About the job

Job summary

Diverse Perspectives and experiences are critical to our success, and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role. We look forward to receiving your application.

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.

We are looking for high calibre specialists who can, under challenge, think strategically, identify underlying core issues, and engage at different levels both with colleagues, site technical staff and at the most senior levels within an organisation. You will be decisive and able to influence those organisations to bring about improvements.

As a Well Engineering & Operations Inspector, you will apply your experience and knowledge gained while working in the oil and gas well construction and operations sector to the regulation of a wide range of offshore and onshore well engineering and operations activities. Your role will vary enormously in terms of task and pace, ranging from rig site inspections to technical reports.

These posts can be located in our Aberdeen, Norwich or Bootle offices, but post holder will be required to travel for offshore and onshore inspections.

Relocation expenses would be provided.

Job description

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide specialist advice on health and safety matters associated with the topic of well engineering, drilling and other well operations. To within HSE, industry and other stakeholders
• Perform inspections of well notifications for onshore and offshore well operations submitted to HSE
• Assess safety cases and inspect combined operations notifications from a well engineering and operations perspective, as part of the offshore safety case permissioning regime
• Perform site and HQ inspections with respect to specialist issues arising from well engineering, drilling and other well operations activities both offshore and onshore
• Investigate accidents, incidents and complaints alone or as part of a team, both offshore and onshore
• Support enforcement action, including preparing technical reports and expert evidence in legal proceedings and,
• Make technical contributions to the development of industry standards and guidance such as being involved in the design and operation of wells.

At HSE, we are proud to be able to offer our people the opportunity to work in a hybrid way which combines working from home and the office. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your allocated office will be your contractual place of work. There will be a requirement to travel to the office for various activities e.g., collaborative working, supporting and training colleagues. If hybrid working is suitable for you and your role, the arrangements will be determined primarily by business need, but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. Therefore, we would encourage candidates to consider if the commute from home to the office is a feasible distance to travel before making an application. Please note that if you are successful, hybrid working will be discussed prior to taking up the post.

Part time working hours are available for this role. We can accept part time applicants who can commit to working a minimum of 30 hours (4 days) per week.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• A proven track record in managing and contributing to relevant technical projects
• Sound practical experience of well engineering with responsibility for planning and managing drilling operations at a senior level
• Practical experience with risk assessment and risk management tools
• Sound knowledge of well servicing operations, ability to work with other technical disciplines at all levels and,
• You must be able to satisfy the UK offshore medical and survival training requirements

You will have: 

• Strong communication skills to influence change at all levels in the organisations we regulate
• Sound analytical skills to identify underlying gaps and deficiencies related to risk management
• Initiative and decisiveness, making sound decisions based on available evidence
• Good organisational and planning skills taking responsibility for delivering expected outcomes on time and to the required standard
• The ability to work collaboratively as part of a multi-disciplinary team, maintaining positive professional working relationships with colleagues and stakeholders and,
• The ability to write effective technical reports and present complex technical information concisely for a non-technical audience

Qualifications

Ideally you will have a degree or equivalent qualification in a relevant engineering or earth science discipline. Substantial postgraduate well engineering experience in an operational environment within the upstream offshore oil and gas industry.

Memberships

Chartered status with the Engineering Council or the ability to work towards it. Accompanied by a Corporate membership of an approved professional institution or the ability to work towards it.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• Competitive rates of pay
• Access to the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme to which HSE contribute 27.9%, far more than in the private sector
• Family friendly policies and working hours to help balance your home life and career
• Carer friendly policies to help create a supportive working culture
• 25 days annual holiday increasing to 30 days after 5 years' service, plus bank holidays and 1-day Civil Service privilege leave
• Parental leave benefits

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.

Application information

As part of your application, you will be invited to complete a CV and a Personal Statement of up to 1250 words.

Your Personal Statement should address the following points to demonstrate how you meet the essential requirements of this role;

• Your level of responsibility
• The breadth and depth of your experience; and,
• The technical quality and standard of your work

Please note you will be requested to remove any personal data within your CV and Personal Statement. This will help us to recruit based on your knowledge and skills and not on your background, gender or ethnicity.

Application Guidance

Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply and how to complete a Personal Statement https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/how-to-apply/

Sift information

At Sift you will be assessed on your CV and your Personal Statement. The Sift will take place week commencing 8th January 2024.

Interview information

At interview, you will be assessed against the 4 Behaviours and 4 Technical Skills detailed within the job advert. There will be a 10-minute Presentation as part of the Interview. Details of the Presentation to follow after Sift.

Interviews will be face-to-face and will take place in the Aberdeen office during the week commencing 22nd January 2024. MS Teams interview will be considered if you are unable to attend a face-to-face interview.

Aberdeen office address (for interviews): Aberdeen International Business Park, Dyce Drive, Dyce, Aberdeen, AB21 0BR. 

Further Information

Please note that a Reserve List will be held for the period of up to 12 months.

Due to the nature of security checks undertaken, applicants must have 3 years continuous residency in the UK up to the date of the application and, Home Office approval for indefinite leave to remain within the UK. Applicants who do not meet the 3 years continuous residency in the UK up to the date of the application can still apply. Security checks application will be submitted once the 3 years continuous residency is attained if offered a role.

It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful in their application. For a summary of HSE terms and conditions as part of Civil Service Reform, please see the attached document.

Any move to HSE from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/

If you have a disability and you need an application form in an alternative format or you would like to know more about our recruitment process, please contact: hr.resourcing-team@hse.gov.uk

Please note, if you are a current civil servant and you are currently undergoing any of the following formal actions your application will not be progressed any further;

• formal discipline action
• any formal action regarding attendance
• poor performance or
• any restriction of duties as a result of disciplinary action

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.