Sustainability Director in Guildford, Surrey

Allen & York are delighted to be partnering with Future Biogas on the appointment of a commercially focused Head of Sustainability to lead and evolve sustainability strategy, governance and certification activities across a rapidly growing renewable energy business.

This is a rare opportunity to join one of the UK’s leading anaerobic digestion and biomethane developers at a pivotal stage of growth, backed by 3i Infrastructure and RWE Energy Transition Investments and playing a key role in delivering decarbonisation solutions for major corporate partners.

We’re looking for an experienced sustainability leader who combines strong technical and governance expertise with commercial awareness and the ability to lead and develop a high-performing team. You’ll take ownership of sustainability strategy, certification, compliance and MRV frameworks across the business, whilst helping shape new market opportunities and supporting the continued growth of Future Biogas’ low-carbon infrastructure portfolio.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Business Development Director, you’ll lead all sustainability functions across the business, including:

• Overall leadership, strategic direction and responsibility of all sustainability requirements and strategies for the business, including sustainability budgets, people, resource and contingency planning.
• Responsible for leading and continual development of our overarching Sustainability Strategy, GHG inventory, emission reduction targets, reporting requirements and associated governance.
• Leadership, strategic direction and responsibility of operational sustainability certification, including expansion projects, ISCC, RHI, REGO, RGGO, DENA, Achilles etc.
• Leadership, strategic direction and responsibility of developmental work, including LCA, abatement curve development, setting of new standards and procedures etc.
• Relationship development and management of key regulators such as Ofgem and key external stakeholders including auditors, independent reviewers, specialist consultancies, policy makers, standard publishers/working groups.
• Identifying and nurturing of key external partners, relationships and collaborations instrumental to growth and business-critical certification and accreditation requirements.
• Ownership and accountability for key business risks relating to sustainability certification and MRV, and proactive identification and cost-effective mitigation planning for future/potential risks.
• Contribute to scope and delivery of business strategy.

This role offers significant visibility across the business, working closely with senior leadership, investors and external stakeholders to drive both operational excellence and long-term strategic growth.

About You

We’re interested in speaking with sustainability professionals who can demonstrate:

• Academic or professional qualifications related to sustainability, Life Cycle Assessments, carbon reporting, sustainability certification and accreditation.
• A track record of effective leadership, governance and delivery of certification and accreditation processes, compliance and novel development of certification processes.
• Proven experience in strategic team leadership, with excellent line management and people development skills.
• Significant industry knowledge of renewable energy sector and technical expertise relating to MRV, accreditation schemes & certificates.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• The ability to operate strategically whilst remaining hands-on when required.
• Experience within anaerobic digestion, biomethane, bioenergy or wider energy transition markets would be highly advantageous.

Why Join Future Biogas?

Future Biogas is at the forefront of the UK anaerobic digestion sector, owning and operating 11 AD plants nationwide and delivering innovative decarbonisation solutions combining renewable gas and carbon sequestration technologies.

With the backing of 3i Infrastructure and partnerships with organisations including AstraZeneca, the business is entering an exciting new phase of expansion and innovation within the energy transition sector.

If you’re looking for a senior sustainability leadership role where you can combine technical expertise, commercial thinking and strategic influence within a fast-growing renewable energy business, we’d love to hear from you.

Interested:

For further information or a confidential discussion, please contact Thomas Herbert, Recruitment Lead, on +4(0)1202 888986 or email: tjherbert@allen-york.com.

Please note: We anticipate a high response rate for this role, therefore candidates will be reviewed on a rolling basis and interviews arranged accordingly.