Learning Consultant

This 1-year fixed-term role has been introduced to help manage a busy period, as we work more closely with the business to understand their strategic priorities and explore how Learning and Development can best support them.

As a Learning Consultant, you’ll play a key role in helping our people perform at their best. You’ll work closely with teams across the business to understand their challenges, identify what’s really needed, and shape learning solutions that drive real impact. Whether it’s through performance consulting, learning needs analysis, or designing innovative approaches, you’ll help ensure learning is targeted, effective, and aligned to our wider strategic goals.

You’ll be the first point of contact for training requests – guiding stakeholders to the right solutions and making sure everything connects with our learning strategy, systems, and standards. You’ll also support key projects, provide expert advice on best practice, and help ensure that learning activity – wherever it happens, fits into a consistent, joined-up approach.

This role is about being curious, collaborative, and focused on outcomes. You’ll need to ask the right questions, challenge constructively, and always keep the bigger picture in mind, prioritising what will make the greatest difference to our people and our business.

What you’ll be doing as a Learning Consultant

• Engage proactively with stakeholders to deeply understand business challenges, distinguishing between perceived wants and actual needs.
• Develop a tailored learning plan for each function, actively manage and update it on an ongoing basis, provide quarterly progress reports to senior leadership, and conduct an annual review to assess impact and outcomes as part of a continuous improvement cycle.
• Design and recommend innovative, blended learning solutions beyond traditional face-to-face or eLearning formats – leveraging digital, social, experiential, and on-the-job learning methods as appropriate.
• Support the development and maintenance of competence certification frameworks for high-risk roles and tasks, ensuring alignment with Thames Water’s central processes.
• Manage the end-to-end training request process, ensuring clarity, consistency, and alignment with L&D priorities.
• Manage relationships with external learning providers and consultants to ensure efficient, cost-effective delivery of high-quality learning solutions that meet business needs.
• Actively contribute to shared processes, tools, and best practices that enhance team effectiveness and service delivery.
• Support the L&D communications plan by contributing relevant updates, success stories, and guidance for your areas of accountability.
• Collaborate with internal communications and L&D colleagues to ensure consistent messaging and visibility of learning initiatives.

Base location: Reading – with extensive travel to Swindon

Working pattern: 36 Hours

What you should bring to the role

• Proven experience in a Learning & Development or Learning Consultant role within a complex, fast-paced organisation.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across functions and with stakeholders at all levels, including senior leadership.
• Track record of designing and delivering innovative, blended learning solutions architecture – aligned to strategic objectives.
• Strong understanding of learning theory, performance consulting, and learning methodologies. (e.g. digital, social, experiential)
• Excellent communication and consultancy skills, with the ability to challenge constructively and ask meaningful questions to shape and structure learning to ensure the highest levels of end-user experience.

What’s in it for you?

• Competitive salary up to £58,000 per annum, depending on experience.
• Annual Leave- 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. Our aim is 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 and meet colleagues.

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.