SHEQ Advisor – England & Wales

SHEQ Advisor – England & Wales

Reporting To: SHEQ Manager
Location: England & Wales – project based with regular travel between offices and live operational sites
Function: Safety, Health, Environment & Quality (SHEQ)

Role Purpose

The SHEQ Advisor will provide competent, practical and proactive Safety, Health, Environmental and Quality support across projects and operational activities throughout England and Wales.

Reporting to the SHEQ Manager, the role will work closely with Project Managers, Site Managers, Engineers, Supervisors, employees and supply chain partners to ensure work is planned and delivered safely, responsibly and in accordance with legislation, client requirements, company standards and the Integrated Management System.

The SHEQ Advisor will have a strong site presence, supporting frontline teams while providing appropriate challenge and assurance. The role will promote a positive SHEQ culture based on visible leadership, workforce engagement, learning, continual improvement and the principle that everyone has the authority and responsibility to speak up and stop work where conditions are unsafe.

Key Responsibilities

Health & Safety

- Provide competent health and safety advice to project and operational teams.
- Support implementation of the project's Construction Phase Plan and SHEQ arrangements.
- Undertake regular site inspections, audits, assurance activities and behavioural safety engagements.
- Monitor compliance with company procedures, project requirements and applicable legislation.
- Provide advice on appropriate risk controls and safe systems of work.
- Review risk assessments and method statements (RAMS) and challenge where controls are insufficient.
- Support the development and review of task-specific risk assessments.
- Monitor high-risk construction activities and provide practical advice to site teams.
- Support effective implementation of permit-to-work and authorisation arrangements where applicable.
- Promote workforce engagement, positive intervention and "Don't Walk By" behaviours.
- Exercise and promote stop-work authority where an immediate risk of harm is identified.

The role will support project teams in meeting their duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. HSE guidance emphasises planning, managing, monitoring and coordinating construction work and ensuring those undertaking it have the necessary skills, knowledge, training and experience. ( HSE )

High-Risk Activities

Provide advice and assurance across activities relevant to the project portfolio, which may include:

- Excavation and buried services.
- Cable avoidance and safe digging.
- Working at height.
- Lifting operations and lifting accessories.
- Temporary works.
- Plant and people interface.
- Electricity and electrical safety.
- Overhead lines and underground cables.
- Confined spaces.
- Traffic and pedestrian management.
- Manual handling.
- Hazardous substances.
- Noise and vibration.
- Construction plant and equipment.
- Hot works and fire prevention.

CDM Compliance

- Support project teams in complying with CDM 2015 requirements.
- Assist with development, implementation and review of Construction Phase Plans.
- Support effective coordination between client, principal designer, principal contractor, contractors and other relevant dutyholders.
- Monitor construction-phase arrangements and escalate areas of non-compliance.
- Support effective workforce consultation and engagement.
- Assist project teams in ensuring appropriate site induction, information, instruction and supervision arrangements are maintained.

CDM 2015 requires construction work to be sensibly planned, appropriately resourced, coordinated and communicated, with workers engaged in how risks are managed. ( HSE )

Environmental Management

- Support implementation of project environmental plans and controls.
- Undertake environmental inspections alongside health and safety assurance activities.
- Monitor compliance with environmental legislation, permits, licences, consents and client requirements.
- Support controls relating to: Pollution prevention.
- Watercourses and drainage.
- Fuel and chemical storage.
- Waste management.
- Spill prevention and response.
- Dust, noise and nuisance.
- Ecology and protected species.
- Invasive species.
- Soil and habitat protection.

- Escalate environmental concerns to the SHEQ Manager and environmental specialists.
- Support environmental incident investigation and corrective actions.

Quality

- Support implementation of project quality arrangements and the Integrated Management System.
- Undertake quality observations and assurance activities during site visits.
- Support compliance with approved procedures, specifications and Inspection and Test Plans (ITPs).
- Identify quality concerns, defects and non-conformances and escalate appropriately.
- Support the Non-Conformance Report (NCR) process.
- Assist with corrective action and lessons learned activities.
- Promote a Right First Time approach to project delivery.

Site Inspections & Assurance

- Complete planned and reactive SHEQ inspections.
- Record findings clearly and communicate them to responsible persons.
- Agree proportionate corrective actions with operational teams.
- Monitor actions through to effective closure.
- Identify recurring themes and trends.
- Escalate significant or repeated non-compliance to the SHEQ Manager.
- Participate in client inspections and joint assurance visits.
- Support internal and external management system audits.

Incident Management & Investigation

- Respond to accidents, incidents, environmental events, quality failures, close calls and high-potential events.
- Ensure immediate controls are implemented following incidents.
- Support preservation and collection of evidence.
- Assist with incident investigations using the company's approved investigation methodology.
- Support root cause analysis and development of corrective and preventative actions.
- Track investigation actions through to closure.
- Support statutory and client reporting requirements as directed by the SHEQ Manager.
- Communicate lessons learned and support their implementation across projects.

Workforce Engagement

- Build strong relationships with site teams and supply chain partners.
- Regularly engage with employees carrying out frontline activities.
- Deliver toolbox talks, briefings and SHEQ campaigns.
- Encourage reporting of good calls, close calls, hazards and improvement opportunities.
- Promote positive intervention and constructive challenge.
- Recognise and reinforce examples of good SHEQ performance.
- Support a fair and learning-focused culture.

Supply Chain Management

- Monitor subcontractor SHEQ performance.
- Support pre-start and mobilisation activities.
- Participate in subcontractor inspections and performance reviews.
- Ensure subcontractors understand project SHEQ expectations.
- Identify areas of poor performance and support improvement plans.
- Escalate significant supply chain concerns to the SHEQ Manager and project leadership.

Risk Management

- Support identification and assessment of project SHEQ risks.
- Review controls against the hierarchy of control.
- Challenge reliance on administrative controls or PPE where higher-order controls are reasonably practicable.
- Participate in risk workshops and constructability reviews where required.
- Support consideration of health and safety risk during planning and design.
- Encourage early identification and elimination of foreseeable risks.

This approach aligns with HSE's CDM guidance, which summarises the general principles of prevention as avoiding risks where possible, evaluating those that cannot be avoided and controlling them at source. ( HSE )

Training & Competence

- Support identification of project SHEQ training and competence requirements.
- Monitor training and competency records where required.
- Support site induction arrangements.
- Deliver SHEQ briefings and awareness sessions.
- Identify competence gaps and escalate them to project management.
- Support supervisors and managers in understanding their SHEQ responsibilities.

Reporting & Performance

- Maintain accurate records of inspections, audits and assurance activities.
- Provide SHEQ performance information to the SHEQ Manager.
- Support preparation of weekly and monthly project SHEQ reports.
- Monitor trends including: Incidents and injuries.
- Close calls.
- Good calls.
- Inspections.
- Audit findings.
- Environmental events.
- NCRs and quality defects.
- Corrective actions.

- Identify emerging risks and recommend improvement actions.

Key Accountabilities

The SHEQ Advisor is accountable for:

- Providing competent and practical SHEQ advice.
- Maintaining a strong and visible presence across live project sites.
- Supporting compliance with legislation, client standards and company requirements.
- Completing planned SHEQ inspections and assurance activities.
- Identifying and escalating significant risks.
- Supporting effective investigation of incidents and non-conformances.
- Monitoring corrective actions through to closure.
- Supporting continual improvement in SHEQ performance.
- Promoting positive workforce engagement and intervention.
- Challenging and stopping work where there is an immediate and significant risk of harm.

Essential Qualifications

- NEBOSH General Certificate, NEBOSH Construction Certificate or equivalent recognised health and safety qualification.
- Technical or vocational qualification relevant to construction, utilities, engineering or SHEQ.
- Working knowledge of UK health and safety legislation and CDM 2015.
- Full UK Driving Licence.

Desirable Qualifications

- TechIOSH or higher membership of IOSH, or working towards appropriate professional membership.
- Environmental qualification such as IEMA Foundation Certificate or equivalent.
- ISO 45001 Internal Auditor.
- ISO 14001 Internal Auditor.
- ISO 9001 Internal Auditor.
- Incident investigation qualification.
- Temporary Works awareness.
- EUSR or utilities-related qualifications.
- First Aid qualification.

Essential Experience

- Experience in a health and safety or SHEQ role within construction, utilities, infrastructure, engineering or a comparable high-risk environment.
- Practical experience of working on live construction sites.
- Experience undertaking inspections and assurance activities.
- Experience reviewing RAMS and safe systems of work.
- Knowledge of construction health and safety risks and appropriate controls.
- Ability to communicate effectively with frontline employees, supervisors and management.
- Experience supporting incident investigations and corrective actions.

Desirable Experience

- Power Transmission & Distribution.
- Overhead line, underground cable or substation projects.
- Electricity distribution.
- Telecommunications or utility infrastructure.
- Civil engineering and groundworks.
- Major infrastructure projects.
- Experience working within Principal Contractor arrangements.
- Experience of client-facing SHEQ assurance.

Skills & Competencies

- Strong practical understanding of construction SHEQ.
- Ability to identify hazards and assess the effectiveness of controls.
- Confident and professional communication skills.
- Ability to constructively challenge unsafe behaviours and conditions.
- Strong influencing and coaching skills.
- Good written reporting capability.
- Attention to detail.
- Ability to prioritise workload across multiple live work fronts.
- Solutions-focused approach.
- Comfortable working independently while remaining part of a wider project SHEQ team.

Performance Measures

Performance will be assessed through measures including:

- Completion and quality of planned SHEQ inspections.
- Timely closure of SHEQ actions.
- Compliance with project and client requirements.
- Incident and close-call trends.
- Quality of incident investigations and learning.
- Workforce engagement levels.
- Supply chain SHEQ performance.
- Audit and assurance outcomes.
- Environmental compliance.
- Quality and NCR performance.
- Evidence of proactive interventions and improvement initiatives.

Values & Behaviours

The SHEQ Advisor will demonstrate visible leadership, integrity, collaboration and personal accountability.

The role holder is expected to spend significant time engaging with people where work is being undertaken, understanding how work is actually delivered and helping operational teams find practical solutions to risk.

They will actively promote a culture where everyone is empowered and expected to speak up, challenge unsafe acts or conditions and stop work where necessary, without fear of reprisal.

The SHEQ Advisor will combine appropriate challenge with coaching and support, recognising that sustainable SHEQ performance is achieved by engaging people, learning from events and embedding safe, environmentally responsible and Right First Time behaviours into everyday project delivery.

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