Job Description:

Scheduler

Location: Maidstone, Kent (office-based)
Salary: Up to £35,000
Contract: Permanent, full-time

THE OPPORTUNITY

We are looking for an experienced Service Planner or Scheduler to take control of the daily and forward workload for our wastewater engineering teams.

You will balance planned maintenance with urgent call-outs, matching each job to the right engineer, skills, equipment and location. Your decisions will directly influence response times, first-time completion, engineer productivity and the service our customers receive.

This is more than an administrative scheduling role. We need someone who can think operationally, challenge an unworkable plan, anticipate constraints and stay composed when priorities change.

For the right candidate, the role offers real ownership and the opportunity to improve how work is planned and delivered.

WHAT YOU'LL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR

• Build and maintain the plan - Schedule planned servicing, maintenance, repairs and reactive wastewater call-outs across multiple field teams.
• Deploy the right resource - Allocate engineers according to urgency, geography, competence, site requirements, availability and safe working considerations.
• Control the live day - Monitor jobs from dispatch to completion, resolve clashes and delays, and re-plan quickly when emergencies, overruns or absences arise.
• Protect customer commitments - Prioritise work against contractual response times and service-level agreements, escalating risks before commitments are missed.
• Prepare jobs properly - Confirm scope, access, permits, parts, specialist equipment and supporting information so engineers arrive ready to complete the work.
• Keep people informed - Provide clear, proactive updates to customers, engineers, managers and internal teams, including revised arrival times and next actions.
• Close the loop - Ensure worksheets, job notes, asset information, follow-on actions and customer records are accurate and complete in the field-service system.
• Improve performance - Track backlog, overdue work, utilisation, travel, repeat visits and completion performance; identify trends and recommend practical improvements.
• Support effective response - Coordinate handovers and escalation for critical pump failures and other high-priority incidents in line with operational procedures.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

• A realistic, visible schedule that makes the best use of engineers and minimises avoidable travel and downtime.
• Urgent wastewater incidents are prioritised quickly, owned clearly and communicated calmly.
• Planned maintenance is completed on time, with fewer preventable cancellations and repeat visits.
• Customers and field teams know what is happening, what has changed and what comes next.
• Operational data is accurate enough to support decisions, reporting and continuous improvement.

WHAT YOU'LL BRING

• Strong experience in service scheduling, field-service planning, logistics or operational coordination within a busy, customer-facing environment.
• A proven ability to manage both planned work and fast-moving reactive demand across multiple mobile engineers.
• Excellent judgement under pressure, with the confidence to prioritise, make decisions and escalate appropriately.
• Clear, professional communication skills and the ability to build productive relationships with engineers, customers and managers.
• Good systems discipline, including experience with field-service, scheduling or asset-management software and Microsoft Office.
• High attention to detail, commercial awareness and a practical approach to solving operational problems.

PARTICULARLY VALUABLE EXPERIENCE

• Wastewater, sewage pumping, drainage, utilities, mechanical and electrical services, facilities management or a related engineering sector.
• Understanding of pump stations, planned preventative maintenance, breakdown response, telemetry alarms or service-level agreements.
• Experience coordinating specialist vehicles, equipment, subcontractors, permits or site-access requirements.
• IOSH or other relevant health and safety training.

Sector knowledge is highly desirable, but we will also consider an exceptional planner from another field-service environment who can demonstrate strong operational judgement and the ability to learn technical services quickly.

WHY JOIN?

For more than 30 years, the business has delivered wastewater and sewage-pump solutions spanning design, installation, maintenance, repair and emergency response.

You will join a growing specialist business where good planning makes a visible difference - to customers, engineers and the environment.

Benefits include:

• Salary up to £35,000, reflecting relevant experience and sector knowledge.
• Company pension scheme.
• 25 days' annual leave plus bank holidays.
• Training and opportunities for career progression.
• A supportive team environment with the scope to influence planning processes and performance.