HSE Improvement Specialist

This is a genuinely exciting time to join us. We’re part of the M&S family, providing the logistics that keep M&S Food moving. As Marks & Spencer continues to grow, we’re expanding our network to support those ambitions — and that growth brings real opportunity. We’re committed to creating an inclusive environment where people feel supported to be themselves at work. We value individuality, different perspectives and fresh thinking, and we want you to bring your authentic self, do meaningful work, and make a real impact.

UK-based (site flexible) | Monday–Friday | 37.5 hours

At Gist, our Health, Safety and Environment function exists to ensure every colleague can go home safe and well every day. We’re building a modern HSE function focused on real-world risk, practical improvement and strong leadership. Our approach is grounded in what actually happens on site — ensuring safety controls are effective, proportionate and embedded into everyday operations.

We’re looking for a HSE Improvement Specialist to play a key role in shaping, delivering and embedding meaningful safety improvements across our network.

The opportunity

This role is suited to someone who enjoys solving complex problems and driving meaningful improvement. You’ll sit at the heart of our HSE function, owning improvement activity end to end — from identifying risk and opportunity, through to designing solutions, delivering change and embedding learning. Working closely with site teams and senior stakeholders, you’ll deploy where the need is greatest, focusing on initiatives that make a tangible difference to how work is done safely every day. If you’re motivated by variety, ownership and visible impact, this role offers exactly that.

What’s in it for you?

• Ownership of network-wide HSE improvement programmes
• The opportunity to work hands-on across a complex operation
• Exposure to senior stakeholders and operational leadership teams
• The ability to see your work implemented, embedded and sustained

Alongside this, we offer:

• 20% M&S discount on most things from furniture, fashion and food
• 25 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays (rising with length of service)
• Attractive annual bonus scheme linked to M&S performance and personal objectives
• Auto-enrolment pension or competitive Defined Contribution Pension Scheme and life assurance (up to 4x salary)
• Discounted healthcare cash plan
• Access to wellbeing support, including our Employee Assistance Programme
• Ongoing training and professional development
• Cycle to work scheme

Location: Based at any UK site, with periodic travel across the network

Your impact

As HSE Improvement Specialist, you’ll focus on driving practical, measurable improvement across the business. You’ll:

• Support the ongoing development and effectiveness of the HSE Management System
• Own the design, delivery and review of targeted health and safety improvement programmes
• Translate insight, incidents and data into actions that reduce risk and improve performance
• Work directly with site teams to troubleshoot issues and embed learning into future practice
• Bring fresh thinking through horizon scanning, benchmarking and external insight
• Act as a trusted partner to operational teams during periods of change or heightened risk

You’ll also work collaboratively with the wider HSE team and provide support during serious incidents when required.

About you

You’re a proactive, practical health and safety professional who enjoys working at pace and making things better. You’ll bring:

• NEBOSH General Certificate (or equivalent)
• Membership of IOSH or another appropriate professional body
• Experience delivering health and safety improvements in an operational environment
• Strong communication skills and the ability to influence at all levels
• A self-starting mindset, with the confidence to work independently
• Flexibility to travel and support a 24/7 operation when needed
• Experience within logistics, distribution or a similar sector
• Experience working with trade unions or consultation forums
• Chartered IOSH status (or working towards)

Why Gist?

At Gist we are united by our core values; with safety and people at the heart of everything we do, we are progressive, accountable, collaborative, and ethical. Our objective is to establish a performance-focused environment that is fair and inclusive, where everyone can develop, and connect meaningfully to their manager, the Gist vision, and M&S. We are fiercely protective of everyone’s health, safety, and wellbeing, and align firmly to M&S’s sustainability commitments in Plan A. Gist will play an integral part in the M&S journey as it pushes boundaries to lead the retail industry into a greener, speedier, more inspiring era. As part of the M&S group, there’s never been a better time to be part of our team. Join us and make an immediate impact.

Gist aims to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers, and suppliers. If you consider yourself to require reasonable adjustments to any part of our recruitment process, we invite you to share those requirements with us when completing your application. We will make every effort to ensure your needs are met to provide a fair and transparent process of assessment. If it’s meaningful to you, it’s important to us.

Our Internal Recruitment Team fulfil all vacancies on a direct basis. Unsolicited contact by unapproved agencies (sharing speculative CVs) will not be accepted and introductory fees will not apply.