Health & Safety Manager

Location: Northfleet, DA11
Salary: £55,000 - £65,000 per annum
Job Type: Full-time, Permanent

Are you an experienced Health & Safety Manager with a background in food manufacturing or FMCG?

We are recruiting for an experienced Health & Safety professional to take ownership of Health & Safety across a busy manufacturing site. This is a key leadership position where you will be responsible for ensuring full legal and regulatory compliance while driving a strong, positive Health & Safety culture throughout the business.

You will work closely with senior leadership, production, engineering, facilities and external partners to identify risks, close compliance gaps and ensure the site remains fully audit ready.

As Health & Safety Manager, you will lead the site's Health & Safety strategy and be responsible for maintaining high standards across the operation.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading and developing a positive Health & Safety culture across the site.
• Ensuring compliance with all relevant Health & Safety legislation and regulatory requirements.
• Managing internal teams and external contractors/providers.
• Identifying compliance gaps through audits, inspections and observations and implementing effective corrective actions.
• Maintaining and reviewing Risk Assessments and PUWER assessments.
• Acting as the Health & Safety lead for the introduction and commissioning of new equipment.
• Providing Health & Safety training, guidance and advice to colleagues at all levels.
• Monitoring accident trends and leading improvement initiatives to reduce incidents.
• Supporting internal, external, customer and ethical audits.
• Ensuring Health & Safety records and documentation remain accurate and audit ready.
• Liaising with enforcement agencies and external stakeholders where required.
• Producing regular Health & Safety reports and KPI updates for senior leadership.
• Supporting projects and business improvement initiatives with Health & Safety expertise.
• Taking ownership of relevant elements of the site's Crisis Management Plan.
• Ensuring appropriate fire drills, emergency procedures and evacuation arrangements are maintained.
• Overseeing site security, emergency response and contractor arrangements.
• Promoting high standards of employee welfare and workplace safety.

We are looking for a confident and pragmatic Health & Safety professional who can operate effectively at all levels of an organisation.

You will ideally have:

• A recognised NEBOSH qualification or equivalent.
• Strong experience within a Health & Safety Manager / H&S Manager / SHE Manager / HSEQ Manager position.
• Experience working within food manufacturing, FMCG or a similar manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of UK Health & Safety legislation and regulatory requirements.
• Experience with ISO 45001 and ideally Lead Auditor experience.
• Knowledge of BRC/BRCGS, SMETA/SEDEX and COPs.
• Strong understanding of PUWER and Risk Assessments.
• Experience leading audits, investigations and continuous improvement programmes.
• Experience developing and embedding a positive Health & Safety culture.
• Previous experience managing and developing teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• The ability to analyse Health & Safety data and present KPIs effectively to senior management.
• A proactive approach, with the ability to identify potential risks before they become incidents.

Experience with facilities management within a manufacturing environment would also be advantageous.

• £55,000 - £65,000 salary
• Full-time, permanent position
• Free on-site parking
• Electric vehicle charging points
• Subsidised on-site restaurant
• Wagestream - access to earned wages before payday
• Staff events
• Supportive working environment
• Career development opportunities
• The opportunity to take ownership of Health & Safety strategy across a significant manufacturing operation

If you're an experienced Health & Safety professional looking for a senior role where you can make a genuine impact on Health & Safety culture, compliance and site performance, we'd like to hear from you.

Apply today for a confidential discussion.