Health & Safety Advisor in Sittingbourne

Location – Based in Sittingbourne but with some travel to our other sites

Salary £38,000 - £45,000 depending on experience

Hours Mon–Fri 8:30am–5pm (some flexibility required)

Purpose

At COOK we embrace a ‘culture of care’ in the way that we work, with the simple expectation that our people will work in a safe environment, and they will not get hurt whilst they are doing their job. We require a strong and able HSE Advisor to join the team, to support our process to embed our ‘culture of care’ and to help enable HSE delivery throughout the business. If you have a true passion and enthusiasm for behavioural safety, coupled with great communication skills, then you may be just the person we are looking for!

Reporting to the Head of Health, Safety and Environment, you will find yourself supporting the operational teams across our kitchens, and cold store/logistics but also working closely on elements of HSE policy and management systems in a more central function.

Main responsibilities

• Work with the Head of HSE to develop the core principles and processes of the COOK ‘Culture of care’
• Support the operational teams in their ‘Culture of care’ journey, assisting with the development and deployment of processes local to each area
• Be a 'go-to' resource when team members need H&S advice, assistance, or assurance

Your part in COOK Health and Safety

• Work with the operational teams in an advisory, but also coaching capacity, to help develop safety champions and embed safety within the line organisation
• Develop a deep understanding of the risks within COOK operations to best inform controls and mitigations
• Assist with the analysis and interpretation of HSE data and statistics, whether on short-term e.g. weekly basis, or the longer-term, such as period and annual stats
• Support Dept H&S meetings with stats and analysis, but also to update with H&S items from other areas, along and any developments with central HSE processes
• To share the COOK HSE vision and strategy with all employees and stakeholders in your day-to-day activity
• Work with the Head of HSE as well as area leaders to implement our HSE management system ensuring COOK meets all statutory requirements, within a framework of continual improvement
• Assist operational teams as requested in all aspects of H&S e.g. incident investigation, task evaluation, problem solving, coaching etc.
• Work with the teams to evaluate H&S performance through scheduled inspections and audits
• Develop, and where necessary, deliver pertinent safety briefs and toolbox talks
• Work on capital projects to support these from an HSE perspective, whether in the execution of works, or through the integration of new plant and equipment
• Advise on HSE competence and training requirements, and work with the Training Team to ensure quality delivery
• Support with any regulatory relationships as required e.g. Health and Safety Executive and other authorities

Desired Behaviours

• Always demonstrate safe behaviour – be a safety leader
• Communicative and engaging when dealing with stakeholders
• A strong commitment to learning and personal development to expand your HSE skillset and delivery
• Able to build strong relationships when working with the operations teams, but also with other key stakeholders in a more central function
• Recognise the importance of COOK values and ethos, and seek to influence others through our 'Essential Ingredients'

Essential Qualifications and Experience

• Minimum NEBOSH National general certificate and working towards, or ready to work towards a Level 6 H&S qualification
• Proven experience of working in a H&S role within a manufacturing environment, preferably within the food industry
• An interest in environmental affairs and management
• A desire for ongoing professional development and strong knowledge of industry and regulatory developments
• The ability to work effectively as part of a team, but also independently as required
• Full UK driving licence

If you tick most of these boxes but not all—don’t stress. We’re all about potential.

Excellent Benefits including:

• Paid leave on your birthdays, moving house, becoming a grandparent or your child starts school for the first time
• Staff profit share
• Wellbeing program
• 30% staff discount
• Access to CookieJar Smart Spending discounts and free food perks
• Team meals, events & away days
• Be part of a B-Corp-certified business that values sustainability, people, and the community
• Life Insurance
• Free Lunch

What Cook is About

We’re a proudly independent, family-owned B Corp, which basically means we care. A lot. About our food. About our people. And about doing the right thing—even when it’s not the easy thing. Our vision for COOK has always been that we are a place where EVERYONE is welcome. We want everyone to feel like they belong at COOK. We all have different roles, different abilities and different personalities. By collaborating we can do remarkable things. Whatever your story, if you would like to grow with COOK please apply.