Charter Mark Gold Award for Severn Trent Water
July 15, 2025Posted by:
Severn Trent’s Charter Mark Assessment: Delivering with Depth, Clarity and Intent
Severn Trent Water recently completed their Social Recruitment Charter Mark assessment and were awarded Gold status, reflecting a deep, strategic, and operationalised commitment to inclusive employment. The assessment was delivered by PeoplePlus’ Social Value Solutions Manager Dr Craig Corrigan, and Head of Employer Management, Liz Squire.
What set Severn Trent apart was their consistency, clarity and maturity of delivery, despite only being in the second year of a 10 year strategy. We were also impressed by the scope and commitment in the room during the Assessment – a total of seven Severn Trent colleagues each representing different areas of the business from resourcing, EDI and work experience were all present to give a complete perspective of the Severn Trent business.
A Strategy That Starts with People
Social recruitment at Severn Trent is directly tied to their 10-year societal strategy to help 100,000 people at risk of water poverty through employment or progression into better-paid roles. Recruitment is seen as the key lever to make that happen.
Their approach actively lowers entry barriers:
- Apprenticeships are accessible to young people with no degree or formal qualifications.
- Entry criteria have been waived or adjusted (for example, there are no maths/English prerequisites and there is not a degree requirement for graduates).
- Focus is given to recruiting from areas of high deprivation across the Severn Trent waterways geography, focusing on Derby, Coventry, East Birmingham, and Leicester,
“We recognised the opportunity to engage and rethink how we recruit, and this recognition reflects that commitment to creating real jobs and opportunities for those facing barriers.” Kat Greenwood – Head of Resourcing and New Talent
Built-in Inclusion, Not Bolted-On
Their workforce strategy covers five priority groups: NEETs, ex-offenders, care leavers, disabled individuals, and the long-term unemployed. Using the TOMs framework, they’ve embedded the nine categories TOMs references and chosen five as root causes of inequality to address head-on.
When the KickStart Scheme was available, they pledged 500 placements and were able to move 46% of those people into employment. Although the scheme is no longer running, the legacy and principles lives on in their structured work experience offer, underpinned by mentoring and progression support. And their apprenticeship offer includes adults making career changes, with guaranteed job offers and long-term professional development routes. Working with other organisations, Severn Trent have also pledged to create 100 placements for care leavers.
“We’ve created pathways for all groups. It's not business as usual, we’re doing this intentionally.” Alysha Zimmer, Work & Experience & Employability Manager
Ex-Offender Recruitment: A Three Pronged Approach
Resourcing Manager, Joe, who has a dedicated focus of recruiting and retaining ex-offenders, shared with us their approach.
- Trailblazers: A mentoring programme in HMP Brinsford and HMP Sudbury prisons which prepares the men for work-readiness.
- Business As Usual recruitment: Open-minded, case-by-case review of applicants with unspent convictions.
- New Futures Network placements: Working with NFN and EFRA the academy delivers employability sessions in the prisons and looks for people who are nearing end of sentence and who might be suitable.
They haven’t ‘banned the box’, instead, they’ve reframed it with context. Complex cases are reviewed by the internal Amber Committee, made up of three senior leaders.
“We understand the rationale behind the conviction. We only start the conversation once they’ve been offered the role.” Joe Hodgson, Resourcing Manager
Accountability and Governance That’s Board-Level
This is clearly not a CSR side project, all initiatives are signed off at Executive level, with metrics reported up to the Corporate Responsibility and PLC Board.
“It’s the same level of governance as any regulated part of the business, this isn’t greenwashing.” Kat Greenwood – Head of Resourcing and New Talent
Annual data reviews track representation, promotion and attrition across demographics. Their inclusion training is part of manager onboarding, inductions, and face-to-face modules, backed by a practical internal workshop called ‘Wonderfully You.’
Verdict
Severn Trent has built a highly mature and measured approach to social recruitment. Their Gold award is fully earned, and they are now positioned for Ambassador-level influence, if they continue to build feedback loops from lived experience and share their model with others.
“This is the most consistent approach we’ve seen so far, with a clear and detailed approach to the communities they want to support and how they can achieve that. We are all looking forward to working with Severn Trent to greater increase their Social Value.” Dr Craig Corrigan, PeoplePlus Social Value Solutions Manager.
July 15, 2025Posted by:
