Water Process Technician

Megan is a Water Process Technician at Wessex Water

What I do

I recycle water – dirty water comes in, we recycle it with different treatments and then it goes out clean, so it can be used again. There are lots of areas the water passes through, and sampling and testing to do to make sure it’s safe, as well as lots of machinery to keep working, there are so many tasks and it’s up to me and my mentor to keep the whole site working.

One minute we might be dealing with a breakdown and taking apart a pump and the next we’ll be getting samples to send to the lab. I’m also doing an apprenticeship so I do work for that too, I’ve just completed my Confined Space training so I should be able to go down into wells soon, and I just passed my JCB training so I can use a forklift and JCB now which I love!

How I became a technician

I came to Wessex Water through the Kickstart Scheme, which was for young people on Universal Credit who wanted to get into work. On the scheme, I worked in an arcade café which I didn’t enjoy, but then I saw you could work with the wildlife trust, and I thought I’d give it a go it as I’m more of an outdoorsy person.

I did that every day 11:00 - 2:00 but didn’t feel it was getting me in the frame of mind for work, so I spoke to Nancy, the careers lead from Wessex Water and she arranged for me to go to there. I turned up at the workshop with long lashes and two-inch acrylic nails, but I couldn’t undo the bolts with my nails so they had to go!

Then I tried the operator side, which I did for six weeks on my Kickstart Scheme and loved. At the end of my Kickstart, I went back to the café until Wessex Water called and asked if I’d like to become an apprentice and that’s how it all started!

Get out there and give anything a go, you never know what you’ll enjoy. I’ve given this a go and I absolutely love it!

My apprenticeship made me realise that if I put my mind to something and enjoy it, I am able to learn.

A surprising fact about my job

People are shocked when I say one of my favourite parts of the job is the screen room, which is probably the dirtiest, smelliest part! All the water passes through the screens, the dirty stuff gets taken out and goes into the skip and the water goes into the water pumping station.

I’ve always found it interesting, you find stuff and think “How on earth did that go down your toilet or down your sink or down the drainage?” You get to see what actually comes through the system, which fascinates me.

A typical day in my
working life

I get to work at 7:30am and the first thing I do is check the alarms, which show if there are any issues which need dealing with, and if there are, I go and deal with them. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays we do general site work, that's going round, checking distribution and cleaning down your screens – they’re our busiest days.

On Wednesdays we also do sampling, we follow a sheet which shows what the lab requires, and we get the water samples ready to be collected.

We have those set plan days and then on the other days we follow a pass sheet and work through tasks like checking site odour, sludge fitting, biological work, checking your inlet, checking your screen room – there’s lots to keep checking and working well every day. Sometimes we might need to fix machinery, or order chemicals, it can be very busy!

My school days...

School wasn’t for me, I didn’t enjoy education. Things got worse until the more the teachers gave up on me, the more I confronted them, which meant I was often taken out of lessons and put in ‘Return to learn’.

Then in Year 10, instead of starting GCSEs, I was put forward for early college transfer and they arranged for me to do Hair and Beauty and Childcare. It wasn’t me, I was a bit of a tomboy. I liked art and had entered loads of competitions, and I loved PE and rugby too, I used to play left wing for Western Hornets Girls.

After college, I met someone and gave all of that up and things turned bad. I ended up doing drugs and was then homeless on the streets for two years. Sometimes that’s the way life takes you, life isn’t always all about jolly walks in the park, it can get a bit ropey at times, and it did for me, but I came out the other side.

Having the chance to do the apprenticeship brought me back on my feet and made me realise that if I put my mind to something and enjoy it, I am able to learn.

A little more about
my everyday role

What I love most about my job

My mentor. Jason is my mentor, but he does a lot more than what a mentor should do, he basically helps me with everything, he’s the reason I come to work.

The best bits about working in a team

There are two of us on this site, which is quite big. It’s great working together, not just because we get on really well, but also it’s great not having to rely on other people to come and help, you’re never alone so you can get straight on with a task.

The most exciting thing I’ve achieved so far in my job

Finding myself. And finding Jason, my mentor. Looking at where I was to where I am now, it’s a massive change, and I want other people to understand that there's always light at the end of the tunnel and things can get better.

What I like to do in my spare time

I like to go sea fishing with my Dad, obviously being in Western-Super-Mare we've got the sea right on our doorstep so we like to go out and catch some cod or bass for dinner.

The advice I'd give to someone younger

Get out there and give anything a go, you never know what you'll enjoy. I've given this a go and I absolutely love it!

See Megan in the Technicians: We Make the Difference cinema advert

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