Civil Engineering Recruitment Agency
Civil engineering recruitment across highways, rail civils, water, structures, geotechnical, flood and marine. AMP8, RIS3, Network Rail CP7 and HS2 frameworks. ICE-aligned. Permanent, contract and interim.
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Average time to shortlist
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Placement retention at 12 months
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Years of civil engineering expertise
Our Expertise
our expertise.
We recruit across the full UK civil engineering delivery map: AMP8 water (2025 to 2030) across every major UK water company, RIS3 strategic highways through National Highways delivery partners, Network Rail Control Period 7 (CP7) rail civils, HS2 main works civils, Nuclear New Build (Sizewell C, Hinkley Point C) and the offshore wind and flood and coastal pipelines. We brief by framework because that is how the UK infrastructure market actually hires.
We place design and consultancy engineers, site and delivery teams, temporary works practitioners, specialist disciplines (geotechnical, structural, drainage, flood, tunnelling, marine and ports) and NEC project management and commercial. ICE-aligned throughout, fluent on CEng MICE and FICE chartership routes, IStructE for structural specialists, BS 5975 temporary works, Eurocode 7 (BS EN 1997) geotechnical design, CDM 2015 and NEC4 Options A, C and E. Assessments map to the ICE Initial Professional Development and Part 3 Professional Review so shortlist notes read the same way as your internal evaluation.
Why It Matters
why specialist UK civil engineering recruitment matters.
Four concurrent infrastructure frameworks, a CEng MICE mid-senior bottleneck and a tightened BS 5975 competence regime. UK civils hiring is harder in 2026 than it has been for a decade, and generalist desks cannot read the framework-specific implications.
“The team understood the AMP8 framework position, the ICE Part 3 chartership bar and the NEC4 commercial requirements, and briefed candidates accordingly. Every CV was credible.”
Civil Engineering
72hrs
Average time to shortlist
Four UK infrastructure frameworks are hiring concurrently
AMP8 water, RIS3 strategic highways, Network Rail CP7 rail civils and HS2 main works civils are all live and pulling on a shared pool of tier-one Project Directors, NEC4 Commercial Leads and Senior Site Engineers. The overlap is the single biggest driver of 2026 civils salary movement, and generic recruitment cannot read the framework-specific implications.
Find Civils Talent →CEng MICE mid-senior supply is the structural bottleneck
CEng MICE-qualified engineers at Senior Engineer and Principal Engineer level remain the hardest group to hire. Design offices are losing candidates to contractor delivery, delivery teams are losing them back to consultancies, and asset owners are lifting from both. We screen for genuine ICE Part 3 progression and live delivery credit, not just job title.
Our Approach
how we solve UK civil engineering hiring.
Sector depth, real network and a methodology that gets the shortlist right first time. Three things a UK civil engineering recruitment agency has to be fluent in.
Sector-specific civils expertise
We work UK civil engineering full-time, every brief, every day. Assessments are built around ICE chartership routes, NEC4 fluency and BS 5975 temporary works competence so we can interrogate the detail behind a CV:
Framework fluency
AMP8 water across every major UK water company, RIS3 through the Scheme Delivery Framework (SDF) and Complex Infrastructure Programme (CIP), Network Rail CP7 civils and HS2 main works civils interface.
Chartership verification
CEng MICE, IEng MICE and FICE routes, ICE Part 1, Part 2, Initial Professional Development and Part 3 Professional Review progression, plus IStructE for structural specialists and CIWEM for water and environment.
Technical standards
BS 5975 temporary works, Eurocode 7 (BS EN 1997) geotechnical design, CDM 2015 duty-holder regime, NEC4 Options A, C and E compensation-event handling.
Specialist pipelines
Nuclear New Build (Sizewell C, Hinkley Point C), offshore wind grid connections, flood and coastal, ports and airports, tunnelling and marine civils, each briefed with its own context.
Real civils networks, design office to asset owner
Fifteen years in the market and the relationships are how this works. Active conversations with ICE-chartered engineers and the people they trust:
Design and consultancy
Principal, Senior and Design Engineers across highways, water, structures, geotechnical, drainage and flood at the major UK civils consultancies. Often placed before they are actively looking.
Site and delivery
Site Engineers, Senior Site Engineers, Sub-Agents, Agents and Project Engineers on live AMP8, RIS3 and CP7 civils schemes.
Temporary works and specialist disciplines
TWCs and TWDs under BS 5975, Geotechnical Engineers, Tunnelling Engineers, Drainage and Flood specialists, Marine and Ports Engineers.
Project management and commercial
NEC4 Project Managers, Programme Directors, Senior QSs and Commercial Managers across tier-one infrastructure contractors and asset owners.
A methodology that earns its 72 hours
Most civils shortlists land in 72 hours. That is because the work happens before the brief, not during it:
Honest brief scoping
we pressure-test the role against the live UK civils market before searching. If a chartership bar is unrealistic for the salary or the framework context is mispriced, we say so on the first call.
Proactive search
we work candidates directly across design consultancy, contractor delivery and asset-owner networks. Most placements never appear on generic boards.
Rigorous assessment
ICE Part 3 progression verified, NEC4 compensation-event experience tested, BS 5975 TWC/TWD competence evidenced on relevant briefs, and scheme-specific framework experience checked.
Curated shortlists
four candidates properly qualified for the framework and discipline, not twenty half-fits. The 93% twelve-month retention rate starts here.
Roles We Recruit
civil engineering roles we recruit for, by discipline.
Leadership, design, site and delivery, temporary works, specialist disciplines, project management and commercial. Six dedicated areas because UK civils is genuinely that broad.
Leadership & Engineering Management
Specialist leadership & engineering management roles we recruit:
5 roles in this category
- Regional Engineering Directors
- Engineering Managers and Heads of Engineering
- Principal Engineers (discipline-led)
- Project Directors and Programme Directors
- Heads of Water, Highways and Rail Civils
Can't see your role? We recruit across all Civil Engineering disciplines.
Hire NowProof in Practice
the work, not the pitch.
Why Clients Partner With Us
what you get when you brief us on civils hiring.
We understand ICE chartership routes, CEng MICE and FICE criteria, NEC4 compensation events, BS 5975 temporary works, AMP8, RIS3 and CP7 framework routes. You will brief us, not explain the landscape.
- Civils-only, not construction-generalist: Civils sits inside the Construct group, but our civils desk is distinct from the buildings-led construction desk. Different candidates, different contracts, different chartership expectations. That separation is why our civils shortlists are sharper.
- Framework-aware from the brief stage: AMP8 water, RIS3 highways, NWR CP7 rail civils, HS2 civils main works. We know which framework your role is inside and how to position candidates against its specific procurement, reporting and contract terms.
- Design office, site and asset-owner coverage: Equal depth across the major UK civils design consultancies, the tier-one infrastructure contractors and the asset owners commissioning the work. Candidates move between the three regularly, and we brief for the move that actually fits.
- Chartership-literate screening: We understand the ICE Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 route, the Initial Professional Development regime and how Professional Review preparation actually works. That is why our mid-senior shortlists hold at 93% twelve-month retention.
Latest Opportunities
live UK civil engineering jobs.
Showing 1 of 49 live roles
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civil engineering hiring insights.
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Record offshore wind auction secures 8.4GW for Great Britain
Government-backed contracts support enough new capacity to power the equivalent of over 12 million homes, with £22bn of private investment cited.
Get In Touch
brief us on your civil engineering hire?
Most civils shortlists are delivered within 72 hours. Senior and chartership-specific briefs take longer, and we will say so on the first call.
Or speak to us direct
+44 (0) 1234 567 890hello@mostonrecruit.co.ukMon–Fri, 8am–6pm GMT.
Confidential conversations welcome.
FAQs
common civil engineering recruitment questions.
Direct answers on ICE chartership, NEC4, AMP8, RIS3, temporary works and the qualifications we screen for.
ICE chartership is the recognised professional standard for civil engineers in the UK, managed by the Institution of Civil Engineers. It awards CEng MICE (Chartered Member), IEng MICE (Incorporated Member) and FICE (Fellow). The Part 3 Professional Review is the final chartership exam after an accredited degree and an Initial Professional Development training agreement. For senior design and consultancy hires, CEng MICE is now a near-universal requirement. We verify chartership status and Part 3 progression on every relevant brief.
Civil engineering in the UK runs overwhelmingly on NEC (New Engineering Contract), not JCT. NEC4 is the standard across highways, water, rail and major infrastructure, with Option A (priced contract with activity schedule), Option C (target contract with activity schedule) and Option E (cost reimbursable) the most common civils forms. JCT contracts appear on civils-buildings interface schemes but are the exception, not the rule. A civils CV without NEC fluency rarely clears the senior bar.
AMP8 is the eighth Asset Management Period for the UK water sector, running from April 2025 to March 2030. Ofwat-determined investment levels for AMP8 are substantially higher than AMP7, driving a sharp uplift in civil engineering demand across Thames Water, Severn Trent, United Utilities, Anglian, Yorkshire, Southern, Welsh Water and the delivery partners supporting them. AMP8 is one of the biggest single drivers of 2026 civils hiring.
RIS3 is the third Road Investment Strategy, covering England's Strategic Road Network (SRN) delivery through National Highways for the 2025 to 2030 period. It drives hiring across National Highways and its delivery partners on the Scheme Delivery Framework (SDF), Complex Infrastructure Programme and Regional Delivery Partnerships. Highway-focused civils CVs are increasingly screened for live RIS3 experience.
BS 5975 sets out the competence regime for temporary works on UK construction and civils sites. The Temporary Works Coordinator (TWC) manages temporary works on site, signing off TW installations and removals. The Temporary Works Designer (TWD) produces and signs off the design. CDM 2015 and tightened HSE focus have made TWC and TWD experience non-negotiable on most civils briefs, and we screen for competence and training accordingly.
IStructE (Institution of Structural Engineers) is the professional body for structural engineers, with CEng MIStructE as the chartered benchmark. Civils schemes involving bridges, major structures and buildings-adjacent work often prefer IStructE chartered engineers over ICE-chartered. Many structural specialists hold both MICE and MIStructE. We distinguish between them on structural civils briefs.
Broad 2026 ranges. Graduate Civil Engineer 27 to 35 thousand. Senior Site Engineer 45 to 65. Sub-Agent 55 to 75. Agent 70 to 95. Senior Design Engineer 50 to 70. Principal Engineer 65 to 90. NEC Project Manager 65 to 95. Senior NEC PM 85 to 115. Engineering Director 100 to 140. London and AMP8 mobilisation premium apply. Day rates for contract roles typically run 350 to 800 depending on seniority, NEC requirement and scheme complexity.
Yes. Our civils desk works equally across the major UK design consultancies, the tier-one UK civils contractors and the asset owners commissioning the work. Consultancy and contractor careers overlap but their commercial dynamics differ significantly, and our briefs reflect that.
Yes, including Initial Professional Development candidates working towards ICE Part 3 chartership. The majority of our volume is mid-senior and senior, but graduate and early-career pipelines are important to tier-one contractors and consultancies, and we support permanent graduate and EPE hiring alongside direct professional intake.
Yes, across all three. Permanent placements for long-term scheme and asset-owner hiring. Contract and day-rate cover for peaks in site, design and temporary works demand, and for NEC commercial cover on specific packages. Interim management for programme gaps and senior turnarounds.
Ninety-three per cent of our civil engineering placements are still in post at twelve months. Framework-literate briefing, ICE-aligned chartership assessment and honest senior conversations drive that number. Volume-led recruitment cannot match it in an ICE-governed market.
Yes. Highways (including RIS3), rail civils (including CP7 and HS2 civils), water (AMP8 across all major UK water companies), structures and bridges, geotechnical, drainage and flood are all handled as distinct specialisms within our civils desk. For wholly rail-focused briefs, our Rail & Transport page covers signalling, permanent way and OLE. For highways-focused briefs, Highways & Transport covers traffic, road safety and ITS.
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