveyor SPN in Crawley

The Asset Management Surveyor SPN position will report to the Property & Consents Asset Management Consents Manager and will work within the Asset Management directorate based in our Crawley office. You will be a permanent employee. Salary: £68,144.00 with a bonus of 3%. The role also offers blended working after the probationary period of 6 months – 3 days in the office and 2 days remote.

Benefits:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays.
• Reservist leave – additional 18 days full pay and 22 days unpaid.
• Personal pension plan – personal contribution rates of 4% or 5% with UK Power Networks making a corresponding contribution of 8% or 10%.
• Tenancy loan deposit scheme, season ticket loan.
• Tax‑efficient benefits: Cycle to Work, Home & Tech, and Green Car Leasing Schemes.
• Occupational health support.
• Switched On – scheme providing discounts on hundreds of retailers’ products.
• Discounted gym membership.
• Employee Assistance Programme.

Job Purpose:

Project‑manage all necessary land and statutory consents required to support customer and company (Asset Management) driven schemes directly or through contractors. Responsible for the legal acquisition, protection and, where appropriate, disposal and/or subletting of operational freehold and leasehold property, managing the acquisition and retention of easements and wayleaves concerning all customer and company‑driven consent matters within a defined geographical area.

Dimensions:

No direct reports, but working as part of a dispersed team of surveyors and administrative support staff. Negotiate with customers, grantors, land agents, solicitors, consultants and internal colleagues from director level downwards in relation to the installation, retention, alteration, disposal and subletting of UK Power Networks property, overhead lines and underground cable network across all voltages. Make decisions with project managers and/or consent managers regarding medium‑risk financial commitments, strategy and legal matters. Daily instruction and liaison with network’s solicitor and/or equivalent external solicitors/partners. Manage small departmental projects of work; and provide financial reporting relating to project expenditure and capitalisation of costs.

Principle Accountabilities:

• Implement property and consents strategy.
• Receive specific instructions from a connection designer with a pre‑planned design and, upon payment from the customer, actively seek acquisition of substation freehold or leasehold estates and easements or wayleaves for underground or overhead electric lines.
• Promptly negotiate the resolution of wayleave terminations or s.25 terminations with grantors and their agents involving distribution planning and the networks legal team to defend UK Power Networks assets.
• Proactively take enquiries from internal or external customers and grantors regarding problems with equipment on their property without consent, requests to relocate equipment, wayleave payment problems, access issues to existing substation, ESQC non‑compliance and tree cutting complaints, and negotiate alternatives and design solutions to the issues and manage them through to delivery.
• Report important business performance measures, including those of contractors.
• Implement processes concerning legal acquisitions and planning consents for new freehold or leasehold operational property, deeds of grant, assets held on wayleaves, ensuring contractors are aware and adhere to such processes.
• Develop and maintain external contacts with agents, legal advisors and management services providers.
• Work with UK Power Networks legal team, providing general legal and practical advice regarding the conveyance, leasing and subletting of operational property.
• Resolve third‑party disputes and conflicts, including major compensation claims, wayleave terminations and public inquiries.
• Maintain important external partner relationships, in particular with major grantors and their agents and planning authorities.
• Identify key business risks and opportunities in respect of operational property and operational assets held on third‑party land and propose appropriate risk management.
• Represent Property & Consents at meetings or workshops as and when required.
• Promote and help to develop an outstanding team culture with effective working relationships and communications within the team and across the business.
• Take responsibility for own safety, ensuring that appropriate risk assessments and use of PPE are correctly applied on all occasions.

Qualifications:

• RICS, HNC and/or a high level of experience and technical understanding concerning the legal aspects of operational property and wayleaves management.
• High level of business, environmental, safety, financial and regulatory awareness.
• Competence and experience in resolving property and wayleaves issues and in providing technical advice to distribution/infrastructure planning, connections, capital programme, network operational staff and contractors.
• Awareness of primary and secondary legislation concerning utilities’ operations; in particular, statutory instruments affecting electricity transmission and distribution assets.
• Familiar with the roles of, and relationships between, key external partners in the electricity utility businesses – including government, environmental, statutory authorities and business departments and agencies.
• A sufficiently good working knowledge of agriculture to be able to negotiate compensation claims in respect of loss of crop, land compaction, damage or losses to livestock, etc.
• Strong team player whilst being a confident and effective communicator with excellent public relations and influencing skills.
• Bring together best‑practice opportunities.
• Intuitive with a highly developed ability to recognise threats and opportunities.
• Comfortable with complexity and conflict.

Additional Responsibilities:

You will be responsible for the legal acquisition and protection, and where appropriate disposal and/or subletting of operational property freeholds and leaseholds, permanent easements, wayleaves, and the payment of rent and compensation on all Asset Management / Capital Programme Projects. Further responsibilities include project‑managing a team of contractors and offering advice on policy regarding all property and consent issues to project managers, internal legal specialists, legal and consent contractors, and external clients including legal advisers and other third parties.

Health & Safety Responsibilities:

Managers and supervisors carry both legal and company responsibilities for ensuring the health and safety of their employees, those under their control and those who might be affected by the work undertaken, i.e. public, visitors and employees of other organisations. This includes briefing individuals working for them and ensuring there is the necessary understanding, competence and application of requirements to work safely and without harming the environment. Employees will ensure they understand the health and safety risks involved in their work activities and their responsibility to apply the controls needed to manage those risks to acceptable levels. Similarly where work activities can have an adverse impact upon the environment, and where there are legal requirements, employees will understand those impacts and the controls they must ensure are applied.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, colour, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression, or veteran status. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.

Safeguarding:

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. Where applicable, this role is subject to safer recruitment processes and robust pre‑employment checks.