Location: UK (Bedford, Birmingham, Bristol, Guildford, Leeds, Manchester)

Start Date: January 2021

Programme: 6 month returnship

Closing date for application: Apply ASAP, latest 4 October 2020

This opportunity is now closed

Your New Role

If you are an experienced professional who has been out of work for 2 or more years and are looking to return to the work place and get your career back on track, then this could be a perfect opportunity for you. Highways England has a range of opportunities available, where you will be able to become completely integrated into a team within the organisation and build up any lost confidence, brush up on those management skills or gain some new ones. This is the fourth year that Highways England has been running such a successful and rewarding Programme.  It is designed to give you a great experience working for a company that values you as an individual and wants to help you move forward whilst also allowing the organisation to benefit from all your previous experience gained prior to your career break.

About the Programme

There are a number of roles paying between £33,940-£68,409.  Don’t worry if you don’t have the specific experience in your chosen field or area of interest, they are looking for talented individuals who share their values and behaviours and are able to transfer their skills to be successful in a new role with their support.

All roles are initially offered on a 6 month fixed term contract but could lead to further opportunities both permanent or interim. 95% of those who have joined the Programme have remained with the organisation beyond six months.

They will provide you with a supportive line manager, a structured Coaching Programme and a mentor/buddy to help you succeed.

Worried that only 9am-5pm positions exist? Don’t be! They are a flexible working organisation and understand that life is important and there is a reason not everyone can commit to these hours. They are open to a variety of working options.

Read Sarah’s story of returning via the Returner programme here: Sarah’s Story

Roles available 

Commercial and Senior Commercial Lawyers (Birmingham or Guildford)

English Qualified Solicitor/Barrister, strong communication skills, and team working ethos. Strong collaboration and organisation skills to develop and improve policies and processes.

Business Planning Manager (Birmingham or Guildford)

Strong communication, collaborative mindset and well organised to provide Business Management to large division. Relationship and stakeholder management experience. Ability to analyse data. Could be from a Finance or Consulting background.

Planning Manager (Birmingham)

Meticulous, organised and methodical. Strong communication skills, stakeholder management and people skills. Able to handle high volume environments. Could be from an account management or project management background.

Civil Engineering Estimator (Leeds, Manchester, Bristol or Guildford)

Team player, strong communication skills and ability to build relationships with stakeholders. Estimating in nuclear, utilities or rail experience. Commercial, Finance, Economical or analytical background.

Project Manager (Bristol or Bedford)

Project Management/APM/PMI or MSP qualified. Stakeholder management, strong communication skills and organised. Experience of working with large scale projects and managing joint ventures.

Finance Reporting Lead (Birmingham)

Effective communicator, experienced in working in a high volume and demanding finance environment. An organized individual, with an ability to build and maintain relationships. Previous Power BI (business analytics) experience and reporting experience is useful. Skilled in IT platforms such as Excel.

To be successful

If you can demonstrate how you:

  • put safety first
  • take ownership of your work
  • work effectively in a team
  • show passion for what you do
  • show integrity in how you do it

Then you could be a great fit for the Programme. Remember, this doesn’t have to be in a purely work environment.

A bit about Highways England

It’s an exciting time to begin a career with Highways England as they deliver £15billion of investment in England’s motorways and A Roads, boosting capacity, tackling congestion and improving safety. That’s why they’re so grateful to their c. 5,500 employees around the country. When you work with them, you’re helping to connect communities, sustain business and support the economy.

At Highways England, they believe in a connected country. They are passionate about creating a culture where colleagues feel connected, included and enjoy greater wellbeing to achieve this.  They’re proud that as an organisation they are continually striving to do better and actively encourage and support their colleagues to do the same with their careers.

Want to know more?

If you’re ready to start your return-to-work journey with Highways England, don’t forget to clearly show your career break on your CV as well as what you’ve been doing and why you’d like to start your next chapter as part of the Returners Programme with them.

Click here to apply using this link: Returners Programme

Please when applying, attach a short covering letter expressing which role(s) you are interested in, so they can process your application effectively.

The closing date for applications is Sunday 4th October 2020, with interviews planned late October early November 2020.

If you have any queries, email returnersprogramme@highwaysengland.co.uk