Head of Safety, Health & Environment

ENGINEERINGUK; Lincoln; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 98,000; Full time

Job description

You will need to login before you can apply for a job.

Sector: Transport and Logistics
Role: Senior Manager
Contract Type: Permanent
Hours: Full Time

About Network Rail

Join Our Team at Network Rail! This is an exciting time to join Network Rail as we celebrate 200 Years of Passenger Rail: Innovating for the Future. It is not just a celebration, though - it's a commitment to continue delivering a simpler, better, greener railway. Investing in our people is key to enhancing the safety, reliability, and efficiency of our railway system.

Network Rail operates and maintains the railway infrastructure 24/7, 365 days a year. From the first passenger railway in 1825 to today's AI-driven predictive maintenance, the rail industry has continuously evolved. Now, as we enter Network Rail's Control Period 7 (CP7), the focus is on modernisation, sustainability, and operational efficiency.

We're passionate about great service and commit to our service equation vision by "Putting Passengers First". Performance, safety and getting the fundamental basics right is something we strive for, as well as asking ourselves - what can we do to put our passengers and freight users at the centre of everything we do?

Are you ready to make a difference in people's lives? At Network Rail, we connect passengers and freight customers, ensuring safe and efficient transportation across the country. We're an organisation where people truly matter, and when you join us, you matter to us and millions of others.

We're committed to creating a diverse, inclusive workplace that reflects the communities we serve. We value flexibility and understand the importance of a healthy work-life balance. As a Disability Confident Leader, we'll do everything we can to accommodate any needs throughout the recruitment process.

As a Network Rail employee, you will enjoy a wide range of benefits:

• 28 days annual leave - with the opportunity to buy and/or sell up to 5 days
• Access to a range of contributory pension schemes and the potential to top up your competitive salary with a bonus
• A subsidy of up to 75% on rail and underground season tickets if you travel to work on the train
• Privileged staff travel - Leisure travel discount of 75%
• We can offer you a season ticket loan; annual season tickets are discounted.
• A 35-hour-per-week contract with flexible working options available to help support your work-life balance
• Hybrid working and enhanced family-friendly support
• Take advantage of childcare vouchers, healthcare offers (including discounted healthcare club membership), discounted cycle hire, and online shopping sites
• 5 days of paid volunteering leave
• 2 weeks paid reserve leave for the Armed Forces community

About the role:
The Head of Safety, Health & Environment role stands out as one of these exceptional opportunities. In this position, you will spearhead the delivery of safety, health, and environmental assurance (SHE) for your region and route. You will be responsible for developing and directing the implementation of effective policies and strategies regarding SHE, ensuring continuous improvement while facilitating efficient and effective delivery. With responsibilities that encompass workforce safety, level crossing safety, operational risk, occupational health, and environmental sustainability, the potential for making a positive and lasting impact is phenomenal.

You will achieve this by:

• Cultivating a 'zero harm' culture focused on safe behaviours
• Ensuring that safety lessons are not only identified but genuinely learned
• Delivering strategy across multiple workstreams in a programmatic and structured way
• Being diligent in transforming data into insights and actionable results
• Building and leading a high-performing team with targeted and measurable success.

Who are we looking for?
We're looking for an experienced, emotionally intelligent, and authentic leader who can transform our safety performance into a lasting legacy. The successful candidate will be a vital member of a close-knit, supportive Route executive team, contributing to Route strategy and overall business performance. If you're passionate about making a meaningful impact, then this opportunity is for you!

Our route extends from London St Pancras to Sheffield, reaching out to Lincoln, and includes major hubs like Bedford and Derby. Therefore, this role will require 4 days per week in the office at Bedford & Derby, spending two days in each of those locations and a flexible approach to working throughout the route.

To be successful in this role, we would like you to have/to be:
(Essential)

• Must be a member of the Institute of Occupational Health and Safety (IOSH) at Chartered (CMIOSH) level or above
• Membership of a relevant professional body (e.g. MIOSH, CQI, IIRSM or equivalent) with chartered status and/or education to degree level.
• Relevant experience in the successful management of SHEQ.
• Good interpersonal, influencing, communication and organisational skills.
• Strong management and leadership skills.
• Ability to act as a role model to demonstrate appropriate safety behaviours.
• Detailed knowledge of safety and operational issues.
• Good understanding of the UK and European legislative framework and requirements.
• An experienced Health and Safety, Environmental or Quality practitioner.
• Knowledge of audit and investigation.

Salary: Band 2C £85,395 - £97,991 depending on experience
Closing date: 6th May 2025. Please get your application in as soon as possible, we may close the advert before the listed closing date if we receive enough applications. Late applications may not be accepted.

This role requires 2 days' work out of Derby and 2 days from Bedford & 1 day from any location on the route.

Drugs and Alcohol Standard:
All prospective candidates offered a prospective role will be required to undergo and pass a drugs and alcohol test. Your application will be rescinded if you record a positive test. All positive drug and alcohol test results for prospective candidates will be securely held on the Sentinel database, and a 5-year suspension from applying for a safety critical role will be enforced.

What does our recruitment process look like?
Once you have applied, our Recruitment Specialist & the hiring manager will look at your CV. If your experience matches what we're looking for, you'll be contacted by our Resourcing Team and invited to an interview.

Network Rail is an accredited Disability Confident Leader. This means, where a disabled applicant meets the essential criteria for any of our vacancies, they will receive an interview.