Job Description

Nuclear Waste Services has a fantastic opportunity for a Head of Quality Assurance to join our busy team hybrid  working from our office in Cumbria.

As part of this role, you will be is accountable to the Head of EHSS&Q for Strategic Leadership, development, and direction of the LLWR Quality Capability by ensuring the successful delivery of the business quality strategy.

You will also lead and manage a team of quality professionals to provide a quality management service ensuring a high standard of Quality Processes, Systems and Support are available to adequately cover all aspects of LLWR’s activities. In addition, accountable for establishing the framework for the LLWR management system and its assurance, whilst ensuring all activities defined are planned, implemented, and monitored for continual improvement within the business; and all activities are fully aligned to the Quality Policy, Strategy, Objectives and Manual (Quality Programme), in order to ensure compliance with legal and internal/external customer requirements and to minimise business risk.

Roles and Responsibilities

Leading and Directing the Quality and Assurance Organisation

  • Develop, establish, and implement the Quality Strategy, to ensure it meets the business requirements and customer deliverables, as well as ensuring the departmental performance against goals.
  • Establish performance measures to provide a line of sight and focus, and demonstrate added value for Quality, and use these measures to monitor performance and identify improvement activities to ensure continued focus, prioritisation of efforts and added value for the benefit of business.
  • Work collaboratively with Internal Stakeholders to influence behaviours across the business for quality deliver and the management system.
  • Define, promote and embed the model for Quality, to ensure quality is embedded as core business to provide and improved focus on future development by engaging with key Stakeholders.
  • Enhance the quality culture across the business by engaging with all relevant Stakeholders, by establishing quality communication on a regular basis, across the business.
  • Establish arrangements to manage and deliver the appropriate quality budget and resource plan to align quality resource across projects, operations and core function areas to minimise business risk and deliver a quality management service to scope schedule and cost.
  • Act as Head of Profession to develop the Quality Capability and establish a robust quality Competency Framework, enable the alignment and application of resources to provide and coordinate targeted support across the business when needed.
  • Develop and establish Quality communications, education, training/coaching programmes for the LLWR Site to promote the value of Quality and establish a strong quality culture.
  • To lead and provide guidance of the Quality Capability and deploy the appropriate quality learning from experience.
  • Strategically deploy the appropriate arrangements for achieving demonstrable levels of competence, in line with the competency requirements for the role, and for maintaining skill levels through continued professional development and training.
  • Maintaining professional links with statutory bodies including LRQA, ISO, etc.

Developing and Sustaining Effective Quality Management including Records Management

  • To ensure LLWR has a robust management system in place which meets the requirements of the relevant standards and adequately addresses customer requirements.
  • To lead the development of site-wide Management System processes and the generation of improvement plans and programmes, ensuring that the requirements of the business are adequately addressed.
  • Leading and managing the development and continuous improvement of the computer-based information systems supporting the Management System Department.
  • Enhancing the existing Management System support services to the LLW Repository Ltd by integrating new and improved services to day-to-day management activities.
  • To ensure LLWR has a robust records management process which meets requirements and standards including NDA records retention.
  • To ensure Quality Assurance resource is available throughout the business including dedicated support to Projects and Container Manufacture and Inspection.
  • To ensure effective Quality Assurance processes are in place for Projects and Container Manufacture and Inspection.
  • Strategically deploy the arrangements to deliver the key business objectives and project and operational records are managed in compliance with the relevant site processes, legal and contractual requirements.

Assurance

  • To lead the development, implementation and delivery of an effective risk-based audit and assurance programme, across LLWR including quality audits, customer and contractor’s audits and the self-evaluation/independent audits programme.
  • Develop and deploy the appropriate quality assurance and quality control activities to support the delivery of objectives and incorporating a graded approach to assurance and oversight, based on risk, to enable confirmation that products/outputs and deliverables met the specified requirements.
  • Provide confirmation that the products/outputs and deliverables produced by or on behalf of the LLWR meet the specified requirements, through certification and verification of the require inputs, processes and outputs; also ensuring the rejection of non-confirming materials, products or services.
  • Deploy arrangements to deliver an appropriate management review process across the business to meet requirements.
  • To maintain management oversight of the findings from assurance and audit programmes and participate in scrutiny and review processes.
  • To undertake audits, inspections and task observations as required, in accordance with the LLWR assurance programme.
  • Leading and managing the development and continuous improvement of the computer-based information systems supporting the Assurance and Audit Departments.
  • Enhancing the existing Assurance and Audit Departments’ support service to the LLW Repository Ltd by integrating new and improved services to day-to-day management activities.

Investigation and Improvement

  • Develop, implement and deploy arrangement for monitoring and measurement of KPI’s to effectively demonstrate delivery performance across all areas of the LLWR business, in order to identify deviations and opportunities for continuous improvement, and demonstrate the success/effectiveness of improvement programmes.
  • Establish a robust continual improvement culture by investigating all quality failings and ensuring the implementation of necessary changes to prevent re-occurrence.
  • To deliver the targets set by the business, in line with the sites Health and Safety and Environmental regulatory framework.
  • Deploy arrangements to deliver the investigation of quality related concerns and events, and the identification of appropriate corrective/preventative actions.
Experience Required

Essential

  • Good first degree in a relevant discipline.
  • Chartered Quality Diploma, relevant chartered status
  • Member of the CQI (or other relevant body)
  • Relevant experience in quality leadership position (including major/capital projects and manufacturing)
  • The knowledge and expertise required for the role is obtained from a combination of education, training, and experience. The role holder requires:
    • Appropriate qualification in quality management
    • Considerable and diverse demonstrable experience of leading a quality assurance function with a proven track record in strategic quality leadership delivering effective quality strategies, policies, processes and systems
    • Demonstrated ability to add value, reduce costs and make business improvements
    • Proven project quality and supply chain (manufacturing) management experience
    • Experience of operating and influencing at a strategic level
    • Knowledge and technical understanding of quality tool, techniques and processes, components and manufacturing techniques
    • Thorough knowledge of the techniques of auditing and analysing events to identify root causes, human factors and adverse trends
    • Management and leadership skills to develop and motivate section staff to achieve section and LLWR objectives
    • Ability in a wide range of business competencies to manage section resources and budgets

Desirable

  • Knowledge of the Site Licence and environmental permit compliance environments.
  • Experience of radioactive waste operations
  • Experience of delivery of Quality on significant construction projects
  • Experience of working with Regulators, including ONR / EA.
What is in it for you
  • On appointment to an RWM, full-time staff are entitled to a generous annual holiday allowance of 38 days’ annual leave. LLWR up to 43 days in addition to a buy/sell scheme
  • Rewarding performance (bonus scheme)
  • We offer a generous above average pension scheme
  • learning and development support
  • payment of relevant annual professional subscriptions
  • Employee Assistance Programme
  • Financial advice assistance
  • Flexible working
  • Extended family-friendly policies
  • Cycle to work scheme
  • We welcome flexible and agile working practices
  • Flexible working requests can be submitted from day 1 of employment
Equality Diversity Inclusion

We value the unique differences that each of our colleagues bring to work every day and are committed to creating an environment where everyone feels respected, included and able to perform at their best. We are committed to creating a workplace that is diverse and inclusive. We value the diversity of our people and actively seek to have a workforce that represents the rich diversity of the communities we support. Currently we are underrepresented in some areas, and would particularly welcome applicants from Women, Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities, LGBTQ+ and candidates who have a disability.

In promoting equal opportunities, we welcomes applications from all sections of the community. We select people according to their abilities and our needs. As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet all of the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of disabled candidates who meet all of the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group. 

Job Details

Ref 10187
Closing Date
Contract FULL TIME
Salary 75000 - 85000
Benefits 20% Bonus & 25.5 Days Annual Leave
Location Hinton House
Town Warrington
Postcode WA3 6GR
Country UK

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