Senior Environmental and Sustainability Advisor

University of Hertfordshire - Estates

Location:	Hatfield
Salary:	£46,049 to £58,225 by annual increments on achieving designated skills and experience, UH8
Hours:	Full Time
Contract Type:	Permanent

Placed On:	7th April 2026
Closes:	26th April 2026
Job Ref:	REQ000619

FTE: 1.0fte (working 37 hours per week)

Salary: UH8 £46,049pa to £58,225pa by annual increments on achieving designated skills and experience

Annual Leave: 30 days plus standard public holidays and an additional 4 days including the closure of our office between Christmas and New Year

The Department of Estates is looking for a Senior Environmental and Sustainability Advisor to provide advice and support to the Director of Estates on all matters relating to Sustainability issues affecting the University.

Main duties and responsibilities

The post holder will advise on institutional strategic direction and provide leadership on the implementation, monitoring and reporting of the University Sustainability Strategy and Policies, aligning organisational activities with external environmental and sustainability compliance, benchmarks, and global commitments such as Race to Zero, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Nature Positive Universities etc. This includes managing the resourcing of all relevant activities and working with senior management and key stakeholder groups (internal and external) to develop supporting programmes, actions, and operational plans that deliver a measurable improvement in performance.

The postholder will be the sustainability advocate for the University, driving cultural and behavioral change and raising awareness of sustainability across the organisation and beyond. The postholder will develop and oversee sustainability agendas and activities, working across all University departments and wider community in line with the Environment and Sustainability Framework.

Skill and experience required

You will have a good knowledge of sustainability activities in the sector as coordinated by the Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education (EAUC) and a high level awareness of environmental risks, policy, and legislation which you can apply to internal structures and governance. You will have experience successfully leading or working on the sustainability agenda at an institutional level and have experience writing policies, procedures, and strategies to embed sustainability principles across all institutional activity areas as well as experience of writing and producing reports and business cases for internal and external stakeholders. You will have experience managing internal and external Environmental Audits programmes e.g. ISO 14001 and EcoCampus.

It is essential that you are able to influence individuals and groups through an excellent interpersonal and communication skill set including advocacy, public speaking, presentation skills and report writing. You will need to be comfortable working with colleagues and managers at all levels. You will need a working knowledge of Scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon management practices and methods for decreasing resource consumption for this role.

You will be able to communicate clearly, both orally and in writing, presenting often complex concepts to a range of audiences, whilst possessing enthusiasm, resilience, drive, and commitment, with the ability to work effectively in a changing environment. The ability to switch between high level strategic planning and day to day project delivery, and work flexibly by taking account of new information or changed circumstances and modify your understanding of a problem or situation accordingly is essential for this role.

Qualifications required

Educated with minimum of a degree in relevant area or equivalent qualification or proven practical experience that demonstrates relevant levels of knowledge and skill.

We regret that we are unable to offer UKVI sponsorship for this post; applicants will either hold UK Right to Work or demonstrate access to UK Right to Work before an offer is made.

Contact Details/Informal Enquiries: Simon Perry, Assistant Director Campus Management

Interview Date: TBC