Field Health & Safety Assurance Lead

East West Rail is an infrastructure programme linking communities between Oxford and Cambridge. The area is currently let down by a lack of transport choices, and we have a once in a generation opportunity to fix that – improving prosperity for people and places along the way.

East West Railway Company was created by the Department for Transport (DfT) to oversee the delivery of East West Rail from construction through to wheels in motion, making sure the railway comes together in the right way. At East West Railway Company, we’re committed to building an inclusive railway for all. We believe that to do that, we must nurture a diverse team that represents the UK communities that we impact. Our approach is simple – to create an environment where everyone is welcome and able to be themselves. We celebrate diversity and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applications of all backgrounds and experiences.

Role Summary: This Field Health and Safety Assurance role plays a critical role in driving the strategic implementation of Health, Safety, and Security (HSS) practices across the East West Rail programme. This role ensures that safety standards are embedded and consistently upheld throughout all site works, including on Network Rail-managed infrastructure. The role provides leadership, oversight, and assurance on safety performance, stakeholder engagement, supply chain compliance, and continual improvement of safety systems.

Function: The Technical function owns the specification for the scheme, interpreting the business case and purpose and translating this into a system requirements set. Activities fall broadly into two categories - establishing standards and requirements, and assuring these are being met during both design and delivery. These activities take place across a number of domains, each requiring different technical specialist capabilities to provide a suitable level of knowledge, support, and innovation.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support the development and execution of HSS strategic objectives and priorities.
• Promote and embed our Safe & Secure principles across the project lifecycle.
• Oversee the planning, assessment and assurance of all field-based activities, including general visits, non-intrusive and intrusive surveys, visits to operational infrastructure including Network Rail, National Highways, Local Authorities, Statutory Undertakers, etc.
• Contribute to short- and medium-term planning for all EWR site works.
• Establish and oversee the development of internal and external HSS KPIs, manage and support performance reporting across EWR and the supply chain, providing analyses of reports on the performance of EWR Co. and its suppliers.
• Establish and maintain minimum performance criteria for the supply chain aligned to Safe & Secure outcomes.
• Lead assurance engagement with subcontractors and partners (MWJV, SMA, MVLA, etc.).
• Ensure compliance with CDM regulations in collaboration with the Head of Delivery CDM.
• Conduct regular site assurance and readiness reviews, documenting findings and tracking corrective actions.
• Monitor supply chain activities, event investigations, and implement improvements to HSS practices.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise:

Experience:

• Extensive experience in health and safety management, preferably in the construction or railway industries.
• Supporting the development and implementation of health and safety management arrangements on large scale multi-disciplinary rail projects.
• Working with delivery teams to determine practical and deliverable measures to improve health and safety performance in the workplace.
• In depth knowledge of health and safety regulations, standards and best practice.
• Proven ability to conduct risk assessments, safety audits and incident investigations.

Skills:

• Ability to communicate effectively with people at all levels and influence various stakeholders at all levels.
• Skilled in engagement and listening in order to encourage open communications.
• Demonstrable collaborative behaviours.
• Strong communication skills to confidently give constructive feedback when dealing with challenging operational situations in a professional manner.

Education and qualifications:

• NEBOSH General Certificate (or equivalent).
• Assurance / Audit / Investigation competence.
• Member of relevant professional body.
• Knowledge and experience of general health & safety legislation.
• Knowledge and experience of Railway specific legislation and standards, including Railway Group Standards and Network Rail Company Standards, where applicable.
• Computer literate with good understanding of health and safety reporting systems.

What we offer:

• Up to 12% employer’s pension contribution.
• 36 days holiday a year (including bank holidays) + up to 2 days to buy.
• Life assurance.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Access to a range of benefits on the Perkbox platform.
• On-the-spot and annual awards.
• Advanced learning and development programmes.
• Great work-life balance and flexible working opportunities.
• Enhanced family-friendly policies.
• Exceptional IT tools.

EWR Co strives to embrace a flexible working environment, where a degree of flexibility is maintained to accommodate both the needs and preferences of employees and what is required to achieve business objectives. EWR Co will always work with any individual to assess and accommodate an individual’s work life balance and style.

Diversity and Inclusion: To discover the best solutions, it’s important we embrace diversity of thought. That’s why we aim to ensure our colleagues feel included, engaged and valued. Inclusiveness is not a buzzword, but a way of being. Our approach to diversity is simple – a workplace where everyone is welcome and everyone is encouraged to be themselves. It helps fuel our innovation and connects us with the customers and communities we serve.

We are open to secondments through the Rail Industry Talent Exchange Programme.