Senior Environmental Manager – Leadership

High Speed Two Ltd (HS2) – EKFB Main Works Civils Contract

Location:    Southam, Banbury, Northampton, Greatworth or Bicester (Hybrid Working –

typically 3 days office/site and 2 days from home)

Salary:       £80,000 – £92,432 + 12% Pension + Healthcare + 25 Days Holiday

Programme: HS2 Phase One – £4.2bn EKFB Main Works Civils Contract

Lead Environmental Delivery on One of Europe's Largest Infrastructure Projects

Are you an experienced Environmental Manager looking for a genuine leadership opportunity on one of the UK's most complex and high-profile infrastructure programmes?

Do you have the ability to influence contractors, regulators and stakeholders whilst managing complex environmental challenges across a major construction programme?

Would you like exposure to one of the broadest and most technically diverse environmental portfolios in UK infrastructure including ecology, groundwater and hydrology, noise and vibration, archaeology, sustainability, carbon reduction and environmental compliance?

This is an exceptional opportunity to join HS2 as a Senior Environmental Manager and take ownership of environmental assurance across a significant section of the route, helping deliver one of the largest and most environmentally ambitious infrastructure projects ever undertaken in the UK.

The Opportunity

Working client-side within the Integrated Project Team (IPT), you will act as the senior environmental lead for approximately 40km of the northern section of the EKFB route between Southam and Bicester, representing approximately £2.5bn of construction activity.

Reporting to the Head of Engineering and Environment, you will provide strategic environmental leadership across a major section of the £4.2bn EKFB Main Works Civils Contract, supporting successful delivery while ensuring compliance with environmental legislation, statutory obligations, environmental commitments and HS2's Environmental Minimum Requirements (EMRs).

This is a highly visible leadership role requiring close collaboration with contractors, consultants, regulators, local authorities and internal stakeholders to ensure environmental considerations remain central to project delivery.

The Role

As Senior Environmental Manager you will provide environmental assurance and leadership across all stages of delivery, ensuring that design and construction activities comply with environmental legislation, project commitments and statutory obligations.

You will lead a small team while drawing upon specialist expertise across disciplines including ecology, groundwater, noise and vibration, archaeology, sustainability and environmental compliance.

A key aspect of the role is influencing and constructively challenging delivery partners to ensure environmental risks are identified early, mitigated effectively and managed proactively throughout the project lifecycle.

You will act as the intelligent client, triaging issues and determining where intervention, challenge and escalation are required to improve environmental performance, reduce risk and support successful project delivery.

The role requires strong judgement, resilience and the ability to balance environmental obligations with programme, commercial and delivery pressures.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead environmental assurance activities across your section of the route.
• Provide environmental leadership within the Integrated Project Team.
• Review and approve environmental assurance evidence, technical submissions and contractor deliverables.
• Ensure compliance with HS2 Environmental Minimum Requirements (EMRs), environmental commitments and applicable legislation.
• Support technical stage gate reviews and assurance processes.
• Lead the management and resolution of complex environmental issues and incidents.
• Influence contractors and delivery teams to improve environmental performance and environmental culture.
• Coordinate specialist environmental expertise across multiple technical disciplines.
• Engage with regulators, local authorities and statutory bodies including the Environment Agency and Natural England.
• Support environmental reporting, risk management and programme governance activities.
• Promote environmental best practice and continuous improvement across the programme.
• Provide technical leadership on environmental risks, opportunities and mitigation strategies.
• Support the Head of Engineering and Environment in maintaining environmental assurance across the programme.

Commercial Awareness

Provide technical advice on Change Requests, Compensation Events and Early Warnings, assessing whether environmental mitigation measures and additional works fall within existing contractual scope or require formal change control, helping protect programme budgets and taxpayer value.

Risk Management

Lead environmental risk identification and mitigation activities including maintaining environmental risk registers, facilitating risk reduction workshops and ensuring environmental risks are proactively managed throughout the project lifecycle.

Contract and Supplier Management

Challenge contractors and supply chain partners on environmental obligations and performance, ensuring risks, issues and emerging changes are identified early and managed effectively to minimise programme and commercial impacts.

What We're Looking For

You are likely to be an experienced Environmental Manager or Senior Environmental Manager with a strong track record of delivering environmental management and assurance on major infrastructure projects.

You will combine technical environmental expertise with strong leadership, communication and stakeholder management skills together with the credibility to influence senior stakeholders and delivery partners.

Essential Experience

• Significant environmental management experience on major infrastructure or civil engineering projects.
• Experience working within construction delivery environments.
• Previous leadership or line management experience.
• Experience within client-side organisations, consultancies or principal contractors.
• Strong understanding of environmental legislation and construction compliance requirements.
• Experience managing complex environmental issues through to successful resolution.
• Excellent communication, influencing and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to balance pragmatic programme delivery with environmental obligations.
• Commercial awareness and understanding of change management processes.
• Experience managing environmental risks within large delivery programmes.
• Experience working with contractors and supply chain partners in complex delivery environments.

Desirable Experience

• Chartered Environmentalist status or equivalent professional accreditation.
• Experience working with NEC contracts.
• Experience engaging with regulators and statutory bodies.
• Rail, highways, aviation, nuclear, utilities or other nationally significant infrastructure experience.
• Experience working within complex multi-disciplinary delivery environments.

Why Join HS2?

This is a rare opportunity for an experienced environmental professional to move into a highly influential leadership position and help shape the environmental performance of one of the UK's most significant infrastructure programmes.

You will gain exposure to some of the most challenging environmental issues in UK construction while helping deliver a railway that will serve the country for generations to come.