Protection Technician

Job title: Protection Test Room Inspector (TRI)
Salary: £74,073
Contract details: Permanent
Location*: Tufnell Park
Application closing date: 29/07/2026 at 2359

All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory right to work checks.  Candidates must be able to demonstrate their right to work in the UK.  At the present time TfL is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.   

Job role 
The role is responsible for the safe and efficient maintenance, repair, replacement, refurbishment and testing of HV Power Protection assets across the Power estate. 

Successful applicants on P6A1 (fixed shift A) will be required to work on a roster of 2 weeks of days (Mon-Fri) followed by 1 week of nights (Sun-Thurs).

Key Accountabilities  

• Preventative maintenance on Protection relays across a wide range of HV, LV and DC plant resulting in extended and efficient service life of the assets.
• Reactive maintenance and fault diagnosis and repair on control and protection circuits, battery chargers, earthing systems and power quality equipment in order to maintain protection and control of power assets.
• Testing and commissioning of new or altered protection systems, earthing, transformers and motor/generator sets to ensure internal/external project installations are in line with LU standards.
• Installation and processing of load monitoring equipment/data to aid in the optimisation of protection settings.
• Relay interrogation via HMI and laptop, downloading/uploading settings, disturbance records and making fault diagnosis through data sets.
• Fault finding on control, protection and communications circuits that utilise various protocols including 61850 and GOOSE messaging to maintain relay communication between remote sites.
• Create and edit Work Instructions, Task Detail Sheets, Risk Assessments and Method Statements in order to maintain safe working practices and LU standards.
• Perform a key role training and mentoring apprentices and new starters to aid in succession planning.  

Skills, Knowledge & Experience  
Skills

• Ability to read electrical drawings, schematics, single line diagrams, third angle projections and block diagrams.
• Comfortable working with technology, hand tools and with the safety requirements of an electrical environment.
• Be computer literate (Word, Excel, Teams, OneDrive, Sharepoint) and have strong report writing ability.
• Able to plan, organise and prioritise work in order to meet deadlines.
• Has good communication skills that can be applied to safety critical comms.
• Has a positive approach and is able to keep a level head in difficult conditions when fault finding.
• Comfortable working as a part of a small, close knit team.
• Self motivated and has a keen mind ready to learn.
• Full valid UK driving license.

Knowledge

• An ONC (or equivalent), or higher in Electrical Engineering/Substation Fitter/Electrification Technician (or similar).
• However, candidates with experience operating in the field of HV distribution networks, particularly with electrical protection systems will be considered.
• Qualifications as Senior Authorised/Authorised Person for the isolation and restoration of HV/LV switchgear is an advantage.
• Experience working in a team within a railway environment would also be an advantage.  

Experience 
Essential: 

• Experience working in power distribution/substations/transformer rooms.
• Knowledge and experience of HV & LV switchgear and AC/DC circuits.
• Testing and fault finding on power distribution protection systems, from electromechanical disc relays to modern IED's (e.g. ABB RELION Series/Schneider AGILE series/Siemens DAD-N etc.).

Desired: 

• Experience working with batteries, chargers and UPS systems.
• Familiarity with communications protocols and copper/fibre pilot systems.
• Experience within a railway distribution network.

Application Process 

• Please apply using your CV
• Think carefully about the skills, knowledge and experience in the advert and cover this in your CV
• PDF format preferred and do not include any photographs or images 

  
Equality, diversity and inclusion 
 
We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. We want to represent the city we serve, which will help us become a more innovative and efficient organisation. Our goal is to make our recruitment as inclusive as possible. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria. We also use anonymising software that removes identifying information from CVs and cover letters to make the process fair. 
  

Benefits
In return for your commitment and expertise, you will enjoy excellent benefits and scope to grow. Rewards vary according to the level of role but mostly include the below: 
 
Final salary pension scheme  
Free travel for you on the TfL network  
Reimbursement of 75% of the cost of a standard class Ticket for National Rail travel from home or 75% reimbursement on a 28-day flexi ticket 
29 days annual leave plus public and bank holidays 
TfL is committed to work-life balance, operating a hybrid working approach where business and role requirements allow 
Private healthcare discounted scheme (optional)  
Tax-efficient cycle-to-work programme 
Retail, health, leisure and travel offers  
Discounted Eurostar travel 

We will make every effort to give you as much notice as possible, however some interviews/assessments could be organised at short notice. 

Vetting Process 

At Transport for London, safety, trust and fairness sit at the heart of how we recruit. Our Vetting Charter (https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/careers/our-vetting-process) explains the checks we carry out before you join us, helping ensure we create a safe, inclusive and reliable network for everyone who depends on our services. We simply ask that the information you provide is honest and accurate so we can progress your application smoothly. If something doesn’t match or can’t be verified, we may not be able to move forward with your application, but we’ll always treat you with transparency, respect, and clear communication throughout.

This is a safety critical role so you will need to get clearance from our Occupational Health team before you start.