NI Water is celebrating a decade of one of the largest corporate volunteering schemes in the Province.
Over 1,500 staff have volunteered in 100 challenges to date, equating to more than 10,000 hours of volunteering to help support communities across Northern Ireland.
As part of NI Water’s ‘Cares Challenge’ programme, activities are planned and set up in partnership with Business in the Community’s NI Cares Programme. The programme identifies organisations and charities within the local community who need a helping hand with physical tasks.
This has allowed NI Water staff to help a wide range of charities over the past 10 years including, Southern Area Hospice, The National Trust, Welcome Organisation, Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary and Foyle Hospice.
In the latest Cares Challenge the NI Water team got to work in the grounds of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice.
The team of 15 volunteer gardeners including Chief Executive, Sara Venning, worked together to plant new flowers, clear weeds, trim plants, and paint planters and fences. All working together to make the garden at Children’s Hospice a perfect place of solace for patients and their families to enjoy and relax in.
Sara Venning, Chief Executive of NI Water, explained: “For more than a decade our dedicated staff have worked alongside charities, schools and community groups to help provide that extra support.
“These teams of handy helpers have undertaken everything from gardening, painting and maintenance to environmental and fundraising days. It is often the extra support that these groups require to enhance their facilities, improve the lives of their members and operate their centres successfully.
“Volunteering has also proved to be a key part of our health and wellbeing toolkit. Our teams gain so much from the experience, not only by helping the community, but also having the chance to spend time with colleagues from around the business that they might not otherwise have a chance to meet.”
Mary McCall, Director of Commercial Brand Development at the Northern Ireland Hospice said: “We were delighted that Northern Ireland Water chose to come here to Children’s Hospice and volunteer in our gardens for the day. The corporate volunteering programme at the Children’s Hospice is a win-win situation for all involved. It allows our business partners to fulfil their corporate social responsibility objectives and our patients get the benefit of their expertise and hard work in the garden.”
Kieran Harding, Managing Director of Business in the Community added: “NI Water has shown tremendous commitment to the local community through its decade-long involvement with the Cares Challenge. Employer-supported volunteering enables employees to engage with local communities, charities and community groups, to develop an understanding of their needs, and to pro-actively support the work they do. When employers offer opportunities for staff to volunteer it supports better wellbeing, develops skills, and improves employee engagement – creating a happier, healthier workforce.
“I’m delighted that, via the Cares programme, Business in the Community has been able to support NI Water to help local communities to thrive over the past decade.”
NI Water celebrates a decade of Cares Challenge, one of the largest corporate volunteering schemes in the Province. In the latest challenge the team of 15 volunteers, including Chief Executive, Sara Venning, worked to make the garden at the NI Children’s Hospice a perfect place of solace for patients and their families.
The University of Sheffield is inviting applications from UK and International students for four funded PhD opportunities.
Students will benefit from a bespoke training scheme delivered by world leading experts from academia and industry, access to world leading experimental and computational facilities as well as close and regular contact with industry and end user partners. CDT WIRe is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community, and offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies. For further information on the CDT WIRe scheme visit the web site: cdtwire.com
The four doctorates available are:
Intelligent Water Distribution Systems (in partnership with Scottish Water)
https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CNJ021/epsrc-phd-studentship-in-intelligent-water-distribution-systems
Managing Strategic Infrastructure to Ensure Safe Drinking Water (in partnership with South Staffordshire Water)
Information Theoretic Sensor Placement and Monitoring to Improve Performance in Complex Water and Sewer Network Infrastructure (in partnership with Thames Water)
Understanding the Risks Associated with Contaminated Floodwater from Urban Drainage Systems (grant-supported)
Details can be found on the links above.
A ground-breaking partnership between a water company and a nature conservation charity is becoming a must-see destination for policy-makers in the world of nature conservation and rural affairs.
United Utilities and the RSPB have been working together at Haweswater Reservoir over the last ten years to return the land to a more natural state. The project provides a template for how land can be better managed in England’s National Parks, delivering on the Government’s new vision for these landscapes to be rich in nature and driving nature’s recovery. This comes at a crucial time, in the middle of the Government’s consultation on the future of England’s National Parks. It also demonstrates practical steps to achieving the changes required by the new Environment Act; improving air and water quality, halting the decline of species and improving the natural environment.
Lord Benyon, Minister for Rural Affairs, Access to Nature and Biosecurity, visited Haweswater to learn more about the scheme.
The quality of the raw water in the reservoir, which serves a quarter of the North West region, is directly affected by the condition of the surrounding catchment land which drains into it.
With improving raw water quality as the starting point for habitat restoration, the partnership has gradually introduced a range of measures drawing on funding from different sources. These have resulted in many benefits including landscape and nature restoration, carbon capture, contributing to reducing downstream flood risk, sustainable livestock production and access improvements.
This includes award-winning schemes such as the re-meandering of Swindale Beck. The river, which had been artificially straightened some 200 years ago to increase grazing land, was put back to a more natural, meandering course, restoring important habitat for salmon, birds and insects, while reducing levels of silt being carried into the reservoir.
Tens of thousands of trees have been planted and 29 miles of moorland drainage ditches have been blocked up to restore peat bogs, reduce soil erosion and lock up carbon. As part of a farming diversification trial into low impact eco-tourism, wildlife photography hides have been created to offer opportunities for visitors to encounter iconic species such as red squirrel, badger and pied flycatcher.
The work at Haweswater also demonstrates how new funding mechanisms can support the rural economy instead of traditional agricultural subsidies. A new native tree and wildflower nursery has been established at Haweswater, with £250,000 of funding from Defra’s Green Recovery Challenge Fund in addition to £150,000 from United Utilities. This is increasing employment and supplying specialist upland trees, shrubs and arctic alpine plants to help the landscape restoration work continue.
Steve Mogford, CEO of United Utilities, said: “Landscape scale restoration projects take long-term vision and a collaborative approach. We’re already seeing the benefits of our joint vision with the RSPB at Haweswater and this is a perfect example of what the Environment Act is trying to achieve. United Utilities has been at the forefront of catchment management for years, but what we have learned is that water companies cannot bring about these changes alone. We hope the Haweswater scheme demonstrates that wider adoption of some of these practices could help bring about the nature recovery that we all want to see.”
Kevin Cox, Chair of the RSPB Council, said: “Our work at Haweswater shows the true power of partnerships. By working together with United Utilities and host of other partners, nature is benefitting from our collective efforts. Restoring land in the uplands is slow, hard work, but with the Nature and Climate Emergency becoming ever more pressing, it’s vital that we act urgently. I hope that our work will inspire others to take similar approaches that benefit water, wildlife and people.”
Lake District National Park Authority’s director of sustainable development, Steve Ratcliffe, added: “The scale of nature recovery at Haweswater is impressive and clearly demonstrates what can be achieved when we commit to working in partnership. Nature recovery through farming is a priority outcome of our Partnership Plan and it was a real pleasure to show the Minister a number of examples of where communities are working together to reverse biodiversity loss and tackle climate change within our cultural landscape. We all need to commit to ensuring this is a success and done urgently.”
Photo shows: L to R: Steve Mogford (CEO United Utilities), Lord Richard Benyon, Kevin Cox (RSPB) and Tiffany Hunt (Deputy Chair of Lake District National Park Authority)
The Big Bang Competition is recruiting for volunteer judges and moderators, offering the chance to help discover the engineers and scientists of the future.
The Competition celebrates curious minds and rewards young people’s achievements in all areas of science, technology, engineering and maths.
Competitors enter their projects online for the chance to take part in the finals, and compete for amazing prizes and accolades, including the chance to become UK Young Scientist of the Year and UK Young Engineer of the Year.
Volunteering offers the chance to give back to your profession, while supporting the ambitions of young engineers and scientists of the future.
We are looking for volunteers who are reliable and enjoy supporting and inspiring young people:
- with a STEM background
- an ability to communicate and provide positive feedback for young people
- impartiality and analytical skills to assess the STEM-based projects
Time commitment:
You will need to commit up to 10 hours over four weeks, between 14 March and 14 April 2022.
The deadline for applications is Friday 4 March 2022.
Find out more about the roles and apply.
More than 1,000 graduates and apprentices will help transform Scotland’s drinking and waste water services making them greener and fit for future generations.
They will play a critical part in ensuring Scottish Water has access to emerging talent when it will invest £4.5 billion over a six year period on thousands of miles of vital water pipes, sewer networks, treatment works and other assets.
Most will work on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) projects across Scotland. They will also help shape and support service excellence for the five million people the utility serves.
All the young people taken on will play a part ensuring Scottish Water delivers net zero emissions by 2040 by building network capacity to cope with changing weather patterns, deliver excellent quality drinking water, and protecting the environment.
The utility says graduates and apprentices will be “essential” between now and 2027 as it transforms its assets and the way it operates, ensuring it continues to be one of the most trusted organisations in the country.
The roles will also see the emerging talent gain on-the-job skills and help contribute to a flourishing Scotland in terms of growing a skilled future workforce.
They will be employed in Scottish Water and a number of partner organisations who will deliver one of Scotland’s biggest capital investment infrastructure programmes which will enhance Scotland’s water and waste water services.
Mark Dickson, Scottish Water’s Director of Capital Investment, said: “These young people will play a vital role in ensuring we deliver our ambitious plans for the next decade and beyond.
“They will bring a range of skills to help us achieve the change needed on the scale and speed to meet the challenge of providing services the public expect and rely on, while also addressing the impact that a changing climate has on our natural resources and infrastructure.
“Everyone who takes part will be pivotal in helping us reach our Route to Net Zero and, hopefully, in decades to come to be experts in the water industry serving a flourishing Scotland.
“We wanted to ensure our major programme of work for the next few years had a specific focus on delivering skills and development opportunities for young people as we transform how we operate, and we look forward to working with them to help develop the essential skills for the water industry and beyond.”
The new starts will help Scottish Water undertake a period of work spanning six years with an optional six-year extension. The initiative will maximise collaboration and consistency between partner organisations and to help meet net zero emissions targets, efficiency and supply chain support as and deliver service excellence for customers and communities.
Work will include , refurbishment and replacement of treatment plants and networks, covering mechanical, electrical, engineering, civil engineering, construction and maintenance services across Scotland.
Scottish Minister for Green Skills, Lorna Slater, said: “Responding to the climate emergency is a critical challenge facing our society and planet, and one that will necessitate adopting new roles and ways of working.
“We recognise the importance of a joined-up approach across all sectors of the economy to develop the upskilling and retraining opportunities required to enable people to take on new, green jobs and ensure communities across Scotland are part of a just transition to net zero emissions.
“It is great to see Scottish Water leading on this graduate and apprenticeship scheme, and working with partner companies, to prepare their workforce to seize these opportunities and further develop their skills
“I am confident that this kind of investment will help us to build and sustain our highly skilled workforce and support Scotland’s climate targets.”
Director of National Training Programmes at Scotland’s skills agency, Skills Development Scotland said: “Providing opportunities for young people through apprenticeships and work-based learning is crucial to ensure we have the critical skills needed for the economy and to support net zero ambitions.
“SDS is part of the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan to support ambitions to tackle climate change, with work-based learning and apprenticeships recognised as vital to support the transition to net zero. Employers like Scottish Water see the benefits of investing in apprenticeships to develop the future workforce while supporting the next generation of talent.”
The scheme was also welcomed by Grahame Barn, Chief Executive of CECA Scotland, the trade body for Scotland’s civil engineering contractors and representing over 80% of the industry, said: “The positive impact of infrastructure investment will be felt on the ground as civil engineering contractors work alongside Scottish Water to create local jobs, support businesses and nurture the next generation of talent.
“Our sector not only supports the vital infrastructure that keeps everyone connected but will also deliver the chance of a greener future by building the green skills we need to turn Scotland’s climate ambition into reality.
“Over the course of the programme of work, contractors will create the opportunities for apprentices to have the best possible springboard towards a successful career in construction and make a meaningful difference in Scotland’s transition to Net Zero.”
The graduates and modern apprentices will come from a range of companies who work in partnership with Scottish Water including Clancy, Morrison Construction, George Leslie Ltd, RWGM joint venture, Ross-shire Engineering, WGM Engineering & BGEN Joint Venture and Morrison Water Services.
Scottish Water is committed to supporting the Young Person’s Guarantee which seeks to ensure young people in Scotland are provided with the opportunity of an apprenticeship, fair employment – including work experience, taking part in a formal volunteering programme, training or a place at a university or college. Every year the utility takes on a number of people in a range of these roles.
The utility’s own broad apprenticeship programmes typically run for four years and focus upon the integration of learning both on and off-the-job.
Mr Dickson said: “Apprenticeship programmes have high currency within our business. Some of our leaders are former apprentices and there is a great deal of value placed on building for the future through the development of young people who understand the nature of this business, who have the technical skills required to perform safely and effectively, and who understand the vital role that we play within our communities and society.”
Scottish Water is a member of the Scottish Apprenticeship Advisory Board, gives employers and industry a leading role in developing apprenticeships in Scotland. It ensures apprenticeships develop to meet industry and economic need, fair work, and job opportunities.
A water company is investing in its future workforce by tripling the number of apprentices within the next year.
This announcement by South East Water during National Apprenticeship Week, running from today (7 February) to Sunday (13 February), follows the success of the past year’s scheme which has seen 20 through the programme.
The company has apprentices from 20 years old to 65 working right the way through the business from Customer Service, Engineering, Operations, Human Resources and Procurement.
Sian Jenkins, Head of Human Resources, South East Water said: “The theme for the National Apprenticeship Programme ‘Build the Future’ fits in exactly with our ambitious target for increasing the number of apprenticeships in South East Water over the next 12 months.
“Particular focus will be on developing our employees internally and recruiting a new generation of future talent across all areas of our business. We hope that our plans improve our social mobility and give equal opportunity across all our departments, especially in the more traditional jobs which have been dominated by one particular gender.”
Maisie Carter, whose apprenticeship was in Human Resources said: “I am grateful for the opportunities I have been given and if I had decided to take a different route I genuinely do not believe I would be in the position I am today.”
Working in Engineering, Craig Tooth said: “I will always be appreciative of the opportunities that have been given to me by South East Water as I now have a career path to follow.”
Paul Mansey, who at 46 is one of South East Water’s oldest apprentices within the Operations Department, said: “I have never turned any training opportunity down. I always tell people to just go for it as the sense of achievement is worth it.”
South East Water’s apprenticeship programme is now open for applicants on its website at www.southeastwater.co.uk/careers
Engineering students and junior engineers across the UK are being called upon to find radical ideas to tackle the nation’s growing water crisis as part of the Water Futures Challenge.
The competition, run by global plumbing and drainage solutions provider, Wavin, and held in partnership with the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), outlines four urgent challenges for entrants to address. The brief offers them the opportunity to apply their skills to create game-changing solutions that could prevent the UK’s water infrastructure from reaching breaking point.
The four challenges are:
- How can we better address man-made pollution across our rivers and waterways?
- How can we rethink the way the UK protects urban areas against flooding?
- How can we use the increasing levels of rainfall and stormwater to our advantage?
- How can we make high-rise buildings more efficient when it comes to heating and water reuse?
The Water Futures Challenge is open to all engineering students and professional engineers with less than 3 years’ experience. Entries, in the form of written submissions, are now open, with shortlisting taking place in March.
Shortlisted entrants will have the opportunity to present their ideas to a panel of industry experts at a showcase event at the ICE headquarters in Central London on 3rd May 2022. Their ideas will be brought to life by digital artists and will go on display at the headquarters at Number One, Great George Street.
The engineer who creates the winning idea relating to each challenge will receive £1,000 towards their studies and career goals. The overall grand winner will become the first ICE Water Futures Ambassador. As well as winning another £1,000 on top of their initial prize money, the Water Futures Ambassador will be invited to join ICE’s Flooding Community Advisory Board, which meets regularly through the year. This position will give them the opportunity to sit in at the top table and discuss major water issues and solutions, while networking with other professionals driving engineering forward.
The Water Futures Ambassador will also be invited to attend all ICE Knowledge Live Events throughout the year and write blogs for the ICE website, acting as an integral part of the ICE Knowledge Community.
Mike Ward, Wavin Managing Director UK and Ireland, commented: “The issues we’re outlining in the Water Futures Challenge: flooding, water pollution, increased rainfall, and water conservation, are getting more urgent and are impacting a growing number of people.
“We need to start thinking radically, and this means identifying and fast-tracking ideas from this uniquely creative generation before it’s too late. This new brief will give student engineers and junior engineers the opportunity to showcase their talents and help build strong relationships between them and the wider industry. These relationships will be key to ensuring that we continue to create healthy, sustainable environments where future generations can thrive.”
To find out more about the Water Futures Challenge, including details on how to enter, visit www.wavin.co.uk/water-futures-challenge.