H&S Advisor Job in Buckfastleigh TQ11 0JU, South West UK

We have grown to supply 40,000 homes per week nationwide from a network of four regional farms and box packing operations and are looking for an experienced HS Advisor to join our team. Riverford has a turnover of around £45 million and employs over 400 staff across the network. 

Alongside the 4 production sites, we also operate a Meatbox Company, our own farms, restaurant, staff canteens, many shows and events and logistics operations. 

 

The main aim of the role is to assist and develop our managers on all areas of HS.  You will develop further their knowledge and understanding of HS in a way that enables them to take full responsibility and ownership for HS across their areas.  This will be a hands on role providing on the ground support and development to the managers across the network.

 

We are looking for an experienced HS advisor with experience of working in a HS role in a production/manufacturing environment.  You will have the experience and credibility to develop our HS systems but also be able to do this in a way that empowers managers to develop their confidence and skills in HS.

Key responsibilities

We have made a lot of progress on HS and have a committed team of managers who want to drive HS forward in their areas but sometimes lack the expertise to move HS forward.  For this role the successful candidate will be required to support the H+S/HR Director in driving forward a proactive H+S culture across all the Riverford sites. The key responsibilities of the role are;

·        Provide H+S advice, support and development across all areas of the Riverford business.

·        Ensure H+S becomes in intrinsic part of the Riverford working culture.

·        Support and develop the knowledge, skills and experience of Riverford managers on all aspects of H+S including risk assessments, SSOW and training.  Drive managers to take ownership for ensuring work plans are in place and are being progressed.

·        Provide HS input at the planning stage of new projects (direct roots, potato bagging, conveyers, car parks etc).  Support managers in considering HS at the planning stage of all projects.

Practical Responsibilities

·        Provide reliable means of workplace inspections and checks that managers can stick to.  Highlight areas of concern but also help managers assess new equipment purchased.

·        Full incident and accident investigation.  Analysis of any trends which need to be highlighted and development of corrective actions with managers.  Ensure full accident and incident investigations are being carried out by managers in the appropriate detail.

·        Develop, with managers, incident reporting systems which can be used to highlight areas of concern include musculoskeletal issues.

·        Ensure that where problems are highlighted from staff or risk assessments that action is taken and improvements are made by the manager.

·        Picking up on work related health issues which can then feed into Occupational Health so we can make improvements in the areas that pose a RSI/Health risk

·        Contribute to developing and reviewing our HS management system. Assist with the roll out of the HS management system and procedures from HS/HR Director.

·        Escalate key areas of concern to HR/HS Director that can require consideration at operational/board meetings.

·        Carry out internal audits and scoring across all sites to support H+S development across the Riverford business. Insure that findings are reported in practical and progressive manner.

·        Provide training and help with tool box talks to up skill managers on H+S.

·        Keep the company abreast of any relevant H+S legislation.

·        Be the eyes and ears on the ground for what is working well and where there still may be some concern so this can then be escalated where necessary. Effectively assist managers with communication of ‘best’ and ‘worst’ practice.

·        Help build a culture of communication and involvement with staff on the ground on areas of improvement and H+S by getting involved in meetings and helping managers to run focus groups effectively.

·        Build up template of Risk assessments and SSOW that can be rolled out at other sites to provide the basis for HS and provide better training. 

Person Specification

·        Excellent inter-personal and communication skills, with a clear ability to build relationships and gain buy in from managers across the business.

·        Common sense, practical approach to HS including some experience in the interrelationship between H+S and efficiency.