Departmental She Assistant

**Science and Technology Facilities Council**

**Salary**: £25,702 to £34,709 per annum (dependent on skills and experience).
**Hours**: Full time
**Contract Type**:Open Ended.
**Location**: Science and Technology Facilities Council, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Harwell, Oxfordshire

Together, our scientist, technologists, engineers and business support team explore the unknown and turn what they find into work that changes the world around us. Whether it’s sending probes into space or finding new ways to treat cancer, everyone here plays a vital role in making a positive difference to society.

Come and discover how much you can achieve when you’re surrounded by world-leading experts, encouraged to constantly learn and empowered to explore your curiosity.

RAL Space is involved in all aspects of the design, manufacture, assembly and test of hardware and software for space-based and ground-based scientific instruments. We work alongside the UK Space Agency who co-ordinate UK civil space activities and collaborate with international space agencies such as the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, and also work on projects with many other countries and organisations around the world.

An important element of this work is to ensure activities are carried out safely in compliance with UK Health & Safety Law and Regulations and with the STFC Safety Management System. This service is provided by the QA & Safety Team part of the RAL Space Assurance & Business Operations Division.

As the Departmental SHE Assistant, you will support the Departmental Safety Contact (DSC) in ensuring that day-to-day activities are carried out safely and in compliance with the law and regulations. Activities would be in the context of the STFC corporate Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) system covering generic good safety practice plus understanding of hazards including cryogens, lasers and pressure/vacuum systems.

You will participate in organising and attending internal safety tours and inspections to ensure compliance with safety standards are met in each Division of RAL Space. You will also assist in ensuring all RAL Space staff are up to date with mandatory safety training, and will assist the DSC in monitoring and reporting on the SHE activities in the department.

You must be capable of thorough and conscientious work to tight deadlines across multiple projects simultaneously, adapting to changing priorities as the need arises. The work of the QA and Safety group involves liaison with multiple teams, so effective oral and written communication skills are essential when dealing with managers, engineers and scientists within STFC and with external stakeholders. There may be some need for travel on an ad-hoc basis, occasionally with overnight stays, and possession of a full UK driving license is desirable.

**Key Responsibilities**
- Support the Departmental Safety Contact with:

- Preparing and undertaking internal safety tours
- Creating and distributing safety tour inspection reports
- Monitoring actions from safety tours ensuring prompt close-out of actions
- Participating in internal meetings, taking minutes as and when required
- Assisting the DSC with report writing and analysis of safety trends in the department
- Monitoring internal staff training and produce monthly reports
- Providing general safety advice for project teams
- Performing and reporting on ad-hoc safety walkabouts and escalating issues to the QA and Safety Management team as appropriate
- Updating information on the STFC SHE Management System using Evotix Assure.

**Shortlisting (S) & Interview (I) Criteria**
To be considered for this position at Band C/D you will demonstrate:

- Essential_
**Band C**:

- General understanding of the principles of safety management (S&I)
- IOSH Managing Safely certificate or similar
- A minimum of two years working in a technical organization (scientific or engineering) (S&I)
- Ability to work effectively as part of a team (S&I)
- Evidence of effective time management and prioritization (I)
- Excellent Oral & written communication skills (S&I)
- Good quality cover letter. (S)
- Strong IT skills and specific experience of the Microsoft office software suite. (S&I)

**Band D**:

- In addition to the specified essential criteria for Band C;
- NEBOSH general certificate (S)
- Desirable_
- Experience in the space industry or space science (S&I)
- Experience in planning, undertaking and reporting Safety audits (I)
- Able to accommodate occasional UK and overseas travel with overnight stays. (S&I)

We ask some of the biggest questions in the universe, to answer some of the biggest challenges in the world. Whatever our role, we have the freedom to explore, learn and connect, as part of a community that loves to share knowledge and support one another.

As one of Europe’s largest research organisations, this is a place where there’s always something new to learn - about the world around us, about your career, but mo