Proactive Desilt Assistant in Blackburn

We offer a competitive salary (Salary band 6a) £27,364 to £34,136 depending on experience. Annual incentive related bonus (£1000 maximum bonus opportunity for the performance year). Attractive pension scheme (up to 12% company contribution). Development opportunities in line with the Proactive Desilt Assistant progression plan. 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays – plus an extra wellness day! Additional hours in lieu of working bank holidays. Life assurance cover of 4 times pensionable salary. A great benefits package – choose from health cash plan scheme, critical illness insurance, dental insurance, life assurance flex and partner cover. Retail savings scheme, online GP service, cycle to work scheme, gym membership discounts and many more!

Location: We currently have a vacancy for a Proactive Desilt Assistant to join our Customer Field Services department with our Waste Service Delivery Business Unit working out of Blackburn Meadows WWTW covering the whole of Yorkshire. Successful applicants need to be within a 30-minute commute from our Blackburn Meadows wastewater treatment works.

Work Type: Permanent | Full-time (40 hours per week, rotational shifts)

What we do: Everyone has an idea of what a water company does. Here in Yorkshire, we make sure that over 5.4 million people living in the region and the millions of people who visit our region each year can rely on our services, and have clean and safe drinking water on tap and that their wastewater is taken away. But for us, it’s so much more than this. We look after communities, protect the environment, and plan to look after Yorkshire’s water, today, tomorrow 24/7, 365 days a year. We provide essential water and wastewater services to every corner of the Yorkshire region and play a key role in the region’s health, wellbeing, and prosperity. New environmental legislation, unprecedented levels of investment and changing expectations from customers means that this is an exciting time to discover opportunities within the water industry. Customer Field Services are a key part of how we plan to meet the changing expectations of customers and regulators.

Where you fit: As a Proactive Desilt Assistant, you will assist the Proactive Desilt Technician in operating a recycler in a safe and optimal way, to respond to reactive blockage reports from the sewer network and provide and deliver a high standard of customer interaction while dealing with all sewer related incidents. Support with blockage response times, in cases of high work volumes and wet weather events. You will be predominantly working on our proactive desilt program, including sewer inspection, cleaning, and defect resolution. This is an ongoing activity; we are aiming to proactively inspect and, where required, cleanse and resolve defects on 450k of sewer network using a data led approach to target high risk areas. You will be responsible for ensuring a first-time fix solution for customers and the environment whilst ensuring quality follow-on work is raised in accordance with our standards and specifications. You will be working closely with other Yorkshire Water teams and our contracted partners on site to resolve and manage operational issues on the sewer network. You will also be required to support with collation of data and information for evidence capturing. You will ensure Health and Safety working practices & procedures are always complied. When making day to day business decisions you will be required to demonstrate financial awareness and provide technical support and first line response to customer contacts to ensure a fix first time resolution & ensuring that the most cost-effective resolution is promoted. As part of this role, you will be required to work within confined spaces; any successful candidate must pass strict medical criteria including BMI, vision, blood pressure, hearing, and Spirometry tests to ensure your full safety when working in hazardous environments.

What skills, experience and training you will need:

• A full valid UK driving licence (no more than 6 points).
• A strong Health & Safety background.
• Develop and maintain effective internal and external relations.
• Ability to find faults and diagnose the root cause of an issue.
• Competent in the use of IT systems.
• Knowledge and experience on working with Microsoft Excel.
• The ability to be proactive and take ownership of issues, think through problems and work with others to solve them.
• Be committed to ongoing personal development.
• Good interpersonal skills to liaise with ops, customers, and stakeholders.

If you’re an experienced Field-based professional and want to help us deliver exceptional service for our customers whilst protecting the environment, then apply today to find out what a career with Yorkshire Water can offer for you. Although we operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, it’s important to us that we support flexible working patterns and job share options (when we can), to help you make the best of both your work and home life. We know that juggling childcare responsibilities or getting that ideal work/life balance isn’t always easy!

Closing date – 13th February 2026. If successful for the role, you will be required to undergo pre-employment checks that will include a Basic Disclosure Check, carried out through a Third‑Party Company, prior to commencing employment. Depending on the role, you may also be required to go through the security vetting process for either a Counter‑Terrorist Check or Security Check clearance. All our roles are subject to a medical questionnaire, and further medicals when required. We are committed to removing barriers and ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to everyone. We offer a range of adjustments to make your application experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible. If you have an accessibility need, disability, or condition that requires changes to the recruitment process, please include this information in your application. We will then discuss any reasonable adjustments required. Kelda Group reserve the right to close this position before the published closing date, should the need occur. We therefore advise that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible.