I joined RAB to complete my Year in Industry placement module as part of my Geography degree at Aberystwyth University. Before starting RAB I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, which was quite intimidating as I was going to be working here for a year. However, I was not disappointed and have thoroughly enjoyed my placement year at RAB!
Since I started at RAB in September 2024, the opportunities and experiences I’ve had and people I’ve met have been incredibly important in both my professional and personal growth. As I enter my final week of the placement, I can reflect on what a fantastic year it’s been. The RAB team has been amazing in bringing me along to assist in a multitude of projects, and getting me out of my comfort zone, such as when I assisted with the delivery of fast-paced exercises. With the sheer variety of projects I’ve worked on and such a supportive team behind me, I think definitely got lucky with my placement.
It has been a very interesting year to be in resilience and flood management, with the Environment Agency’s 2024 Property Flood Resilience (PFR) framework getting underway with RAB as the main supplier for the Midlands, and an incredibly wet and stormy winter leading to mass flooding throughout the country. Although these recent storms may be welcome for similar flooding consultancy companies, they have also highlighted the general lack of climate change resilience in the UK (This report by the CCC is an interesting read).
From Property Surveys to Exercises and Training
During my placement I worked across multiple sectors of the company, from Resilience to PFR and more. I was fortunate enough to work on a range of projects, including massive property survey and reporting Lincolnshire and Wiltshire flood grant schemes, assisting in the development and delivery of a Borough Market tabletop exercise and evacuation drill, supporting Business Continuity Business Impact Assessment workshops or supporting Environment Agency asset inspections across the midlands. Each project has offered distinct challenges and valuable learning opportunities.
I’ve also contributed to marketing initiatives, social values days (see picture below and this recent post) and attended a multitude of conferences and events, helping me with my networking skills and connecting RAB with a wider audience.
A key aspect of a year in industry placement is to assist in the design and delivery of a company project. With help from Nicky and Saajeda, I assisted with the Environment Agency Multi Agency Flood Plan Review project which aimed to review the MAFPs from all the UK LRFs and London Borough resilience forums and assess them based on a series of predetermined criteria for feedback.
This goes hand in hand with my personal interests and growing knowledge around flood plans and large scale flooding resilience, and how relevant authorities attempt to balance flood resilience and flood risk. I have now finished this project, and the results were incredibly interesting. To gain an understanding into the management of flood risk and flood defences by Local Authorities was brilliant and directly backed up the theory I am learning at university.
Conferences and Seminars
A particular highlight of the last few months was attending the CIWEM Flood & Coast Conference and Exhibition 2025, with Nicky and Pete. The chance to network with and engage with industry leaders was incredibly valuable. Discussions ranged from the roles of smaller more local LRF’s in community resilience, to emergency responders and their equipment. I attended several smaller talks and panels including a round table session on new methods of cost management regarding long and short term flood defences
Looking Ahead
I am very grateful to the RAB team as a whole for their guidance and encouragement throughout my placement. The skills and experiences I have had will be extremely valuable as I return to Aberystwyth University for my 4th and final year, as well as my dissertation. My time at RAB not only provided me with significant career growth and skills, but also my own personal growth and interest in the resilience sector and I thoroughly enjoyed my year working there as well as all the people that helped me through it.
Footnote from the team at RAB: “On behalf of everyone here at RAB, we wanted to congratulate you and say a huge ‘thank you’ for your contribution over the past twelve months. It has been a privilege having you as part of the team. Good luck with your final year back at university too!”