Led by Prof Joe Holden, Director of iCASP
Prof Joe Holden opening feedback on cross-cutting skill needs across the Yorkshire water sector
Participants identified a wide range of skill gaps in the region’s water sector across professional, educational, entrepreneurial and other domains. These include technical expertise in hydrology, modelling and drainage law, but also broader capabilities such as stakeholder engagement, business case development and understanding the complexity of green finance.
The educational gaps span both formal and informal training, ranging from basic water hydraulics knowledge to high-level systems thinking. Entrepreneurial skills are especially lacking in commercialisation, innovation and networking, while other cross-cutting gaps relate to communication, policy engagement and translating science into action.
Professional Skills
- Legal understanding of water-related regulations, for example, drainage, flood risk
- Loss of goal technicians and field specialists, for example, detection, coastal monitoring
- Hydrology and modelling expertise
- Lack of baseline understanding among recruits joining the sector
Educational Gaps
- Basic understanding of water systems and hydraulics
- Onboarding training for new staff
- School and higher education pathways are underdeveloped
- Integration across disciplines, for example, combining technical, ecological, and social knowledge
Entrepreneurial
- Business case development and communicating economic value
- Implementation of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS)
- Navigating green finance and market readiness
- Understanding policy processes and stakeholder dynamics
Other Skills
- Translating science into policy and business decision-making
- Communication and storytelling with the public and policymakers
- Political engagement – knowing when and how to influence decisions
- Cross-sector networking and relationship building
The workshop highlighted that some gaps, for example, SuDS training or green infrastructure, are partially addressed through programmes by universities or organisations like WYFLIP. However, much of the current provision is fragmented or inaccessible to smaller teams. A strong need for knowledge exchange and collaborative training ecosystems was voiced. Participants advocated for a mix of technical training, mentorship, and practice-based learning. Delivery should be organic, embedded in partnerships and tailored to real roles and responsibilities across sectors.
📘 What Type of Training is Needed?
- Technical training in flood risk, green infrastructure, modelling, and data analysis
- Apprenticeships and mentorships for early-career professionals
- Cross-disciplinary and project-based learning, for example, knowledge transfer partnerships
- Support for entrepreneurial and commercial skills in the water sector
- Improved onboarding and induction training
- Training that supports knowledge exchange, not just technical proficiency
🚀 How Should It Be Delivered?
- Plan for the future workforce: identify what roles will exist in the next 10 years, for example, via empathy exercises
- Through communities of practice to encourage knowledge sharing
- Using existing experts across institutions – catalogue and connect them
- Via secondments, technical workshops, joint research projects and on-the-job training
- Partnering across public, private, academic and third-sector actors.
- Encouraging mutually beneficial relationships between trainers and learners
To address skills gaps in the regional water sector, the workshop calls for an ecosystem approach – collaborative, cross-sector, and future-focused. Both technical and soft skills must be developed through flexible, inclusive and relationship-based training pathways. Innovation depends not just on individual skills, but on a system capable of continuously learning and adapting.