Health & Safety Manager (Rail / Trackside) in Greenwich

An established organisation delivering complex infrastructure, technology, and operational services is seeking an experienced Health, Safety & Environmental (HSE) Manager to lead all aspects of safety, health, environmental compliance, and risk management across a major programme. This is a senior leadership position responsible for developing and implementing HSE strategy, ensuring compliance with statutory and contractual requirements, and embedding a proactive safety culture throughout the programme and supply chain.

Working closely with programme leadership, operational teams, suppliers, and customer stakeholders, you will provide expert guidance on all HSE matters while driving continuous improvement and operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities

• HSE Leadership & Governance
  • Develop, implement, and maintain programme-wide health, safety, and environmental management plans.
  • Ensure compliance with all relevant UK legislation, regulations, industry standards, and contractual obligations.
  • Provide strategic HSE leadership across all programme activities and workstreams.
  • Establish governance processes, performance measures, and reporting frameworks to monitor HSE performance.
  • Support external audits, inspections, and regulatory reviews.
• Risk Management & Compliance
  • Lead the identification, assessment, and management of health, safety, and environmental risks.
  • Ensure appropriate risk controls and mitigation measures are implemented and maintained.
  • Review and approve risk assessments, method statements, safe systems of work, and related documentation.
  • Monitor compliance across operational, technical, and field-based activities.
  • Ensure accurate and timely maintenance of HSE records, reports, and documentation.
• Team Leadership
  • Lead and develop the HSE function, providing coaching, mentoring, and professional guidance.
  • Build a positive and collaborative safety culture across the programme.
  • Support managers and supervisors in meeting their HSE responsibilities.
  • Promote accountability and continuous improvement at all organisational levels.
• Incident Management & Continuous Improvement
  • Lead investigations into incidents, near misses, environmental events, and non-conformances.
  • Facilitate root cause analysis and oversee the implementation of corrective and preventive actions.
  • Analyse trends and performance data to identify opportunities for improvement.
  • Lead lessons learned activities and ensure improvements are embedded into future operations.
  • Drive initiatives that improve safety performance, environmental outcomes, and operational effectiveness.
• Stakeholder & Supplier Management
  • Act as the primary point of contact for HSE matters with customers, suppliers, regulatory bodies, and other stakeholders.
  • Support supplier assurance activities, audits, and performance reviews.
  • Ensure subcontractors and partners operate in accordance with agreed HSE standards.
  • Prepare and present HSE performance reports to programme leadership and customer representatives.
• Training & Culture
  • Develop and deliver HSE awareness programmes, inductions, workshops, and training initiatives.
  • Promote a positive reporting culture and encourage proactive risk management.
  • Support behavioural safety and wellbeing initiatives across the programme.
  • Ensure employees and contractors understand and fulfil their HSE responsibilities.

Experience & Qualifications

Essential

• Degree qualified in Occupational Health & Safety, Environmental Management, Engineering, Construction, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• Significant experience leading HSE functions within complex infrastructure, engineering, operational, technology, transportation, utilities, or regulated environments.
• Strong knowledge of UK health, safety, and environmental legislation and compliance requirements.
• Experience developing and implementing HSE management systems and governance frameworks.
• Proven experience leading incident investigations, risk management activities, and continuous improvement programmes.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Strong leadership capability with experience managing and developing teams.

Qualifications

• NEBOSH General Certificate or equivalent (minimum requirement).
• NEBOSH Diploma, NVQ Level 6, or equivalent advanced qualification preferred.
• Professional membership of IOSH, IIRSM, IEMA, or equivalent.
• Environmental management qualification or demonstrable experience managing environmental compliance programmes.

Desirable

• Experience working within transportation, rail, infrastructure, utilities, telecommunications, defence, or public sector environments.
• Knowledge of ISO 45001 and ISO 14001 management systems.
• Experience managing contractor and supplier assurance programmes.
• Familiarity with safety-critical or highly regulated operational environments.
• Understanding of construction, maintenance, operational support, or managed service delivery environments.