About the Trust We're one of the UK’s biggest charities and we care for 2,000 miles of canals, rivers, docks and reservoirs because we believe life is better by water. We're looking for people who support our cause and want to make a difference for future generations. Could this be you?
Along with our waterways we also manage museums, archives and the country's third largest collection of historic buildings, as well as the nature and wildlife that calls our canals home. All of this enables us to provide wellbeing opportunities for millions of people each year.
Join Our Team: Licence Compliance and Enforcement Deputy Manager opportunity
Navigate your future and lock in your career as we keep our canals open and alive.
The Licensing, Compliance & Enforcement team plays a key role in ensuring all boats on Trust waters are correctly licensed, supporting customers to meet their obligations and maintaining fair use of the waterways. They work closely with boaters to encourage compliance while identifying and signposting any vulnerability or safeguarding concerns.
Where compliance cannot be achieved, the team manages cases through formal licensing and statutory enforcement processes, taking professional and proportionate action, including the removal of non-compliant boats from Trust waters where necessary.
As Licence Compliance & Enforcement Deputy Manager, you will lead a multi-disciplinary, geographically dispersed team delivering licensing, customer support, and enforcement activity.
Working Hours & Travel
This role follows 37 hours, 5 days a week, work pattern.
This is a home-based role, with occasional travel required to support and oversee operational activities around the network and to attend our hub spaces for collaborative meetings. You should be able to reasonably commute to one of the following hubs: Leeds, Ellesmere Port, Burnley, Newark, Birmingham, Milton Keynes, Gloucester
Role overview
You’ll oversee day-to-day operations, ensuring processes are efficient, compliant, and aligned to KPIs, while managing complex cases, stakeholder relationships, and escalated issues and cases. Using data and insight to drive performance, you’ll also play a key role in safeguarding, risk management, and operational delivery, including contractor-led activity, ensuring fair, consistent outcomes in line with organisational values.
Key Responsibilities
• Line management of 8 supervisors overseeing 3 teams responsible for boat licensing administration, customer support, and case management. • Oversee core functions, providing guidance on day-to-day case management and complex cases. • Monitor health and safety practices to ensure safe and effective day-to-day operations. • Manage standards and usage of fleet and operational equipment, including cycles and boats. • Lead supplier relationships (e.g. bicycles, body-worn cameras), including procurement, servicing, and upgrades, with support from the National Manager. • Ensure licensing, ranger, and case management teams operate efficiently and processes meet agreed timescales. • Deliver boat licensing KPIs through effective team management. • Review caseloads regularly to drive performance and identify training needs. • Identify high-risk cases and escalate appropriately, working with senior leaders, legal teams, and relevant departments. • Investigate and respond to complaints, ensuring appropriate resolution. • Manage escalated customer contact via phone and written communication. • Provide performance and case data to support reporting, identifying trends, risks, and opportunities. • Support early identification of vulnerability, equality, and safeguarding concerns, escalating where needed. • Coordinate with contractors and internal teams to ensure boat removals are carried out effectively and cost-efficiently. • Attend site visits and provide court evidence where required. • Demonstrate organisational values and behaviours at all times. • Promote diversity and inclusion, challenging behaviours or practices that do not align with organisational values.
About You
You bring strong experience leading dispersed teams in a complex, compliance-driven environment, with a focus on operational delivery, data-driven decision-making, and high-quality customer support. You’re confident coordinating activity across teams to meet deadlines and SLAs, while handling sensitive and challenging situations with professionalism and care. Highly organised and analytical, you’re comfortable using systems and data to drive performance and insights, and you collaborate effectively with stakeholders to balance risk, cost, and outcomes.
Skills & Qualifications
Technical
• Experience managing supervisors across geographically dispersed teams with varied workloads. • Proven experience overseeing processes, data analysis, and customer support, with strong attention to detail and adherence to legislative and contractual requirements. • Ability to coordinate cross-team activity, delivering against SLAs and statutory deadlines. • Strong track record of providing high-quality, structured, and sensitive customer support in complex or challenging situations. • Experience in a regional or national operations environment, managing processes, logistics, cost, and customer service (enforcement case review experience advantageous). • Confident handling customer interactions involving complaints, conflict, or enforcement. • Experience using SAP and CRM systems. • Strong analytical skills, with the ability to produce clear, insightful reporting. • Experience using financial systems, including invoicing and purchase orders. • Awareness of safeguarding considerations, including identifying potential mental or physical health risks in customer interactions.
General
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, balancing cost, risk, and customer outcomes across stakeholders. • Excellent communication skills, with the ability to interpret and convey legislative and contractual requirements clearly (written and verbal). • Strong IT literacy, particularly in Office 365 (including Excel), with the ability to manage data and multiple workstreams efficiently. • Full UK driving licence. • Highly organised, able to manage multiple priorities and ensure processes are delivered consistently and effectively. • Collaborative and adaptable, working effectively with internal and external stakeholders to progress tasks and achieve outcomes. • Resilient and composed, able to manage complex situations and perform effectively under pressure.
Contact & Application
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at CRT.recruitment@canalrivertrust.org.uk. We encourage early applications as we may close the vacancy once we receive enough suitable candidates.
What We Offer
In addition to your annual base salary of £41,000, we also offer Car Cash Allowance (£425 per month), a competitive pension scheme, increasing holiday entitlement, and a range of employee benefits. For a full breakdown of our benefits, check out our brochure here: EVP - 1.
Our values We care passionately for our waterways, and as importantly, for those who look after and use them. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce where everyone can thrive. We are striving to represent the diverse communities that we are a part of and welcome applicants from across all sectors of the community.
We want everyone to have the opportunity to perform at their best during our recruitment process. If you require any reasonable adjustments - whether for a disability, neurodiversity, or health condition - please let us know what you need and how we can support you. We’ll work with you to make any necessary changes.
All of our jobs can be considered on a part time, flexible or job share basis.
We operate a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role. You are considered disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. We recognise not everyone who is classified as disabled under the Equality Act personally identifies this way, or with this definition of disability. Please do not let this discourage you from applying under the scheme.
At Canal & River Trust, we are committed to fair, transparent, and ethical recruitment practices. As part of our hiring process, we may use AI to analyse applications and support us work more efficiently. However, all hiring decisions – without exception - are made by our hiring managers.
Navigate your future and lock in your career as we keep our canals open and alive.
Find out more about us on our website: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/about-us
