DE&S Health and Safety Advisor

Role overview

Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) works to provide and sustain critical equipment and services for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. The organisation is now part of the National Armaments Director Group (NAD Group), which brings together major Ministry of Defence bodies across science, technology, procurement, infrastructure and support to deliver integrated capability more quickly and efficiently for the armed forces and allies.

This opportunity is based at RAF Lossiemouth in Moray and supports high-profile programmes including P-8A Poseidon and the future E-7 Wedgetail. In this position, you will act as the team’s main Health and Safety adviser, helping create a safe, compliant environment for military personnel, civilian staff and industry partners.

The role is designed for someone who enjoys a visible, influential post in a technically complex defence setting. As the Delivery Team grows, you will play an important part in shaping how safety is managed while working closely with Air Base colleagues.

Working pattern

Regular on-site attendance is required to support in-person collaboration and operational needs. You must be present on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, and you may also need to attend in person when safety-related activity requires it. Any additional face-to-face meetings will be arranged ahead of time. Flexible working is available alongside business requirements.

Key duties

• Carry out practical risk management and safety assurance work.
• Partner with stakeholders to maintain a secure and legally compliant workplace.
• Support security, business continuity, office management and service level agreement matters by sharing lessons learned, good practice and knowledge.
• Perform audits, inspections and work aimed at preventing incidents, and support incident reporting and investigations.
• Provide specialist Health and Safety advice to committees, hazard review boards, management plans and management boards.

Essential requirements

• Previous experience in a dedicated Health and Safety role is the lead criterion.
• A NEBOSH National General Certificate, or an equivalent Level 3 Health and Safety qualification, is required or must be achieved within the first 6 months of employment.
• Demonstrable experience working with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders at all levels.

Assessment criteria

Your application and interview will be assessed against the Civil Service behaviours Working Together and Managing a Quality Service, both at CSBC3 level, along with the technical competences Conducting Risk Assessments and Audit and Assurance at Practitioner level.

Pay and benefits

The salary for this post is £36,000. DE&S also contributes £10,429 toward the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Additional benefits include 25 days of annual leave plus one additional day each year up to 30 days, 8 bank holidays and a day off for the King’s birthday, flexible and hybrid working options, an annual performance-related bonus, recognition awards, funded qualifications, specialist training, career progression support, volunteering days, enhanced parental leave schemes, a wide range of discounts, and an employer pension contribution of 28.97%.

Security and nationality rules

This vacancy is open to sole UK nationals only. Dual nationality is not permitted for this role. Visa sponsorship cannot be provided.

You must have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and be able to obtain Security Check (SC) clearance without any restrictions that would prevent you from carrying out the job. If SC clearance is not obtained, or is granted with restrictions that make you unable to do the role, any conditional offer will be withdrawn. The security clearance process can take a long time, and a conditional offer may also be withdrawn if clearance is not secured within 12 months.

In addition to SC clearance, people working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.

Recruitment process

Your application will first be checked against the essential and eligibility criteria listed in the person specification. Your CV should clearly show how you meet those requirements. If shortlisted, your CV will be scored on key achievements, relevant experience, and applied knowledge and skills. Interview assessment will include a CV review, the two core behaviours and the technical competences.

If interview scores are tied, the order of merit will be decided first by Core Behaviour 1, then Core Behaviour 2, then Technical Competencies, and finally CV Review. If the tie still cannot be broken, the lead criterion may be used and/or an additional assessment may be applied.

Additional information

Successful candidates must declare any outside interests after interview. These will be reviewed before a formal offer is made because some interests may not fit with MOD civilian roles. In most cases, this will not block appointment, but it is used to manage real or perceived conflicts of interest from day one.

Artificial intelligence may be used to support an application, but every example and statement must be truthful, accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Applications may be withdrawn if plagiarism or misrepresentation is identified.

The MOD follows Civil Service recruitment principles and the Civil Service Code, and it operates a Disability Confident scheme. Reasonable adjustments can be requested during the recruitment process. Feedback is only provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

If you wish to complain about recruitment handling, the first point of contact is DESHR-WSC-PMOCOMPLAINTS@mod.gov.uk. If needed, you may then contact the Civil Service Commission.

Further reference documents mentioned in the advert include the candidate information pack, the terms and conditions document, the Civil Service recruitment principles, the Civil Service Code and the MOD privacy notice.

Location

RAF Lossiemouth, Lossiemouth, Moray IV31 6SD, Scotland, United Kingdom.