Band 3 Nuclear Safety Inspector - Radiation Protection in Cheltenham

The Opportunity

As the UK’s independent nuclear regulator, our mission is vital to the nation’s safety and security. We protect society by ensuring safe nuclear for a secure and sustainable future. This is an exciting role critical to the decarbonisation of the UK’s economy; our national defence; and the decommissioning of our nuclear legacy. A career with ONR will provide you with opportunity to lead and shape our society’s future use of nuclear technology.

The Role

As an inspector your job will be varied, and you are likely to undertake a range of roles across the sector; from regulating the construction of new nuclear build to the decommissioning of legacy facilities. Some inspectors concentrate on undertaking planned and reactive inspections on site, while others will assess safety submissions or manage discrete intervention projects. Additionally, there may be opportunities to conduct investigations, manage research projects and mentor and develop the next generation of inspectors.

As a Radiation Protection inspector your role will be ensuring that people are adequately protected from the risks posed by ionising radiation arising on the wide range of UK nuclear sites and during the transport of radioactive materials; risks that many in society care deeply about. We have a particular need for an experienced radiological protection professional to join our team in applying broad radiological protection expertise in a wide range of assessment and inspection activities aimed at securing minimum legal compliance, and including assessing the adequacy of on‑site and off‑site emergency arrangements as well as supporting ONR's internal arrangements for responding to nuclear or radiological emergencies.

Nuclear sites that we consider include existing all AGRs and PWR, Sellafield, defence, decommissioning, fuel manufacture, new build HPC and SZC, new alternative nuclear technologies and SMRs. We also perform evaluations to support emergency response to central Government requests relating to overseas events such as Fukushima and Ukraine. The role includes identifying, commissioning and managing research and improving ONR’s guidance (SAPs, TAGs, TIGs).

Applying your radiological protection expertise in ONR can give you the chance to significantly widen your influence and make a difference in radiation protection throughout the nuclear industry. This may be through a mix of assessment, compliance inspection, producing in‑house guidance, training fellow inspectors, working with professional bodies and institutions to develop relevant industry good practice nationally and internationally, working with government to develop or revise legislation, and representing ONR/UK internationally.

Extensive training will be provided on the legal and regulatory aspects of the role, along with opportunities to continue to develop, expand and deepen knowledge in the specialist area and on a range of nuclear technologies.

Line Management Responsibilities

None currently, however, at this level there could be an expectation to manage staff in the future.

Work with Us

Our colleagues are from all walks of life with varied personal experiences and career journeys into ONR. We want the best people for our roles. As an inclusive employer we value individuals’ contributions, regardless of their age, gender, race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, social background, religion, or belief. Our values ‘supportive, open‑minded, fair and accountable’ are central to this. We invest in our people to build capability, resilience, and promote wellbeing in our great teams, underpinned by our inherent focus on inclusion and excellence.

Inclusion

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. We will consider reasonable adjustments to ensure the recruitment process is inclusive and barrier‑free. If you require reasonable adjustments as part of your application, please contact ONR HR as soon as possible, preferably before the vacancy closes, by emailing ONR.Human-Resources@onr.gov.uk or Jessica.normile-curran@onr.gov.uk to discuss further.

We recognise we have a role to play in helping those leaving the Armed Forces and also have a Veterans guaranteed interview scheme. We offer an interview to Veterans who meet the minimum criteria for applicants who opt into the scheme.

Security Clearance

The successful candidate must hold or can achieve and retain National Security Vetting clearance at SC level.

Location / Travel

This post may be undertaken from a base at any one of ONR’s office locations (Bootle, Cheltenham, or London). This post requires some travel including overnight stays predominantly across the United Kingdom and occasionally abroad. The successful applicant requires a full driving licence which permits the holder to drive in the UK unless reasonable adjustments can be made under the Equality Act 2010. ONR operates hybrid working (working in the office and / or at home) as part of our flexible working policy. There is an expectation that everyone will spend some time in the office on a regular basis, recognising that some work is better done face to face. Managers will collaborate with their teams on what works best to meet individual, team, business and organisational needs to enable collaboration, as well as balancing personal choice and wellbeing.

Qualifications

We expect all Nuclear Safety Inspectors to have:

• Degree level qualification or equivalent in a science, mathematics, engineering or a related discipline.
• Chartered membership of a relevant professional institution, or the ability to demonstrate performance and/or experience at an equivalent professional level.

Essential Skills / Experience

At this time, we are particularly looking for a person with specialist knowledge of radiological protection with practical experience that can demonstrate competency in the following areas:

• Deep and broad experience of the application of radiological protection principles and dose optimisation techniques, including using the hierarchy of control measures.
• Experience of providing advice on compliance with the Ionising Radiations Regulations, and ideally the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations, to a range of duty‑holders in different sectors, for example, by acting as a Radiation Protection Adviser (RPA). Equivalent experience from a country outside GB would be considered.
• Preparation and/or peer review of safety cases and risk assessments relating to radiological protection.
• Knowledge of one or more nuclear / high hazard facilities, examples include: pressurised water reactors, advanced gas cooled reactors, high hazard processing plants etc.
• The ability to assimilate, analyse and provide judgements on new and complex technical issues, clearly and concisely.
• Strong communication, decision making and influencing skills. With the ability to see the bigger picture, targeting and prioritising work, based on risk.

We would ideally like you to have experience in the nuclear sector or alternative high hazard industry. But don’t worry if you don’t! We are happy to consider applicants with a non‑nuclear/non‑high hazard background who, if appointed, would undertake a structured nuclear training programme to reach Nuclear Safety Inspector level (subject to alternative salary range whilst training).

For Further Information

Gareth.thomas@onr.gov.uk