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AUV Safety Lead

Hybrid in Bristol·Full-time·Added today (last checked 4 Nov)

Ministry of Defence (MOD)

67 open roles

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Our summary

Salary
£64,400 - £67,700 a year

About £3,990 - £4,150 a month after tax.

Work mode
Hybrid, Bristol
Contract
Full-time
Closing date
Apply by Tuesday 17 November
Pension
28.97% employer pension

Requirements

What we're looking for

  • Chartered or Incorporated Engineer or equivalent relevant professional registration
  • Member of a relevant Professional Engineering/Science Institute or equivalent body
  • Relevant Level 6 (or higher) qualification or equivalent experience

This post requires the post holder to obtain a Safety and Environmental Responsible (S&ER) delegation as deputy Platform Authority for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) and equipment Authority for associated systems. This will be assessed after appointment by an independent panel. To achieve this delegation, it is essential that the post holder can demonstrate:

  • Experience in the construct of Safety Cases and/or Naval Authority Certification submissions for vessels operating under Defence Maritime Regulator (DMR) regulations governing MOD shipping.
  • Good understanding of maritime vessel (ship or submarine) functionality and how it relates to safety arguments.

Chartered or Incorporated Engineer or equivalent relevant professional registration

Member of a relevant Professional Engineering/Science Institute or equivalent body

Evidence of the Membership(s) will be required at interview.

All memberships declared must be held at point of application and be in date.

Pay & benefits

What you'll get

£64,400 - £67,700

Per annum (pro rata for part time)

A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Alongside your salary of £64,400, Ministry of Defence contributes £18,656 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

  • Learning and development tailored to your role
  • An environment with flexible working options
  • A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
  • A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Discover My Benefits: Please follow the link to visit the Discover My Benefits site which showcases the benefits and discounts offered when working as a civilian for the MOD: https://discovermybenefits.mod.gov.uk/civilian/

SDA Reward Offer - Working for SDA - Submarine Delivery Agency - GOV.UK

Visa & relocation

Please note, due to the level of security, this role is reserved for UK nationals only.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

Please note the Civil Service Nationality Rules will also need to be met. The Civil Service Nationality Rules operate independently and in addition to the UK Immigration Rules and must be met before an individual can take up employment in the Civil Service. The Civil Service Nationality Rules do not apply to UK, Irish and Commonwealth nationals, or to those who are eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme but do apply to all other nationalities- including EU/EEA nationals who are ineligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.

Open to UK nationals only.

The role

SDA's Autonomy Unit is responsible for the rapid development of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) for the Royal Navy (RN) in support to its move to a Hybrid Navy. Currently this includes projects for an Extra Large AUV Demonstrator and for the development of Torpedo Tube Launch and Recovery (TTLR) of AUV from submarines.

This role is to lead in the development of the safety cases and associated Naval Authority certification for these projects. It will require close working with MOD safety regulators to agree regulation interpretation and with Project Engineers, Suppliers and RN customer to gather evidence to rapidly build trust in underwater autonomy.
The role will require formal safety delegation to represent the Platform Authority in decisions relating to approving AUV as safe to operate.

How you'll work

Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time, Compressed hours

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

The primary delivery location for this position is Bristol Abbey Wood.

Hybrid and flexible working can be considered for this post. Successful candidates are encouraged to discuss options with the recruiting line manager before starting the role.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and working from home as part of a non-contractual hybrid working arrangement. All office-based employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in office, subject to site capacity and any required workplace adjustments. Requirements to attend other locations for official business, or work in another MOD workplace, will also count towards this level of office attendance. Applicants can request further information regarding how this and other flexible working arrangements may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details). Defence Business Services cannot respond to any questions about working arrangements.

Apply before

Apply before 11:55 pm on Tuesday 17th November 2026

Reference number

481490

Job grade

Grade 7

Professional I (PI)

Contract type

Permanent

Type of role

Engineering

Number of jobs available

1

Location

MOD Abbey Wood, Filton, Bristol, Avon BS34 8JH

Job description

If you need to contact Defence Business Services (DBS) regarding this vacancy, please indicate that your vacancy is being handled by the SDA Recruitment Team. If you experience any technical difficulties with the CS Jobs system, please contact the Support Team via the Help link.

Person specification

For this role, we are seeking a candidate who:

  • is comfortable breaking new ground in the application of MOD maritime safety requirements to fully autonomous vehicles.
  • can maintain a pragmatic safety campaign reflecting the need to collect evidence through trials whist mindful of the risks.
  • can develop proportionate safety cases at pace to support a high tempo development & trials schedule and increased levels of autonomy.
  • can develop and maintain close co-operative working small project team alongside RN customer, suppliers, operators and regulators.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

  • Leadership
  • Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

  • SYSSAF 3: Complies with System Safety Requirements - Practitioner
  • EFCF 4: Technical Decision Making - Expert

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Job contact

  • Name : SDA HR Recruitment Team
  • Email : SDA-HR-WorkforceResourcePlanning@mod.gov.uk

Further information

Please see Further Information document.

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Hiring process

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

Personal Statement - This should be a maximum of 1000 words that sets out your motivation for applying and shows how your skills and experience meet the essential and desirable requirements for the role.

Candidates will also be required to provide job history and qualification details.

Behaviours:

  • Leadership
  • Communicating and Influencing

Technical:

  • SYSSAF 3: Complies with System Safety Requirements - Practitioner
  • EFCF 4: Technical Decision Making - Expert

Personal Statement/ Experience - The panel will ask questions about your personal statement exploring your Past Experiences, Key Achievements or Qualifications.

Behaviours:

  • Leadership

Technical:

Please refer to the Civil Service Behaviours here and the Technical Skills Framework and Success Profile documents attached.

The sift will be completed within 10 working days of the vacancy closing date.

Interviews will be conducted in-person at MoD Abbey Wood on a date to be confirmed.

Requests to work flexibly and/or part time will be considered, taking into account business needs. Please note the salary will be pro-rata where part time hours are undertaken.

All employees joining Ministry of Defence who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a 6-month probation period (unless otherwise advised) effective from the employment start date.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check.

To be considered for this role, qualifications and/or memberships detailed must be held in full, prior to submitting your application.

This post does not offer any assistance with Relocation Allowances.

The post does NOT offer relocation expenses (move of home, excess fares or temporary transfer). Non-Standard move applicants will be eligible for the full package, subject to eligibility.

This vacancy is part of the A Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative. Making the Civil Service a Great Place to Work for Veterans - GOV.UK

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact DBSFPCP-SRMResourcingSDA@mod.gov.uk

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

About Ministry of Defence (MOD)

Industry
Government Administration

In their own words

About the company & team

MOD - Defence Nuclear - Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA)

The Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) is a part of the Ministry of Defence responsible for the procurement, in-service support, and disposal of the UK's nuclear submarines. Our work is of unparalleled strategic importance nationally and internationally, ensuring the security of the UK's continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent (CASD), and delivering some of the most technically complex programmes in defence. At least one of four nuclear-armed submarines, supported by smaller attack submarines, is on patrol at all times: 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

At the SDA, we strive to Support, Deliver and Aspire and put our values at the heart of our recruitment process. We believe that everyone should feel comfortable to be themselves and be supported to do their best work. As part of a diverse and inclusive workforce, our team will find a community to belong to. We believe that, by celebrating different backgrounds and different perspectives, together we'll achieve the extraordinary.

  • Email : DBSFPCP-SRMResourcingSDA@mod.gov.uk

Additional information

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

All open roles at Ministry of Defence (MOD)

Location

Ministry of Defence (MOD) · BS34 8JH

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