Job description for Safety Engineer

Are you an experienced Safety Engineer and would be enthused by the chance to support the delivery of submarines into operation for the Royal Navy? Do you want to work on some of the largest and most complex engineering programmes in the world? If so, we are looking for a Safety Engineer or a Safety Professional to provide safety analysis, advice, and guidance across various aspects of submarine safety.

If you have a desire to learn, make a difference and begin a long and varied career, you could be deployed to deliver within our busy In-Service Engineering team (ISM), within the Design Authority of Naval Architecture (DANA). DANA is a small team comprised of 8-10 naval architects led by the engineering system owner (ESO) for Naval Architecture. The DANA team are responsible for submarine manoeuvring and control and stability across the submarine fleet and therefore are key hazard area and high-level hazard owners, responsible to the ISM Chief Engineer for maintaining their ‘Safe to Operate’ status.

You will become part of a collaborative team and will be required at times to work independently and autonomously. You will build strong working relationships with both internal and external stakeholders and industry partners to maintain regular engagement with our industry regulator. Your expertise will be essential in providing assurance on product safety elements and contributing to the overall safety management arrangements within the SDA.

This post may be eligible for the NSQEP Recruitment Retention Allowance of up to £4000 per annum. This allowance is discretionary and will be dependent on a candidate’s ability to successfully demonstrate the necessary competency, qualifications, and experience to an independent panel of Subject Matter Experts as well as a requirement for the post to be listed on ISM’s Nuclear Safety baseline.

The successful applicant will have the opportunity to travel to various UK locations, including naval vessels, dockyards and military facilities.

At the SDA, we champion flexible ways of working. Regular in-person attendance is required (minimum of 3 days per week) to promote the benefits of face-to-face collaboration alongside flexibility of hours to support work-life balance. Initially, you may be expected to attend more frequently to familiarise yourselves with the site, the team, and your role.

Nationality, visas and vetting: For security reasons this role is open to sole UK nationals only. A ‘sole UK national’ refers to an individual who holds citizenship solely in the UK, without dual citizenship or nationality from another country. We’re unable to offer visa sponsorship.

This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and obtain Security Check (SC) security clearance. Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you’ve been recruited for. If it isn’t obtained, or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining SC security clearance can be a lengthy process, and we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made if the necessary security clearance isn’t obtained within 12 months.

What you’ll be doing

As a Safety Manager in the DANA team you will work as part of the team to manage and lead on all the safety engineering and management related activities that sit alongside the Platform Authority delegated technical aspects.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Working with the ISM safety team to identify and manage the DANA team’s input to ISM day to day safety activity
• Leading on, and gathering input to, relevant ISM safety documentation to ensure compliance with relevant UK and EU legislation and regulations, MOD regulations and SDA policy
• Representing the team at regular safety meetings and workshops e.g. platform safety committee
• Leading on the development of the naval authority certification strategy for the key hazard areas owned by DANA
• Supporting the development and management of effective safety management systems, including representing DANA at Hazard Identification (HAZID) meetings for the high level hazards associated with DANA’s key hazard areas, as well as contributing to the identification and evaluation of risk reduction measures, ensuring these are adequately documented and managed
• Providing informed safety advice to the DANA team and to a wider audience when representing the team at safety meetings
• Where applicable, managing contractors who perform safety activities

Person specification

To be successful with your application, you’ll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria:

• Hold a Level 4 qualification (i.e., HNC or higher qualification) in a relevant engineering discipline, or be able to demonstrate the equivalent experience
• Hold professional registration at Incorporated, Scientist or Chartered Engineer status or higher, or demonstrate suitable equivalent experience to achieve this within 9 months
• Have demonstrable experience using a range of safety tools and techniques, to provide advice and guidance on complex projects, e.g. Hazard Log Management; Hazard Identification; Risk Assessment and ALARP (As Low As Reasonably Practicable) justifications

In addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:

• Applies knowledge and complies with safety – Practitioner
• Adoption of safety risk management – Practitioner
• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £45,600, Ministry of Defence contributes £13,210 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• 25 days’ annual leave +1 day a year up to 30 days, 8 bank holidays and a day off for the King’s birthday
• Flexible and hybrid working options
• Market-leading average employer pension contribution of 28.97%
• Annual performance-based bonus and recognition awards
• Access to specialist training and funded qualifications
• Support for progression
• Huge range of discounts
• Volunteering days
• Enhanced parental leave schemes

Improving innovation and enriching our culture, diversity of thought is vital to our success. So whether you’re looking for a new opportunity, a next step, or a helping hand as you return from a career break, bring your experiences and help deliver for the defence of tomorrow. Here you’ll find a supportive, family-friendly organisation to be a part of – and if you need any assistance with your application, just let us know.

Further Information

• Candidate Information Pack: https://bit.ly/SDA-Candidate-Information-Pack
• Terms and Conditions: https://bit.ly/DES-SDA-Terms-and-Conditions

Selection process details

Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:

1. Pre-sift – We will check that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.
2. Sift – Your CV will be assessed against the following categories, using a simple numerical scoring system: Key Achievements; Relevant Experience; Applied Knowledge and Skills. Please follow our guidance on CV writing for best chance of success.
3. Interview – If you’re invited to interview, you’ll be assessed against the Sift categories listed above, as well as the Technical Competences and Behaviours listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. When two (or more) candidates are on equal interview scores, positions will be offered based on the scores assessed at interview, in this order – 1st) Technical competence, 2nd) CV Review, 3rd) Behaviour one, 4th) Behaviour two.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.