Health and Safety Advisor - Field Operations

Scottish Water; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 36,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading water utility company in Scotland is seeking an experienced Health & Safety Advisor to enhance compliance and foster a culture of safety across the organization. This role includes advising on health and safety standards, conducting audits, and supporting teams to reduce workplace incidents. Candidates should have a NEBOSH General Certificate and excellent communication skills.

Benefits

38 days of holiday

Paid time off to volunteer

Flexible working arrangements

Annual company bonus

Qualifications

• Experience in health and safety advisory roles.
• Understanding of health and safety legislation.
• Ability to influence safety culture.

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive health and safety advice.
• Identify, evaluate, control, and monitor risks.
• Conduct audits and lead investigations into incidents.

Skills

Health and safety knowledge

Communication skills

Risk management

Stakeholder engagement

Education

NEBOSH General Certificate

Driving license

Job description

Overview

Together we are Trusted to Serve Scotland.

How’s this for job satisfaction? At Scottish Water we look after Scotland's most precious natural resource. From source to tap, we’re guarding Scotland’s reputation for refreshingly pure water, and caring for our environment at the same time.

We are looking for an experienced Health & Safety Advisor to join our Field Operations Team, based in our offices in Inverness and covering a large geographical area in the north of Scotland. You may also occasionally be asked to support other regions as needed.

In this role, you’ll be providing health & safety support to various groups within the Customer Services Directorate (CSD), playing a key role in raising safety awareness and enhancing compliance. You’ll help reduce workplace incidents and foster a strong organisational culture of Health & Safety by engaging with both our team and our partners on performance and risk management. While you’re building relationships that positively influence safety practices, you’ll ensure that effective Health & Safety skills and behaviours are deeply embedded into the way Scottish Water operates.

What you’ll do

As a Health & Safety Advisor, you’ll play a key role in meeting the legal requirements placed on Scottish Water by providing comprehensive health and safety advice and support across regional levels of the business. You’ll help to identify, evaluate, control, and monitor risks, working to implement Scottish Water’s safety standards in compliance with legislation and our strategic objectives. Your focus will be on building a strong culture of safety that extends throughout the organisation.

You’ll be responsible for researching, developing, implementing, and continuously reviewing health and safety standards and procedures. This includes promoting safe practices in areas like Excavations, Working at Height, Lifting Operations, COSHH, DSEAR, Confined Spaces and Lone Working. You’ll also ensure that all business functions operate within Scottish Water’s unified Health & Safety system, providing practical, cost-effective, and influential guidance based on legislation, industry best practices, and our commitment to zero harm.

In partnership with management, you’ll contribute to the development of health and safety action plans for Scottish Water and specific customer needs. This involves designing and delivering training that empowers managers and employees to understand and meet their safety responsibilities. You’ll gather feedback and provide follow-up support, enabling continuous improvement that goes beyond compliance to deliver best practices and value.

Your role will also involve auditing and reviewing Scottish Water’s safety management systems, and actively monitoring activities across operations, including our suppliers, contractors, and partners. Responding swiftly to any incidents, you’ll lead investigations to determine the root cause of accidents, helping to prevent future occurrences. Additionally, you’ll work closely with key stakeholders to strengthen health and safety performance through collaborative initiatives, site inspections, and customer liaison, fostering strong relationships built on trust and shared safety goals.

What you’ll need

You’ll need to be comfortable working independently, sometimes remotely, and have the motivation to deliver top-notch service across a wide area. You should have experience working with a diverse range of people at all levels, and know how to positively influence health and safety culture here at Scottish Water.

You’ll also enjoy being part of a high-performing team and have a genuine desire to develop your skills, take on training, and learn from both internal and external coaching. We’re looking for someone with a NEBOSH General Certificate as a minimum, who can make smart, informed decisions even when things are moving fast. Experience working with key stakeholders and getting positive results is essential, too.

If you’re ready to build on your operational experience and are open to learning more about Scottish Water’s processes and practices, this role could be a great fit. You’ll need a solid grasp of health and safety legislation, and a full, clean UK driving license is a must.

It would also be great if you’re aiming for a NEBOSH Diploma or have already started on it! Experience with key health and safety aspects like energy isolations, contractor management, COSHH, DSEAR, permit-to-work systems, working at height, lifting operations, toxic gases, and confined spaces would be a plus.

Looking out for you

While the work we do is important, we know it’s not the only thing that matters. That’s why we make sure you have everything you need to find a good work-life balance.

• 38 days of holiday every year (including public holidays) with the option to buy five more days.
• Paid time off to volunteer in your community.
• Family-friendly policies around adoption, maternity, and parental leave.
• Flexible working arrangements.
• Pension and life assurance.
• Annual company bonus and access to SW Splash for discounts on holidays, bills, and shopping.

The not-so-small print

This role will be a Grade 6. If you’re new to Scottish Water, you’ll join us on a salary between £36,410 - £46,990, depending on your skills and experience. Performance-driven pay progression will then allow you to move through the range to the maximum salary.

We’ll be working hybrid with a combination of on-site, remote from home, or at one or more of Scottish Water’s strategic Health & Safety hubs.

If you’re interested in this role – or know someone else who might be - we’ll be accepting applications until midnight on Sunday 12th October.

Job offers at Scottish Water are conditional, and will be confirmed on completion of our pre-employment screening, e.g. referencing, criminal record checks, license checks, etc. Screening is conducted on our behalf by a third party, and must be completed before your start date. Don’t worry - we’ll only start these checks once you’ve accepted an offer.

A few final things worth knowing…

Research shows that some people avoid applying for jobs unless they can meet every single criteria. If you’re interested in this job, but don’t tick all the boxes, apply anyway! We hardly ever hire people who can do every part of a job from Day One. Everyone has a learning curve. So don’t rule yourself out!

Let us know if there are any changes we can make to our recruitment process to help you perform at your best. Lots of our people have disabilities or neurodiverse conditions (including some of our recruiters!). We’re also aware that some people might be experiencing temporary challenges because of life events, like menopause. We’re very used to making adjustments, so please don’t be afraid to ask.

As part of our commitment to developing a flourishing Scotland, it’s important that all our employees are Scottish taxpayers. If you join us, your home address will need to be in Scotland. If you don’t already live here, you\'ll need to commit to moving here within your first three months.

Finally (finally!), candidates who haven’t submitted an application in the last 12 months will have their records removed from our recruitment database. You won’t need to do anything. Your data will be automatically deleted.

We’re here to help. Ask us anything at our recruitment email address: [e-mail]