Band 3 Nuclear Safeguards Inspector

Job Description

The Opportunity

As the UK’s independent nuclear regulator, our mission is vital to the nation’s safety and security. We protect society by ensuring safe, secure and safeguarded operations at nuclear facilities across our nation.

This is an exciting role critical to the decarbonisation of the UK’s economy; decommissioning of our nuclear legacy and in the UK meeting its international obligations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (NCA) partners. A career with ONR will provide you with opportunity to lead and shape our society’s future use of nuclear technology.

As part of its 2025 strategy ONR is committed to being a modern and transparent regulator, delivering trusted outcomes and value. We are making substantial investments in new digital technologies and skills to enhance our regulatory processes and management of information.

Job Purpose

The Office for Nuclear Regulation regulates all aspects of safeguards for civil nuclear material in the United Kingdom. We regulate against our outcome focused nuclear material accountancy and control assessment principles and in accordance with the Nuclear Safeguards (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. ONR is responsible for maintaining the UK State System of Accounting for, and Control of, Nuclear Material (UK SSAC) and for meeting the UKs international reporting obligations involving nuclear material accountancy and safeguards. ONR also supports the development and improvement of good practice for nuclear safeguards, both domestically and internationally.

About the Role

Nuclear Safeguards inspectors regulate safeguards across the civil nuclear industry, to ensure duty holders are compliant with relevant legislation and that nuclear material remains appropriately accounted for and controlled. Inspectors achieve this through a mix of compliance inspections and assessment of accountancy and control plans and arrangements, to ensure dutyholders manage the risk adequately. The role covers all aspects of nuclear material accountancy, control and safeguards.

Principal Responsibilities

• Working in a team of nuclear safeguards inspectors to deliver effective and efficient regulation across the UK’s civil nuclear industry.
• Undertaking the assessment of dutyholder accountancy and control plans and arrangements to ensure they are capable of adequately managing safeguards risks.
• Undertaking compliance inspections of dutyholder arrangements and facilities, to ensure risks are being effectively managed and that dutyholders are meeting their legal obligations.
• Engagement with senior stakeholders across the nuclear industry.

• Identification of trends and intelligence of operational significance.

Line Management Responsibilities

• None currently, however, at this level there could be an expectation to manage staff in the future.

 Work with Us

Our colleagues are from all walks of life with varied personal experiences and career journeys into ONR. We want the best people for our roles. As an inclusive employer we value individuals’ contributions, regardless of their age, gender, race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, social background, religion, or belief. Our values ‘supportive, open-minded, fair and accountable’ are central to this. We invest in our people to build capability, resilience, and promote wellbeing in our great teams, underpinned by our inherent focus on inclusion and excellence.

Person Specification / What You’ll Need

Qualifications

We expect our Nuclear Safeguards Inspectors to have:

• A good honours degree, or equivalent, in an appropriate scientific, engineering, security or political science subject or be able to demonstrate performance and/or experience at an equivalent professional level.

 Essential Skills / Experience

It is expected that some time will be needed for successful candidates to develop a full understanding of ONR’s regulatory framework and underpinning policies and guidance. Training to develop knowledge and experience in specific nuclear regulatory topics will be given through a structured training programme.

However, successful candidates will already have:

• Evidence of significant experience as a nuclear material accountant or safeguards practitioner.
• A solid understanding of current and emerging domestic and international safeguards-significant events and developments.
• An expert level of knowledge of safeguards and experience of at least two of the following:
• Implementing, auditing or regulating nuclear material accountancy and control arrangements
• Nuclear material accountancy,
• Material balance evaluation,
• Safeguards by design,
• Measurement and control of nuclear material
• Demonstrable experience of managing projects through sound planning, prioritisation, and timely delivery of work to a very high standard.
• An ability and willingness, to work collaboratively, but be equally comfortable applying sound professional judgement to make challenging decisions on own.
• Highly articulate verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to present complex technical matters to a non-expert audience.

• Confidence in the use of modern Microsoft based IT tools and applications.

Desirable Skills/ Job Related Expertise

 The following are highly desirable for the role:

• The ability to critically analyse vast volumes of highly technical data, to make informed and timely judgements, proportionate to the circumstances.
• A highly effective ability to influence senior representatives (up to board level), to implement improvements and change, without the need to exercise enforcement powers.

 Inclusion

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. We will consider reasonable adjustments to ensure the recruitment process is inclusive and barrier-free. Please contact ONR.Human-Resources@onr.gov.uk/ or Francesca.fay@onr.gov.ukto discuss further. We will also offer an interview to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for applicants who opt into the guaranteed interview scheme.

We recognise we have a role to play in helping those leaving the Armed Forces and have a Veterans guaranteed interview scheme. We offer an interview to Veterans who meet the minimum criteria for applicants who opt into the scheme. Please see eligibility criteria below.

• served for at least one year in His Majesty's Armed Forces (as a Regular or Reserve).
• be in transition from, or ceased to be a member of, His Majesty’s Armed Forces.
• not already be employed by ONR.

 Security Clearance

The successful candidate must hold or can achieve and retain National Security Vetting clearance at SC level.

Location / Travel

This post may be undertaken from a base at any one of ONR’s office locations (Bootle, Cheltenham, or London). You may be eligible for relocation package up to £15,000.

This post requires some travel including overnight stays predominantly across the United Kingdom and occasionally abroad.

The successful applicant requires a full driving licence which permits the holder to drive in the UK unless reasonable adjustments can be made under the Equality Act 2010

ONR operates hybrid working (working in the office and / or at home) as part of our flexible working policy. There is an expectation that everyone will spend some time in the office on a regular basis, recognising that some work is better done face to face. Managers will collaborate with their teams on what works best to meet individual, team, business and organisational needs to enable collaboration, as well as balancing personal choice and wellbeing.

For Further Information

For more information about this vacancy please contact Alan Homer, Head of Profession for Nuclear Safeguards Regulation:   

Email -  alan.homer@onr.gov.uk

How To Apply

Please submit your application through the recruitment portal.

The closing date for receipt of applications is 23rd December 2024 at 11:45pm.

We will be reviewing applications regularly and reserve the right to close this advert early if the position is filled.

Your application should include:

• CV to include a full record of your education and professional qualifications and a full employment history.
• A suitability statement (maximum of 800 words) highlighting how you meet the “essential skills and experience” required for the role, which will be used at shortlisting in conjunction with your CV.
• Where applicable highlight if you have any experience under ‘desirable skills and experience’ within the application form.

Throughout our selection process, we will make decisions based on evidence you provide. If you are shortlisted, you will be invited to a technical/competency-based interview.

AI Tools & Platforms

During the application process applicants are allowed to utilise AI (artificial intelligence) platforms and tools to support them in writing their CVs, suitability statements, essential skills and experience. Please ensure that all information submitted is truthful and verifiable. This includes avoiding plagiarism and accurately attributing the work of others, including artificial intelligence generated content, as your own. All presented information will be assessed at the Interview Stage.

Important guidance when providing CV’s – please upload text-based CVs with no graphics or pictures to ensure the anonymisation function works correctly.

Please note -  if whilst completing your application, you use special characters such as (‘ ; “ - _ * ) within your examples, Hireserve will convert these characters into symbols.  We are currently unable to change this.

Whilst these examples will appear on your application, this will not prevent it from being reviewed at the shortlisting stage.