Environment and Sustainability Graduate

Contract Type: Permanent, Full Time

Salary: £31,000 per annum

Grade: Early Talent - Graduate

Reporting Office: London, Stratford or Manchester, Trafford

Persona: Agile Worker: 20% - 40% of contractual hours to be worked from reporting office/working location (hybrid working)

Closing Date: 10th September

Interview Dates:

• 1st Stage on Microsoft Teams - 22nd September - 24th September 2026
• 2nd stage in person: 29th - 30th September

Please note that in person interviews will be held for at least one of the interview stages for this role.

Benefits include:

• Excellent pension plan (up to 6% double contribution)
• 28 days Annual Leave rising to 31 days with length of service + Bank Holidays
• Westfield Health Cash Plan
• Non-contributory life assurance
• Up to 21 hours volunteering paid days
• Lifestyle benefits
• Employee Assistance Programme
• And many more...

Are you interested in making a meaningful impact on some of the UK’s most pressing social and environmental challenges? Working in L&Q’s sustainability team means that you can help deliver affordable housing in a way that avoids adverse impacts to the environment. The Sustainability team sits within our wider Strategy & Performance directorate, which oversees the delivery of L&Q’s five-year Corporate Strategy. The directorate oversees strategy development and delivery, business planning and performance reporting, the group’s sustainability efforts to achieve net zero carbon and respond to the risks associated with climate change, manages the group's policy development framework as well as oversee our portfolio and Transformation and Change programmes. As such, it presents a rare opportunity to shape, influence and work at the very heart of one of the UK largest social enterprises.

Over the past 5 years, our previous strategy delivered significant progress including:

• Launching a £3 billion, 15-year major works investment programme that will make sure every resident’s home is safe, decent and more energy efficient.
• Improving the quality and responsiveness of our repairs service through a change programme which has already delivered a 20% increase in first-time fix on day-to-day repairs.
• We have committed to investing significant sums to bring our homes and services in line with changing regulatory standards.

The successful candidate will be joining at a pivotal moment, as we begin the first year of our new 5-Year Environment & Climate Change Strategic Plan. Building on the work that has gone before, teams are moving deliverables from strategy to delivery, embedding activities and objectives across the organisation. Central to this is the delivery of strengthened Environmental Management, now sitting newly in the central Strategy & Performance directorate.

Overview of the role:

We are looking for an ambitious, passionate and driven graduate to join our sustainability and environmental compliance team. As a graduate you will gain hands‑on experience across all areas of environment and sustainability in the housing sector. In the role, you’ll work across all areas of the business including new development, procurement, supply chain and maintenance whilst building your skills in biodiversity, climate risk, adaptation and retrofit & decarbonisation. More than that, you will be part of a team focused on providing affordable and long-lasting homes where communities can thrive. The successful candidate will join an agile, high-performing and values driven team that not only helps shape strategic thought but then translates this into delivery so we achieve the best total cost solution for our customers through reliable, consistent, and repeatable products and services.

By the end of the training period, you can expect to have:

• Developed a strong understanding of sustainability in the housing sector.
• Contributed effectively to the team’s projects and objectives.
• Enhanced the organisation’s reputation by demonstrating a commitment to shaping the future of sustainable and affordable housing.

Key responsibilities include:

• Supporting L&Q’s approach to environmental sustainability across a wide range of business areas including new development, asset management, procurement, supply chain, and maintenance.
• Assist with reporting and data management on environmental management compliance, energy use, carbon emissions, water consumption and waste. This will be in line with annual sustainability reporting and climate risk reporting for use in monitoring, disclosing, and improving performance.
• Providing support to the team for mitigation and adaptation measures relating to biodiversity and the risk of flood, overheating and other climate risks to our residents.
• Help interpret sustainability‑related regulations and emerging policies (e.g Future Homes Standard, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG), Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES)) and assist in updating internal policies and procedures.
• Preparing briefing notes on relevant sustainability regulations, developing materials and content on sustainability priorities, and delivering strong communication to coordinate with cross‑functional teams.
• Ensuring that resident benefit is at the heart of everything we do, and driving forward both innovative and well understood mechanisms to support a fair transition to net zero.

What you’ll bring:

• A degree in a related field
• Passionate about working in sustainability and climate change
• Self‑motivated and resilient
• Excellent report writing and analytical skills

About L&Q:

We’re one of the UK’s leading housing associations and developers. We were founded on a simple belief: high-quality housing is vital for people’s health, happiness and security. Everyone deserves a quality home that gives them the chance to live a better life. 250,000 people call our properties ‘home’, and we’re proud to serve diverse communities across London, the Southeast and Northwest of England. People are at the heart of our business, and our success depends on employing the best people and getting the best from them. The foundation of everything that we are is built on our corporate values and behavioural framework, which outlines our core expectations and should be demonstrated at all times, and all levels, when representing L&Q. At L&Q, we know that diversity and inclusion make us stronger - and they’re at the heart of everything we do. When we recruit, we look at what really matters: your skills, experience, and potential. We’re proud to be recognised for creating an inclusive workplace. We’re a Disability Confident Leader (Level 3) and we’ve introduced our own Recruitment Advocate scheme to make sure every step of our hiring process is fair, transparent, and consistent. It’s all part of our commitment to ending discrimination and making L&Q a place where everyone feels welcome.

Sustainability is also at the heart of what we do. We recognise the responsibility we hold as one of the UK’s largest housing associations.