Financial Resilience Analysts

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 Financial Resilience Analysts to join our Financial Resilience Team within the Delivery Directorate.

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.

We have 2 excellent opportunities for Financial Analysts to join our Financial Resilience Team at Senior Associate level.

Resilience is crucial in the water sector – and we define this as including corporate, financial, and operational resilience.

The Financial Resilience work-stream looks at the corporate and financial resilience of companies in the water sector.

We monitor the performance and resilience of the companies we regulate, exploring all sources of information available to us, including Annual Performance Reports and statutory accounts, looking in detail at corporate structures and financing and governance arrangements. We challenge companies where necessary to take steps to improve their financial resilience and we hold companies to account where they are not delivering in line with expectations.

Our aim is to ensure the interests of customers are protected in the event of risks to financial resilience and as such we continuously review our procedures and processes to determine whether there is more we can and should do to hold companies to account for maintaining their financial resilience.

As a Senior Associate within the Financial Resilience team, you will use your accountancy experience and knowledge of corporate finance to monitor the financial performance of the companies which we regulate. You will undertake financial analysis to support our wider policy and monitoring work including supporting other workstreams across Ofwat. You will be expected to proactively share skills and knowledge and equally will be supported by coaching and mentoring.

You will thrive in a varied environment, managing a wide range of financial and compliance issues. A flexible and adaptable approach is essential, as priorities can change and the team is often required to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities.

Key deliverables:

In this role you will be expected to:

• Work on a varied projects within the Financial Resilience work stream.
• Monitor the financial performance and position of companies and consider whether there is a risk to their resilience and whether action needs to be taken to protect customers. This may include wholesale water and wastewater companies, smaller NAV (New Appointment and Variation) companies and the non-household retail companies.
• Contribute to the development of our policy and processes in relation to how companies need to demonstrate resilience and the approach that Ofwat should take to regulation in this area.
• Identify potential issues relating to the accuracy and transparency of financial reporting by companies, as well as company compliance with relevant license requirements. You may also be involved in work to address concerns over the resilience of individual companies.
• Support other workstreams and priority areas across Ofwat, such as the delivery the price review process. Work in this area may include contributing to the review of business plans submitted by companies and following any interventions to those plans made by Ofwat.

Qualification or part-qualification in accountancy, corporate finance or other financial disciplines (e.g. ACA, CIMA, ACCA, CIPFA, CFA) or equivalent experience in a similar role.

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)

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 01 November 2026
• Sifting: Week commencing 02 November 2026
• Interview date(s): Week commencing 16 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 above. 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:

• Lead criterion 1: Qualification or part-qualification in accountancy, corporate finance or other financial disciplines (e.g. ACA, CIMA, ACCA, CIPFA, CFA) or equivalent experience in a similar role.
• Lead criterion 2: Experience of analysing, interpreting and challenging financial information relevant to determining a company's financial position.
• Experience of developing and using financial indicators and other information to monitor the performance and financial stability of companies.
• Understanding of financial reporting and the application of relevant accounting standards.
• 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.

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 written task. This is carried out in the hour prior to the interview. 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.

'Near-miss' candidates (candidates who have performed well at interview stage but haven’t scored high enough for the advertised Senior Associate band) may be considered (in merit order) for an Associate grade post – a band lower than Senior Associate. Further details will be provided to candidates as needed.

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.