About the job

Job summary

ONR is not a Civil Service department, however, we are an arms length body of Department of Work and Pensions.

Job Purpose

As part of its 2025 strategy ONR is committed to being a modern and transparent regulator, delivering trusted outcomes and value. We are making substantial investments in new digital technologies and skills to enhance our regulatory processes and management of information.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation regulates all aspects of security for civil nuclear materials and sensitive nuclear information in the United Kingdom. We regulate against our outcome focused Security Assessment Principles in accordance with the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003. ONR also supports the development and improvement of good practice for nuclear security, both domestically and internationally.

ONR also regulates the transport of nuclear and radioactive materials by road, rail, air, and inland waterways, and the UK’s State System of Accountancy for and Control of Nuclear Materials (SSAC) and a domestic safeguards regime.

About The Role

Each Head of Nuclear Security Regulation reports directly to their relevant Director of Regulation. As the senior nuclear security inspector in their regulatory area, they are responsible for planning and delivering the full suite of nuclear security regulatory activities within their business area. This is achieved through the effective management and leadership of a team nuclear security inspectors specialising in physical security, personnel security and CS&IA (cyber security and information assurance).

Job description

The role requires:

• Strong senior leadership and management skills
• Excellent knowledge of security risk management, covering the application of physical security, personnel security and CS&IA.

• An expert understanding of current and emerging security threats.

• Highly effective analytical skills derived from extensive experience working in a variety of senior security risk management appointments in the nuclear or other high hazard industry.
• An ability to develop strategic approaches to achieve high security standards in the industry.

• Professional competence and personal credibility, to command the confidence of dutyholders at executive level.

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to present complex technical matters to a non-expert audience, including HM Government, members of the public and NGOs.

• A strong ability to influence senior representatives of dutyholders (up to CEO level), to implement improvements and change, without the need to exercise enforcement powers.
• An ability and willingness, to work collaboratively with a variety of senior internal and external stakeholders (including international partners) but be equally comfortable applying sound professional judgement to make challenging decisions on own.

Principal Responsibilities

• Leading and managing a team of nuclear security inspectors in conducting effective and efficient regulation across the UK’s civil nuclear industry.
• Contributing to the setting of strategic direction within the regulatory division.
• Delivering key deliverables within the sub-division and regulatory divisional plans, ensuring alignment with ONR’s strategic themes and corporate plan.
• Coordination of regulatory activities with safety and safeguards colleagues.
• Managing risk within delegated responsibility.
• Engagement with senior stakeholders across the industry.
• Identification of trends and intelligence of operational significance.

Line Management Responsibilities

• As part of this role there will be an expectation to manage staff.

Location / Travel

This post may be undertaken from any of ONR’s office locations (Bootle, Cheltenham or London), and lends itself to flexibility as regards home working. For the first 12 months, there will be a requirement for frequent attendance at the ONR Academy in Bootle.

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 time in the office on a regular basis, recognising that some work is better done face to face. Managers will work 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.

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.

Person specification

Security Clearance

The roles require National Security Vetting clearance to Developed Vetting.

Person Specification

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. Please contact ONR.Human-Resources@onr.gov.uk/ or francesca.fay@onr.gov.uk to discuss further.

We will also offer an interview to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for applicants who opt into the guaranteed interview scheme.

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

• served for at least one year in His Majesty's Armed Forces (as a Regular or Reserve).

• be in transition from, or ceased to be a member of, His Majesty’s Armed Forces.
• not already be employed by ONR.

Essential Skills/Job Related Expertise

It is expected that some time will be needed for external candidates to develop a full understanding of ONR’s regulatory framework and underpinning policies and guidance. Training to develop knowledge and experience in specific nuclear regulatory topics will be given through a structured training programme.

However, successful candidates will already have:

• a proven track record in leading at senior level,
• be able to demonstrate the timely delivery of multi-disciplinary security activities in a high hazard industry.
• provide evidence in their ability to analyse evidence to form judgements on dutyholder performance; and
• proven ability to translate this intelligence into appropriate intervention strategies.

Essential Qualifications

• A good honours degree, accredited Level 6 qualification or equivalent in a security subject appropriate to the role.
• Membership of a relevant professional institution (e.g. the Security Institute), or the ability to demonstrate performance and/or experience at an equivalent professional level.

Other Requirements

The successful candidates will be appointed to one of the specified vacancies. In line with ONR policy, those employed in regulatory posts will be expected to change role approximately every three to five years.

The role will involve extensive travel throughout the UK, with time being spent away from home as necessary. Accordingly, a full driving licence that permits the holder to drive in the UK is required, unless reasonable adjustments can be made under the Equality Act 2010. There may also be a requirement for occasional travel abroad.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension

Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 27% 

Things you need to know

Selection process details

Please submit your application through the recruitment portal on the ONR website directly by click onto the link above apply at advertisers site where you can also download full job description

For Further Information

For more information about this vacancy please contact Brian Daly, Head of Profession for Protective Security Regulation.   

brian.daly@onr.gov.uk

How To apply

Please submit your application through the recruitment portal. 

The closing date for receipt of applications is 23rd July 2024 at 11:45pm

Your application should include:

• CV to include a full record of your education and professional qualifications and a full employment history.
• A suitability statement (maximum of 800 words) highlighting how you meet the ‘essential skills and experience” required for the role, which will be used at shortlisting in conjunction with your CV.
• Where applicable highlight if you have any experience under ‘desirable skills and experience’ within the application form.

Throughout our shortlisting process, we will make decisions about your capability to do the job, based on evidence you provide against the essential criteria (and the desirable if applicable).

Important guidance when providing CV’s – please upload text-based CVs with no graphics or pictures to ensure the anonymisation function works correctly.

Please note -  if whilst completing your application, you use special characters such as (‘ ; “ - _ * ) within your examples, Hireserve will convert these characters into symbols.  We are currently unable to change this. 

Whilst these examples will appear on your application, this will not prevent it from being reviewed at the shortlisting stage.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.