Associate Planner

The British Energy Security Strategy set out the Government’s ambition to connect up to 50GW of offshore generation to the electricity network by 2030. Delivering this ambition requires significant reinforcement of the onshore electricity transmission network — and National Grid Strategic Infrastructure is leading the way.

At National Grid, we connect homes and businesses to power, ensuring supply and demand are balanced every second of every day. From schools and hospitals to sporting arenas, we keep the lights on for millions of people across the UK.

Through our investment in Strategic Infrastructure and the Great Grid Upgrade, we are enabling more home‑grown energy, strengthening energy security, and supporting a cleaner, more sustainable future.

We are currently recruiting for an Associate Planner to support the Western Link 2 (WL2) project which is a major offshore electricity transmission joint venture between National Grid and Scottish Power Transmission, spanning England and North Wales.

This role offers hybrid working, with regular travel to Warwick and occasional travel to sites across England and North Wales. We’re happy to discuss flexible working arrangements to make this role work for you.

This is an exciting opportunity to support the development and delivery of highly innovative HVDC technology within National Grid’s offshore Strategic Infrastructure portfolio. The project forms part of a multi‑billion‑pound investment programme and will play a critical role in decarbonising the energy system by 2035 and supporting the UK’s Net Zero 2050 ambitions.

In this role, you will contribute to the development of robust project programmes and performance baselines that enable effective monitoring of delivery, performance evaluation, and the identification of mitigation and recovery strategies. You will support National Grid‑owned programme activities from early development through to construction and project completion.

We are looking for a confident communicator with strong Primavera P6 and construction planning experience to support programme development, delivery, progress reporting, and change assessment. Experience in NEC/FIDIC environments is desirable. The role offers flexibility, travel opportunities, and access to funded professional development. We encourage applications from candidates who may not meet every requirement but demonstrate the right potential and mindset.

• Support development, tendering, and construction planning activities by preparing and updating project schedules under guidance from senior planners.
• Learn and apply project controls best practices in line with National Grid standards and processes.
• Support critical path analysis, progress tracking, and identification of early programme risk indicators.
• Work with early development teams to build and update initial project timelines that will later be cost‑loaded and assured.
• Maintain programmes aligned to monthly reporting cycles, ensuring information is accurate and up to date.
• Contribute ideas to improve planning approaches while learning best‑practice techniques from experienced colleagues.
• Support planning workshops to enable collaboration and alignment across stakeholders.
• Collaborate with internal teams, joint‑venture partners, and contractors within an integrated delivery environment.
• Support project leads with logically linked programme planning from project start through to completion.
• Identify and elevate risks to key milestones and critical path activities early, supporting stakeholder alignment.
• Provide early insights and recommendations to support timely decision‑making by Project Managers.
• Review contractor programme submissions against contractual requirements and highlight gaps to senior planners.

You’ll ideally have:

• Experience using Primavera P6.
• Some exposure to planning and project delivery.
• Experience working with cross‑functional teams.
• Knowledge of NEC/FIDIC contract environments (desirable).
• Good organisational skills to manage data, documentation, and planning information.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to collaborate effectively.

A competitive…