The London company that built and now looks after the Thames Tideway Tunnel, a 'super sewer' that stops sewage overflowing into the River Thames.
Tideway is the company set up to deliver the Thames Tideway Tunnel, a major new sewer under the River Thames in London. The tunnel was built to catch sewage that used to overflow into the river when heavy rain overwhelmed London's old Victorian sewers. Work started in 2016 and, according to the company's September 2025 legacy report, the tunnel was fully connected by February 2025 and is now protecting the river from sewage pollution. Tideway has said that, once built, the tunnel is looked after day to day by the Tideway team, in partnership with Thames Water, so the company continues beyond construction.
Tideway was set up in 2015 to deliver the project. We did not find a formal mission or values page. What the company does stress is going beyond the engineering to bring wider social benefit and to reconnect Londoners with the river. Its legacy report says that staff gave more than 33,000 hours of volunteering, that there were a decade of partnerships with river charities, that 11 new public spaces are open, and that the project created about three acres of new land beside the river. Its programmes have included Art on the Tideway, an education programme and a scheme to help people with convictions into work.
Tideway's registered office is at Riverside House, Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1. Its construction sites ran along the river and its tributaries across London, with 24 sites listed during the build, of which 13 are described as completed in the legacy report. The main building work was done by large contractors in joint ventures for the west, central and east sections, with another firm handling systems integration. An older version of Tideway's about page said it employed over 400 professionals directly, which would be a snapshot from the construction years rather than today.
Tideway's people-focused work is a good clue to its culture. Its head of corporate responsibility has said the wider impact of the project will be felt far and wide, pointing to new land, new river skills and volunteering. It has also worked on river skills and training standards. These are the company's own descriptions. We did not find independent information about day-to-day working life there.
A project like this uses many skills. Tunnelling and civil engineers, project and programme managers, planners, health and safety professionals, environmental and ecology specialists, community engagement staff, commercial and finance teams, and those who run and look after the tunnel afterwards all play a part. It is also a good example of how infrastructure is built through partnerships between a client company, contractors and local communities. Look at Tideway's website for what it is currently recruiting for now the build is complete.
Website: www.tideway.london
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