Lead Strategic Cost Engineer

Up to £67,000 (Depending on Skills & Experience)

Permanent

Full Time / 37 Hours (Flexible working opportunities available)

Peterborough

Double Matched Pension Scheme (up to 21% combined)

Private Healthcare

Make every drop of your potential count!

We are looking for a Lead Strategic Cost Engineer to join Anglian Water's Cost Intelligence and Commercial Assurance function, leading the development of the cost intelligence framework that underpins major investment planning across the business.

This is a strategic leadership role responsible for cost collection, governance, modelling, assurance and estimating services. You will lead the development, calibration and assurance of total expenditure, carbon and operational cost models, ensuring decision-makers have robust, transparent and defensible cost intelligence to support efficient, evidence-based investment planning.

What you'll be doing:

• Lead the design and continuous improvement of cost collection templates and governance processes

• Oversee quality assurance of cost submissions, ensuring alignment with SAP, cost models and business requirements

• Lead the development, verification and calibration of total expenditure, carbon and operational cost models

• Provide senior review and approval of investment and alternative estimates

• Own and maintain estimating service guidance, documentation, training materials and system support content

• Lead enhancements to the Cost Estimation System, ensuring updates are tested, documented and communicated

• Analyse investment plan data to identify delivery efficiencies and cost performance opportunities

• Support regulatory submissions and evidence packs through robust analysis, benchmarking and cost insight

• Coach, guide and develop team members, building cost intelligence capability across the function

What we're looking for

• Degree level qualification or equivalent experience in engineering, quantity surveying, mathematics or a related technical discipline

• Proven experience estimating large programmes of work using structured cost models

• Strong experience in cost modelling, cost collection, benchmarking or investment planning

• Experience working in a regulated environment, including exposure to price review or regulatory evidence

• Strong understanding of infrastructure assets and the impact of investment and operational decisions

• Excellent stakeholder management skills with confidence challenging and influencing across multiple teams

• Strong analytical, problem-solving and communication skills with excellent attention to detail

• Ability to lead others, manage competing priorities and deliver high-quality outputs under pressure

Desirable: Chartered or working towards chartership with a relevant professional body such as RICS. Experience in water, wastewater, utilities, embodied carbon modelling, system governance or regulatory cost assurance.

Why join Anglian Water?

At Anglian Water, cost intelligence is central to how we plan and deliver investment for customers, communities and the environment. In this role, you will lead a key capability that shapes investment decisions, strengthens regulatory submissions and improves how the business captures, models and benchmarks cost performance. You will influence senior stakeholders, develop technical capability in the team and help embed a culture of transparent, data-driven cost management.

Benefits

• 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays (increasing with length of service)

• Flexible working options

• Private health care

• Competitive pension scheme - Anglian Water double-matches contributions up to 7%

• Life assurance at eight times your salary

• Annual bonus

• Potential funded car allowance depending on evidenced business mileage

• Personal medical assessments

• Virtual GP service

• Cancer screening

• Financial wellbeing support and salary finance benefits

• Lifestyle savings including discounts on retail, travel and utilities

• Employee Assistance Programme

• Volunteer days

Inclusion at Anglian Water

We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong. We are proud signatories of the Social Mobility Pledge, Race at Work Charter and Armed Forces Covenant, and we are a Disability Confident employer.

Closing Date: 9th August 2026

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