Sustainability Specialist

The Government Property Agency is the largest property holder in government, with more than £2.1 billion in property assets and over 55% of the government’s office estate. We are transforming the way the Civil Service works by creating great places to work, leading the largest commercial office programme in the UK, working towards halving carbon emissions from government offices, and achieving greater value for taxpayers. We are looking for innovative, solutions-focused people to join our team.

We are leading significant transformational programmes such as the Government Hubs Programme, Whitehall Campus Programme and Net Zero Programme. We are also delivering cost-effective property services such as asset management, lifecycle replacement and workplace services. Innovation and progress underpin our behaviours. We foster a culture of lifelong learning, where curiosity and self-improvement are encouraged.

Our four core values are at the heart of everything we do. They shape our culture and guide how we work, lead and grow together:

• Striving for excellence - We always aim to deliver great results
• Empowering through respect - We insist on fair treatment for all, always
• Acting with integrity - We consistently do the right thing
• Succeeding together - We rely on each other to achieve success

We are committed to representing the communities we serve by making Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) part of everything we do. Our strong emphasis on EDI is not just about driving inclusion across our organisation, it is also about ensuring our services meet the needs of government departments and the civil servants who use our spaces. To ensure that we are always recruiting and retaining a diverse mix of talent, we are particularly inviting applications from candidates who are disabled, ethnically or gender diverse, and people who identify as being part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Join our dynamic and diverse team that leads with purpose, improving sustainability, nurturing social value, driving inclusivity and flexibility, and kickstarting economic growth. We are driven by purpose, and you can be part of it too: where you make a meaningful impact; where you influence; where your voice really matters; where you help to shape our future direction.

The key purpose of the Assurance Team’s Sustainability Specialist is to ensure effective delivery for GPA clients and customers in respect of sustainability reporting and initiatives, as well as delivering wider GPA sustainability assurance projects. The post holder will be part of a small team of subject specialists and will report to the Assurance Team, Sustainability Manager.

The Sustainability Specialist will:

• Support delivery of client sustainability reporting, in collaboration with other GPA colleagues, teams and external contractors.
• Ensure delivery of sustainability initiatives and promote stakeholder engagement on sustainability issues within GPA managed buildings.
• Act as part of a wider team delivering the GPA Environmental Management System, including acting as an internal auditor.
• Assist clients and contractors with their own environmental management assurance activities, where required.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support delivery of GPA sustainability reporting for clients, including overseeing routine data collection processes and reporting and responding to ad hoc requests for information both internal and external.
• Develop and build on current data collection and reporting processes to ensure continuous improvement.
• Present trends in data and provide recommendations on improvements in sustainability performance based on reporting, both within GPA and to clients and customers.
• Collaborate with the GPA supply chain to ensure building specific sustainability trends and improvements are identified and acted on.
• Act as a subject knowledge expert for GPA colleagues, clients and customers.
• Contribute to the ongoing development and operation of the GPA Environmental Management System, including being part of the internal auditing team.
• Provide expert sustainability advice to clients, attending and presenting at performance meetings where required, and identifying and providing support to clients, for example on reporting, initiatives, assurance and auditing.
• Undertake any other reasonable tasks in consultation with the Sustainability Manager.

External Influence:

• Build and maintain effective working relationships with key contacts in the supply chain, clients, third party data holders and external interested parties.
• Represent GPA at any relevant external groups.
• Attend corporate forums, committees and meetings in relation to sustainability.
• Work with others to identify areas for improvement and simplify processes to use fewer resources.
• Use technology where possible to increase efficiency.

Risk Management:

• Ensure that discipline specific risk registers are maintained, including risk management elements of the environmental management system.
• Support wider GPA teams, clients, customers and supplier chain managers to resolve key risks, taking ownership for risk mitigation where appropriate.
• Ensure that the need for expert advice is identified appropriately.

Leadership:

• Encourage and promote delivery of sustainability improvements both within GPA and with clients, customers and the supply chain.
• Involve and consult with the team members and wider GPA colleagues to undertake continuous improvement of the processes and procedures that support the sustainability function.
• Contribute to full team activities such as development days, team meetings etc.
• Lead client, customer and supply chain meetings, where required.
• Deputise for the Sustainability Manager, where required.

Key Contacts:

• GPA sustainability function colleagues
• Third party data holders
• GPA client managers and workplace services managers
• Senior client contacts
• Senior contractor contacts
• Sustainability contacts within other Government Departments

Authority:

• Decision Making: Yes