About the job

Job summary

We have a rare and exciting opportunity to join Defence Marine Services (DMS) as a Health, Safety, Environmental and Quality Assurance (HSEQ) Manager. DMS is a small and friendly team that fulfil the Intelligent Customer role for two marine services contracts. These contracts: Continued Procurement of Marine Services (CPMS) and Range Safety and Aircrew Training (RSACT) deliver a vast range of services and training capabilities to the MOD and other organisations, conducting approximately 15,000 tasks per year. The CPMS contract is delivered by Serco Limited and the RSACT contract by Boskalis Marine Services Limited.

DMS operate within the Director Force Generation directorate of Navy Command. DMS support activities across the 3 Naval Bases and at various locations around the UK coastline and worldwide.  

There are over 100 vessels across the contracts consisting of tugs, workboats, various barges (explosives, fuel, sewage, oily water), range safety craft, winching platforms, pilot boats, trials vessels, passenger transport vessels and two large worldwide support training vessels.  

The HSEQ Manager is accountable to the Head of Defence Marine Services for assuring compliance with both Merchant Shipping and Defence regulations across all vessels and land based activities, whilst supporting the delivery of these contracts.  

The ideal candidate for this role will be a dynamic maritime professional with proven commercial or military maritime experience with a passion for safety and doing things the right way.  

The HSEQ Manager will be employed as a Marine Services Officer Grade 1 (MSO1). MSOs are a specialist branch of maritime professionals, employed as Civil Servants, to support MOD outputs. This is a uniformed position, uniform will be provided.  

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week. It is located in His Majesty’s Naval Base Portsmouth (HMNBP). The role offers a hybrid working model, with the expectation that at least 2 days per week will be in office and 3 will be working from home. This is subject to change through agreement with your line manager. Occasional travel is required as part of this role.  

Job description

As HSEQ Manager you will be responsible for: 

1.  Developing, maintaining and managing an effective and compliant Safety and Environment Management System (SEMS) for Defence Marine staff of all levels. 

2.  Line management of the DMS HSEQ Officer (MSO Grade 2) to support in the delivery of DMS HSEQ objectives and outputs. 

3.  Liaising with multiple stakeholders on all aspects of HSEQ – providing timely advice and support. Such stakeholders include: industry and government contractors, marine superintendents in the Naval Bases and in other service delivery areas, key customers, regulatory bodies, civil servants, Ministry of Defence (MOD) departments and MOD staff of all levels.

4.  Acting as subject matter expert, on behalf of DMS Head, to be responsible for daily management of Affected Services. Affected Services are MOD specific activities that are regulated by the MOD, falling outside of the commercial regulatory framework of the MCA, due to the potential risk levels associated with those activities. This includes holding the role of Affected Services Designated Person Ashore for which training will be provided. (Note – this is not a duty role and escalations are rare). 

5.  Providing advice and guidance on MOD explosive regulations in relation to the marine services contracts. Liaise between the contractors and the Naval Authority and Technology Group (NATG) for explosives certification and audits. To prepare explosives submissions as necessary, fulfilling the requirements of the Platform Authority Professional Officer and Explosives Responsible Officer (ERO). Specialist training will be provided (ERO course at HMS Collingwood). 

6.  Implementing, maintaining and conducting an effective and efficient safety and environmental audit and governance system to meet contractual assurance framework requirements. This includes the management of an audit contract offering independent specialist support to DMS. 

7.  Providing Subject Matter Expertise for safety/environmental standards and upkeep across both contracts in accordance with Merchant Shipping Regulations and MOD technical and regulatory requirements.   

8.  Ensuring the timely management of change to marine services related safety and environment management requirements, sponsoring where necessary, related contract amendments.  

9.  Assist with transition from the current marine services contracts to the DMS Next Generation future contracts due in late 2025. 

10. Providing timely scrutiny and advice to Head of DMS for acceptance of Operational, Platform and Affected Services Safety Cases and hazard assessment documentation.   

11. Providing information for corporate Navy Command safety and environmental reporting requirements.   

12. Managing HSEQ risks including the risk register and reporting/escalating as necessary. 

13. Maintaining professional and technical links with the wider MOD and industry maritime regulatory community to ensure safety and environmental management best practice.

If you need to contact Defence Business Services (DBS) regarding this vacancy, please indicate that your vacancy is being handled by Resourcing Team 1. 

If you experience any technical difficulties with the CS Jobs system, please contact the Support Team at candidate@support.oleeo.com 

Person specification

The successful post holder will be comfortable communicating and engaging with a wide audience base including marine services contractors, regulatory bodies, senior civil servants and Military Officers both within Navy Command and across the Ministry of Defence. The post holder will understand the importance of exploring different styles and methods of communication and adapting to meet the needs of stakeholder management. The post holder will need to be organised, efficient and able to manage and prioritise multiple issues concurrently in order to support operational requirements. 
 
This post requires knowledge and experience of safety and environmental legislation, policies and regulation, both within the commercial and Defence maritime operational areas. (e.g. knowledge and application of IMO Codes & Conventions, Merchant Shipping Regulations, M Notices, Workboat Code, Health & Safety Executive requirements, DSA02-DMR Regulations, the Defence Safety Authority and the Defence Maritime Regulator). For further details, please contact the recruiting manager named in this advert.  
 
Although the role is Portsmouth based, there are a number of commitments that require travel to locations throughout the UK, and occasionally visits to overseas locations, therefore the successful candidate must hold or be willing to acquire a valid UK passport.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £59,498, Ministry of Defence contributes £16,064 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

Please use the link attached to the advert on Civil Service Behaviours 

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: 

Making Effective Decisions  

Managing a Quality Service 

Communicating and Influencing 

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form: 

Making Effective Decisions 

Communicating and Influencing 

 Evidence of IC1, IC2 and IC3 will be required at both application and interview.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical.  

The role currently being advertised has not been assessed as business critical and is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.  

MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – we may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights. 

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). 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

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). 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. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.