Senior Environmental & Sustainability Manager

Reporting to the Head of Environment & Sustainability, you will define and deliver the environmental strategy for the STEP programme and provide programme-level assurance that environmental and sustainability risks are effectively understood, managed, and controlled throughout the full lifecycle of the power plant. As a senior leader within UKFE, you will ensure environmental performance is embedded into engineering, construction, operational, and strategic decision-making. You will lead the development of a proportionate, evidence-based Environmental Case and provide leadership across environmental consenting, permitting, regulatory engagement, and sustainability performance. This is a high-profile position operating in a unique technological environment where regulatory frameworks continue to evolve. Your expertise will help shape how fusion energy is responsibly delivered for future generations. Key Responsibilities Environmental Strategy & Programme Leadership - Define and deliver the environmental strategy across your allocated area of responsibility within the STEP programme. - Provide senior environmental leadership across engineering, construction, operations, and programme delivery functions. - Ensure environmental considerations are integrated into programme design, delivery, and operational decision-making. - Balance innovation with regulatory compliance, environmental stewardship, and societal expectations. Building Environmental Capability - Build, lead, and develop a high-performing environmental team capable of supporting a complex, multi-decade programme. - Provide strategic direction, coaching, and technical oversight to environmental professionals and specialists. - Promote a culture of environmental excellence, collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement. - Increase environmental awareness and capability across engineering and delivery teams. Environmental Case & Design for Environment - Lead the development and ongoing justification of the programme's Environmental Case. - Establish frameworks for identifying, assessing, and managing environmental impacts at system and programme level. - Ensure environmental requirements and Best Available Techniques (BAT) are embedded within engineering and operational decision-making. - Oversee environmental assessments, modelling, inventories, and supporting evidence required to demonstrate environmental performance. - Ensure environmental risks are identified, assessed, managed, and visible to support informed decision-making. Permitting, Consents & Regulatory Strategy - Define and deliver environmental consenting and permitting strategies. - Lead all environmental inputs to the Development Consent Order (DCO) process and subsequent permits, licences, consents, notifications, and authorisations. - Support regulatory engagement activities and act as a senior environmental subject matter expert with regulators, planning authorities, and key stakeholders. - Ensure all environmental submissions are robust, credible, and capable of withstanding external scrutiny. - Navigate evolving regulatory frameworks associated with emerging fusion technologies. - Drive continuous improvement through lessons learned from environmental performance and regulatory engagement. Leadership & Stakeholder Engagement - Act as a senior ambassador for environmental and sustainability performance across the organisation. - Influence programme teams, supply chain partners, contractors, and external stakeholders. - Represent the organisation confidently with regulators, government bodies, local communities, and industry partners. - Champion a culture where environmental responsibility and sustainability are recognised as critical to engineering excellence and programme success. - Foster an inclusive, collaborative, and high-performing team environment. About You We're looking for a strategic environmental leader with experience delivering complex, highly regulated infrastructure, energy, nuclear, environmental, or major capital programmes. Essential Experience - Significant leadership experience in environmental and sustainability management within a regulated industry. - Proven track record of developing and delivering environmental strategies for major infrastructure, energy, nuclear, industrial, or engineering programmes. - Experience leading environmental consenting, permitting, and regulatory engagement activities. - Strong understanding of environmental impact assessment methodologies, environmental management systems, and environmental risk management. - Experience integrating environmental requirements within major engineering, construction, or operational projects. - Demonstrated capability in leading multidisciplinary teams and influencing senior stakeholders. - Expertise in environmental governance, assurance, and programme-level decision making. - Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, including engagement with regulators and government bodies. Desirable Experience - Experience supporting Development Consent Orders (DCOs) and nationally significant infrastructure projects. - Knowledge of radiological and non-radiological waste management principles. - Understanding of Best Available Techniques (BAT) assessments. - Experience within the nuclear, fusion, energy generation, or similarly regulated sectors. - Chartered environmental, engineering, sustainability, or related professional status. What You'll Bring - Strategic thinking and commercial awareness. - Outstanding leadership and influencing skills. - Technical credibility combined with pragmatic decision-making. - The ability to navigate complexity and ambiguity with confidence. - A passion for environmental stewardship and sustainable innovation. - Curiosity, resilience, and a commitment to continuous improvement. Why Join Us? This is an opportunity to help create a new energy industry while shaping the environmental standards that will define it. You will work alongside world-leading scientists, engineers, regulators, and policymakers to ensure fusion energy is developed responsibly and sustainably. Join us and help deliver clean energy for generations to come. Essential: - Degree or equivalent in a relevant subject, environmental engineering or related field. - Proven extensive experience in the environmental discipline, having worked with large programmes of similar complexity. - Expert understanding of environmental and sustainability legislation and standards. - Experience embedding Best Available Techniques (BAT) and Environmental Impact Identification (ENVID) into complex engineering projects. - A strong understanding of ISO14001 standard &/or other environmental management frameworks including experience in the certification process. - A strong understanding of project management lifecycle and progressive assurance techniques. - A confident influencer both verbally and through the production of written reports. - Excellent interpersonal skills to enable effective working relationships to be developed with people in a wide range of roles and levels of responsibility. - CENV ISEP (or equivalent) Beneficial: - Track record of creative problem solving in ambiguous or innovative environments. - Experience of the full lifecycle for technically complex plant systems within major programmes. - Experience with environmental impact assessments and mitigation planning - Familiarity with GIS and other environmental data analysis tools. - Environmental Lead Auditor