Project Safety Lead - Temporary (up to 12 months)

About us

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is the charity that saves lives at sea. Powered by volunteers and funded by generous donations, we provide a 24/7 search and rescue service around the coasts of the UK and Ireland. Since 1824, our crews and lifeguards have saved over 144,000 lives. Beyond rescue, we work to influence, educate, and supervise people to prevent drowning, both at home and internationally. Our vision is simple but powerful: to save every one.

Our Safety Team play a vital role in driving continuous safety improvement to protect our volunteers, staff and those we operate with from harm. Joining our team is your opportunity to make a real difference in a unique and purpose-led organisation.

Your role

Be a leading force in helping to keep our people safe. Whether it’s saving lives at sea, lifeguarding on beaches, manufacturing lifeboats, training in our survival centre, or supporting our retail and fundraising teams, safety is at the heart of everything we do.

As a Safety Lead, you will be embedded within the organisational safety team and collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders across the RNLI to deliver key physical and behavioural elements that best bring our Safety Management System to life. You can expect to play a leading role in:

• Listening to our volunteers and staff to then develop and incorporate learning and improvements to the Safety Management System.
• Identifying and closing safety competency gaps for our leaders & managers through training development and delivery.
• Working closely with the Safety Policy and Assurance Manager to shape guidance, define performance indicators and help establish an assurance framework to best understand where improvements can be made.

You will have the opportunity to build relationships to support, guide and advise individuals on safety leadership, behaviours and performance. You will lead and deliver on an array of different project work packages that will contribute to an enduring improvement in the leadership and management of safety throughout the RNLI.

About you

A confident, dynamic and experienced safety professional with a track record of leading or supporting organisational change and enhancing safety management practices. With a strong understanding of health and safety principles and legislation, you thrive in collaborative settings and enjoy engaging with stakeholders at all levels - bringing people together to inspire positive conversations and action around safety.

We imagine you'll bring a blend of the following skills and experiences:

• Experience working with and influencing senior stakeholders
• Excellent collaboration skills – working as part of a project team to solve problems
• Qualifications and experience as a health and safety professional, with an understanding of best practices, standards and legislation
• The ability to work at pace and a resilient self-starter
• A good listener who understands the importance of recognising ‘work as done’
• Delivery focussed and able to demonstrate putting the customer at the heart of the experience

This role is suitable for home working but requires regular travel to Poole to engage with key stakeholders, and occasional travel to regional locations.

Some of the benefits

• Salary £41,242 - £48,520 (dependent on experience) 
• Opportunity for flexible working
• 26 days’ annual leave plus Bank Holidays
• Outstanding pension scheme (contributions of up to 16% of basic salary)
• Life assurance
• Health and dental cash plan option

Safeguarding

The RNLI is committed to safeguarding; protecting a person’s health, wellbeing, and human rights, enabling them to live free from harm, abuse, and neglect. We expect all employees and volunteers to share this commitment and have a zero-tolerance approach. The suitability of all prospective employees and volunteers will be assessed during the recruitment process in line with this commitment. This will include relevant criminal record checks being carried out dependent on the eligibility of the role. (England & Wales; DBS check, Scotland; Disclosure Scotland PVG, Northern Ireland; Access NI, Republic of Ireland; Garda Vetting; International, International Child Protection Certificate process).

Diversity at the RNLI

Our staff and volunteers have been saving lives at sea without prejudice for 200 years. We respect and value diversity of background, skills and perspectives within our teams, and consider it essential to help us deliver a world-class lifesaving service. We are an inclusive organisation and welcome applications from everyone. In addition to having the skills needed for the role, we also look for applicants who share our commitment to living our RNLI values (trustworthy, courageous, selfless, and dependable), and helping us work towards Our Vision: To save Every One.