East Midlands Railway
Head of Occupational Health & Wellbeing
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Working at East Midlands Railway (EMR)
We are proud to be One Team at East Midlands Railway (EMR). We are passionate about:
- Keeping people safe
- Delighting our customers
- Doing the right thing
With over 2,600 employees, our people are the driving force behind our success. Our Occupational Health and Wellbeing Team plays a crucial role in maintaining this success.
Ten times awarded as a Top Employer, we value our staff and are fully committed to ensuring everyone feels empowered to bring their authentic self to the workplace.
At EMR, we actively promote diversity across our workforce. While we recognise we are currently under-represented in terms of ethnic minority groups, we are taking steps to create a more inclusive culture. We welcome applications from individuals who identify with these groups to better represent our communities.
About the Role: Head of Occupational Health and Wellbeing
At East Midlands Railway, we prioritise the safety of our employees and strive to create a healthy and fulfilling work environment. Our commitment to mental, physical, and social wellbeing is integral to all our activities.
We are currently seeking an experienced and forward-thinking Head of Occupational Health and Wellbeing to lead our strategy and services in promoting and enhancing the health of our workforce. You will be responsible for ensuring our services are aligned with regulatory requirements, clinical governance standards, and industry best practices, while maximising employee availability and resilience.
This position offers pivotal leadership influence across the organisation. As the holder of this role, you will:
- Work closely with senior stakeholders, clinical specialists, and external partners to shape a proactive and high-quality health and wellbeing offer.
- Be based at our brand-new Occupational Health and Wellbeing centre on Pride Park in Derby.
Responsibilities
Departmental Leadership and Strategy
- Lead the development and delivery of a modern, evidence-based strategy aimed at promoting and maintaining the employees’ health and wellbeing.
- Ensure the Occupational Health & Wellbeing department’s services are delivered with high-quality, timely execution that comply with regulatory, governance, and clinical standards.
- Maintain and lead the performance management, appraisal, and training processes for the team.
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Collaboration and Project Management
- Collaborate with heads of Service Delivery, Safety and HR to enhance, adapt and improve wellbeing and occupational health services to support organisational priorities.
- Address issues pertaining to sickness absence, medically restricted workers, driver licensing, safety-critical standards, and other regulatory needs.
- Lead and oversee planning, implementation, and evaluation of associated programmes and initiatives.
Expert Consultation and Advice
- Provide expert occupational health advice to senior management and ensure the organisation is fully aware of changes to statutory or advisory compliance-related requirements.
- Work internally and externally to provide robust compliance support.
Service Management and Accountability
- Oversee the maintenance and improvement of service quality, including developing audit processes and quality monitoring to achieve and retain SEQOHS accreditation.
Financial Oversight
- Manage the departmental budget, ensuring financial control, alignment with company policies, and efficient use of resources.
- Maintain a balance between high-quality service delivery and value for money.
External Partnerships
- Oversee third-party Occupational Health providers, including:
- Medical officers
- Physiotherapy services
- Drug & Alcohol testing partners
- Employee Assistance Programme suppliers
- Support procurement, contract management, and ongoing program delivery to maximise service quality while ensuring affordability.
Compliance and Data Management
- Ensure all health and wellbeing initiatives are evidence-based and supported by accurate management information.
- Maintain compliance with GDPR through handling, collecting, and processing data responsibly.
Industry Engagement
- Engage with RSSB and relevant industry working groups to facilitate research, policy development, and promote shared best practices.
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Qualifications and Experience
Ideal candidates will possess:
- A degree-level qualification, particularly in Occupational Health (though not exclusively essential).
- Ability to interpret complex information and make informed decisions.
Required Experience:
- Significant occupational health management experience, with leadership of multidisciplinary teams.
- Strong people management skills, with the ability to motivate, set direction, and lead results through teams.
- Excellent communication skills:
- Ability to explain complex health or sensitive matters to diverse audiences including clinicians, regulators, trade unions, senior leaders, and employees.
- Up-to-date knowledge of relevant quality standards, particularly SEQOHS.
- IT proficiency:
- Experience with Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and other standard business applications.
- Proven negotiation and third-party contract management experience.
- Ability to represent and influence the organisation effectively at all levels, both internally and externally.
Benefits
As rewards for your dedicated work, East Midlands Railway offers:
- An excellent defined benefit pension scheme.
- 32 days’ holiday per year, increasing to 34 after 2 years.
- The flexibility of flexible working hours.
- Free First-Class duty travel on the EMR network.
- Free First-Class leisure travel on the EMR network, and Norwich South, Norfolk Coast, Thameslink, Elizabeth Line, Northern Trains, CrossCountry, GWR, Norfolk Thameside Lines, LNER.
- 75% discount on national leisure travel (including partner and dependants).
- Friends and Family discounted tickets on the EMR network.
- Numerous training opportunities.
- An employee benefits portal enabling access to various generous additional discounts.
- Cycle-to-Work Scheme.
- (and many more!)
To apply, complete the online application and upload your CV. As part of a blazing blind screening process, remove all personal information including your name from your CV to maintain anonymity.
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