Drainage Modeller

At HR Wallingford, we design smart, resilient solutions across the natural and built environments to help everyone live and work more sustainably with water. By harnessing research, data insights and the power of our collective expertise, we help the world to better understand the changing influence and impact of water.

We have an exciting opening for drainage modeller to help us deliver on our expanding portfolio of UK and international research and consultancy projects.

Current projects within the Catchments and Drainage team include:

• Modelling the impacts of retrofitting Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) in cities in Europe and the Caribbean as part of climate resilient planning strategies;
• Evaluating impacts of Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) spills and urban runoff discharges;
• Governance of water company modelling and asset delivery strategies;
• Modelling and master planning drainage asset portfolios;
• Developing climate‑adjusted rainfall time series and risk‑based approaches to drainage design for flood and spill risk mitigation;
• Creating tools for the planning, evaluation and design of SuDS;
• Creating digital AI modelling solutions and applications;
• Developing industry good practice guidance.

The team sits within the wider Flood and Water Management Group. Across this Group, we have a wide variety of experts including in water resources, flood risk systems analyses, flood forecasting, international climate adaptation and resilience, statistical modelling, data visualisation and management, and the use of earth observation data. Our work cuts across regulatory, government and private sector consultancy and research sectors – both in the UK and internationally, and we are continuously generating new knowledge, skills and tools through our ongoing programme of internally‑funded research.

Within your role, you would be interacting and developing solutions with staff in all of these fields, in order to win and deliver projects and support clients across the Group.

The Group are recognised for our innovation. We won the ‘Digital Excellence’ category at the Environment Agency’s Flood and Coast Excellence Awards 2024 with our Resilience and Innovation Northants (RAIN) platform for Northamptonshire Council. Our Intelligent Dam Safety Monitoring (DAMSAT) project won two awards at the New Civil Engineer Techfest Awards and our Dengue forecasting MOdel Satellite‑based System (D‑MOSS) has won 9 different industry awards.

We have recently been successful in securing Ofwat Innovation Funding for a national SuDS platform (with Southern Water) and for developing a Rainwater Management Platform (with Wessex Water). We were also one of the ten finalists for the Manchester Prize for which we were funded to develop an AI sewer spill water quality impact tool.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated individual with existing demonstrable drainage modelling expertise and skills in data analysis who can help us with the development of new ideas and solutions, alongside providing robust established support to our clients.

You will have at least a year’s surface water and/or wastewater drainage modelling experience (using Info Works ICM or equivalent) and ideally also have expertise in GIS and coding to help present and solve complex, data‑intensive problems. You will have good understanding of risks and solutions relating to urban runoff. Importantly, you will be a team player.

You will have a minimum professional qualification of a Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline and have studied mathematics to A’level (or equivalent).

• Salary:
  Competitive (depending on experience).
• The closing date for applications is 7 th January 2026
  .

• Exceptional benefits: Enjoy a defined contribution pension scheme with a minimum 10% employer contribution (matched up to an additional 5%), 25 days of holiday plus bank holidays, life insurance, and health insurance providing dental/optical cash back.
• Inclusive culture: Our commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion is embedded in our core values.
• Inspiring the next generation: We are passionate about inspiring the next generation of engineers…