Cost Planner

Are you passionate about ensuring financial accuracy and efficiency in capital project delivery? As a Cost Planner, you'll play a vital role in maintaining and assuring project cost and schedule baselines, ensuring data integrity across key business systems at Thames Water. Your expertise will help drive transparency and efficiency in capital investment, providing critical insights that support decision-making across Thames Water.

What you’ll be doing as a Cost Planner

As a Cost Planner, you’ll be responsible for maintaining financial accuracy across capital projects and ensuring compliance with corporate policies. You’ll collaborate with key stakeholders, including Programme Managers and Engineering Delivery Partners, to ensure the smooth tracking and reporting of financial data. Your role will include:

• Updating SAP with forecasts, actuals, and key project milestones while ensuring compliance with financial policies.
• Assuring the accuracy of cost data provided by contracting partners and challenging non-financial information where necessary.
• Working alongside Delivery Partners to track project milestones and identify any discrepancies.
• Supporting budget setting and financial forecasting for capital projects.
• Ensuring baseline performance changes are escalated and managed effectively.
• Managing the cost recharge process for entrusted projects.
• Maintaining a consistent Work Breakdown Schedule (WBS) within SAP for robust reporting and compliance with financial standards.

Location: Hybrid - Clearwater Court, Reading – Minimum 1 day per month in office.

Working pattern: Full-time, Monday–Friday. (36 hours per week)

Duration: This is a 13-month Fixed Term Contract, starting in April 2025.

What you should bring to the role

We’re looking for someone with strong analytical skills and experience in financial controls. You should be able to work under tight deadlines while maintaining accuracy in data management and reporting.
Key skills and experience include:

• Previous experience as a Cost Planner, Financial Controller, or Senior Analyst with a strong track record of delivery.
• Advanced SAP skills and experience in regulatory reporting within a commercial or project controls environment.
• Strong numerical and analytical skills with proficiency in MS Office 365 reporting products.
• Experience with SharePoint and PowerBI. (desirable but not essential)
• Ability to assure system data integrity and align data with governance and change decisions.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, both written and verbal.

What’s in it for you?

This role offers a great opportunity to work on high-impact capital projects, gaining valuable experience in cost planning and financial controls. You'll have exposure to senior management, the chance to shape processes, and contribute to key investment decisions—all within a supportive and dynamic team.

• Competitive salary from £40,000 to £57,000 per annum depending on experience.
• 26 days holiday per year, increasing to 30 with the length of service. (plus bank holidays)
• Generous Pension Scheme through AON.
• Access to lots of benefits to help you take care of you and your family’s health and wellbeing, and your finances – from annual health MOTs and access to physiotherapy and counselling, to Cycle to Work schemes, shopping vouchers and life assurance.

Find out more about our benefits and perks

Who are we?

We’re the UK’s largest water and wastewater company, with more than 16 million customers relying on us every day to supply water for their taps and toilets. We want to build a better future for all, helping our customers, communities, people and the planet to thrive. It’s a big job and we’ve got a long way to go, so we need help from passionate and skilled people, committed to making a difference and getting us to where we want to be in the years and decades to come.

Learn more about our purpose and values

Working at Thames Water

Thames Water is a unique, rewarding and diverse place to work, where every day you can make a difference, yet no day is the same. As part of our family, you’ll enjoy fast-tracked career opportunities, flexible working arrangements and excellent benefits.
Whether you’re interested in a role in one of our call centres or science labs, we’re looking for people like you with real passion and a burning desire to make things better.

So, if you’re looking for a sustainable and successful career where you can make a daily difference to millions of people’s lives while helping to protect the world of water for future generations, we’ll be here to support you every step of the way. Together, we can build a better future for our customers, our region and our planet.

Real purpose, real support, real opportunities. Come and join the Thames Water family. Why choose us? Learn more.

Our overarching aim is to ensure that Thames Water is a great, diverse and inclusive place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and offer extra support for those who need it throughout the recruitment process. We aim to remove any real or perceived barriers to success, so if you need assistance, we’re here to help and support.

When a crisis happens, we all rally around to support our customers. As part of Team Thames, you’ll have the opportunity to sign up to support our customers on the frontline as an ambassador. Full training will be given for what is undoubtedly an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s also a great opportunity to learn more about our business, meet colleagues and earn some extra money along the way.

Disclaimer: due to the high volume of applications we receive, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.