Senior Sustainability Manager
Senior Sustainability Manager
Location: National remit - travel to project sites across the country and occasional travel to our project hub in Birmingham.
Are you ready to be a part of one of the largest upgrades to the UK power network in decades — a transformative, high-value project that will shape the nation's energy future!
Laing O'Rourke is committed to leading innovation and excellence in the construction industry, with sustainability at the heart of our transformation. As part of this vision, we are delivering a project framework on behalf of the National Grid - the Great Grid Upgrade, setting new standards in environmental and social sustainability. Find out more about the project here: The Great Grid Upgrade | Powering The Things You Love.
We are seeking a Senior Sustainability Manager to oversee and drive the project's social value, environmental, and whole life carbon strategies. This role is a key driver in delivering Social Value outcomes, alongside leading on environmental protection and minimising construction embodied carbon emissions. You will work closely with project leadership, delivery teams, and the client to ensure that ESG objectives are met while fostering innovation and engagement.
Key Responsibilities:
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Social Value Leadership – Ensure community benefits, local employment, apprenticeships, local economic support and educational initiatives are successfully delivered, minimising contractual penalties and maximising social impact.
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Strategic Sustainability Planning – Maintain and improve the Sustainability Delivery approach, embedding environmental, carbon, and social value criteria into project decision-making.
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Team Leadership & Pastoral Support – Line manage and support a team of sustainability professionals, including environmental, social value and carbon.
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Stakeholder & Client Engagement – Represent sustainability at client meetings, design consultant meetings, and project leadership forums, influencing decision-making at a senior level.
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Regulatory & Environmental Oversight – Ensure compliance with environmental regulations, consenting (Scottish regulators), project sustainability assessment performance management, ecology management, and subcontractor engagement.
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Supporting Project Delivery – Provide sustainability guidance across the technical, procurement, and construction teams, ensuring sustainability is embedded into the project methodology.
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Community Engagement & Public Communication – project sustainability assessment performance management, public stakeholders, and regulatory bodies to ensure effective engagementand community involvement.
Key Skills & Experience:
- Experience in sustainability leadership within a construction or infrastructure setting.
- Strong understanding of environmental sustainability, carbon management, and ESG reporting.
- Primary expertise in Social Value, with a strong track record in community benefits, apprenticeships, education initiatives, and local employment strategies.
- Experience managing stakeholder engagement, particularly with regulators, community groups, and subcontractors.
- Familiarity with ISO 14001 and PAS 2080
- Knowledge of BREEAM, environmental consenting, and ecology management is beneficial.
- Excellent leadership, communication, and strategic thinking skills to support a diverse team and engage with senior stakeholders.
- Degree qualified in a relevant discipline or equivalent experience.
If you're a passionate sustainability professional looking to make a tangible impact on a landmark project framework, we'd love to hear from you.
About Us:
Laing O'Rourke is dedicated to being a recognised leader in innovation and excellence in the construction industry. We focus on delivering projects that leave a lasting positive environmental legacy, driven by technical excellence in design, manufacturing, and construction.
We offer a competitive remuneration package (base salary + car/travel allowance) with access to PMI; enhanced pension and parental leave schemes; Life/Dental/Critical illness insurance and income protection; 33 days holiday inc. bank holidays; professional development opportunities and more!
As part of the Disability Confident scheme, we would like to enable access to candidates with long term health conditions and disabilities through the ‘Offer an interview scheme'. This supports applicants that meet the essential criteria by offering an interview for the advertised position. Please let us know prior to interview what adjustments are required as well as discussing how we can support you in the workplace.
We want to ensure our recruitment process is accessible to all. If you need the application form in an alternative format or you would like to know more about our recruitment process, please email resourcingteam@laingorourke.com
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