Safety Business Partner

VIVO Defence Ltd; Portsmouth; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

6% pension contribution

Private medical cover

Bonus

Life assurance 2x annual salary

Job summary

VIVO Defence Services, a joint venture between Serco and EQUANS, seeks a Safety Business Partner to shape and drive a positive safety culture across our UK operations. You will act as a trusted advisor, coach and critical friend to operational teams, embedding safe behaviours and improving performance.

You'll lead assurance activities, support incident investigations and drive practical risk management improvements while collaborating with clients, contractors and supply chain partners.

Qualifications

• NEBOSH Diploma or Level 6 H&S qualification.
• Chartered IOSH status or actively working towards Chartered status.

Responsibilities

• Lead assurance programmes, audits and inspections and verify corrective actions.
• Provide expert H&S guidance to operational teams and senior leaders.
• Investigate incidents (including serious incidents and near misses) and identify root causes.
• Analyse trends to drive continuous improvement and reduce workplace risk.
• Deliver training and present insights to contract teams and stakeholders.

Skills

Health & Safety leadership

Risk management

Audit & assurance

Education

NEBOSH Diploma or Level 6 H&S

Chartered IOSH or working towards

Job description

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VIVO provides facilities management and accommodation maintenance for the UK military and its partners. VIVO embodies both experience and innovation.

What we do

We put our Customers and Families First. They are the driving force behind everything we do. We drive forward improvements for them to ensure the service they receive, whether reactive repairs or a major project, is completed safely and on time. In order to achieve this, we have 4 core values: open, caring, agile and collaborative. These are at the heart of everything we do.

Location: Chippenham, to cover sites from Gloucester to Cornwall

Permanent, Full time

Join us as a Safety Business Partner and play a vital role in shaping, influencing and driving a positive safety culture across our operational contracts. This is far more than a compliance role. You'll be a trusted advisor, coach and critical friend to operational teams, working alongside leaders and managers to embed safe behaviours, improve performance and ensure health and safety remains at the heart of everything we do.

Working across a diverse and complex operational environment, you'll provide expert guidance on health and safety matters, lead assurance activities, support incident investigations and drive meaningful improvements in risk management. You'll partner closely with contract teams, clients, contractors and supply chain partners, helping them understand their responsibilities, challenge unsafe practices and implement practical solutions that achieve sustainable improvements.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced health and safety professional who enjoys influencing change, building strong relationships and making a genuine impact on organisational performance. You'll have the opportunity to work flexibly, including home working where practical, while supporting teams across the UK through regular travel and engagement with operational sites.

If you're passionate about creating safer workplaces, developing people and using insight to drive continuous improvement, we'd love to hear from you.

What You'll Bring

You’ll be an experienced health and safety professional with significant experience operating within complex environments such as facilities management, Defence, construction, housing maintenance, infrastructure or similarly regulated sectors. You'll have a strong understanding of operational risk management and a proven ability to balance compliance requirements with practical business needs.

You will hold a NEBOSH Diploma or equivalent Level 6 health and safety qualification and will either be a Chartered Member of IOSH or actively working towards Chartered status. You'll demonstrate a commitment to professional development and maintain up-to-date knowledge of relevant health and safety legislation, regulations and industry best practice.

A trusted advisor and credible business partner, you'll be confident providing expert health and safety advice to operational teams and senior leaders. You'll be comfortable challenging behaviours, influencing decision-making and driving accountability at all levels of the organisation while building strong and collaborative working relationships.

You’ll have proven experience delivering assurance programmes, leading audits, inspections and compliance reviews, and verifying that corrective and preventative actions have been effectively implemented. Your ability to identify risks, analyse trends and evaluate operational performance will help drive continuous improvement and support the reduction of workplace risk.

Strong analytical and reporting skills are essential. You'll be confident interpreting performance data, identifying opportunities for improvement and producing high-quality reports that provide meaningful insight to contract teams and senior stakeholders. You'll also be capable of delivering engaging presentations and training sessions that influence behaviours and improve understanding across the workforce.

You will have experience leading or supporting incident investigations, including serious incidents, near misses and high‑potential events, with the ability to identify root causes, develop lessons learned and implement effective corrective actions. Experience working with contractors and supply chain partners to improve safety standards and performance will be highly advantageous.

Additional qualifications or experience in environmental management, asbestos management, fire risk assessment, accident investigation techniques, auditing or training delivery would be beneficial. Membership of professional organisations such as the Association for Project Safety and qualifications in recognised auditing or train‑the‑trainer methodologies would also be welcomed.

You’ll be highly proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint and possess a full UK driving licence, with the flexibility to travel nationally in support of operational teams and business activities.

Most importantly, you’ll be a resilient, credible and values‑driven professional who leads by example. You’ll combine strategic thinking with a practical approach, using data, insight and strong relationships to improve performance and create lasting positive change. With the confidence to challenge, the ability to coach and mentor others, and a genuine passion for continuous improvement, you will play a key role in helping our teams deliver safe and successful outcomes every day.

What We Offer

• 6% employee matched pension contribution
• Private medical cover for self and partner
• Bonus
• Life assurance 2x annual salary

VIVO Defence Services

The role you have applied for is with VIVO Defence Services, a joint venture between Serco and EQUANS.By applying for this role, please be aware that information contained within your CV may be shared between VIVO Defence Services, Serco and EQUANS during the recruitment process.

At VIVO, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation that supports the needs of all. Therefore, we will make reasonable adjustments at interview through to employment for our candidates and strongly encourage applications from a diverse candidate pool.

We are open to discussions around flexibility and flexible working and operate a hybrid work structure in many of our business areas. We are proudly a Disability Confident Leader. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview.