Health and Safety Manager

The Health and Safety Manager is responsible for the operational delivery of venue and event safety across ICC Belfast, Waterfront Hall, and Ulster Hall. Reporting into the Head of FM & Venue and Event Safety, this role plays a critical part in ensuring the safe, secure, and compliant operation of all events and venue activity. Working closely with internal teams and external partners, the post-holder will manage the delivery of the organisation’s health and safety strategy. They will ensure full legal compliance and robust risk mitigation for both daily operations and live events, fostering a culture where safety is a core value shared by every staff member and contractor. The postholder will fulfil a role within the wider FM team and will work closely with both FM co-ordinators and FM/H&S administrators to ensure the smooth running of the department at all required times. This post requires a proactive leader who has hands on experience with:

• The creation and upkeep of Health and Safety management systems,

• The creation and upkeep of technical safety procedure and process,

• Delivery of formal safe systems of working, including acting as an Authorised Person

• Working in a fast moving, changeable, results driven works environment

• Management of Contractors and others to achieve defined results

• Interrogating and analysing information-based Compliance monitoring systems

• Managing day to day activities of security control room for a busy venue.

The postholder will assist the Head of FM with the delivery of world-class events in a high-profile, public-facing environment. This role requires flexibility to work outside normal business hours to support event delivery, event safety management, venue emergencies or urgent operational needs across our sites. This role involves proactive management of routine safety audits, event planning and observations, and effective coordination of safety training and meetings The successful candidate will be integral in fostering a culture of safety and security at events and around our venues, ensuring compliance with health and safety legislation, and enhancing our emergency preparedness.

KEY DUTIES 

Venue & Event Safety Operations 

• Lead and manage the Health and Safety management system

• Ensure compliance with all relevant Health and Safety legislation and best practice

• Provide strategic, risk-based professional advice to the executive leadership team and event managers, production managers and those involved with planning events

• Promote a strong culture of safe working practices across the organisation

• Investigate incidents and implement preventative and corrective measures

• Support transformational change and continuous improvement initiatives

• Oversee delivery of operational safety for all events and venue activity.

• Manage and monitor event risk assessments, crowd safety plans, and contractor compliance.

• Attend high-risk events in a senior safety capacity where required.

Policy & Compliance

• Develop, implement, and review Health and Safety policies, systems, and procedures

• Deliver compliance with all relevant legislation including health and safety, crowd safety, fire safety and counter-terrorism measures.

• Carry out audits, inspections, and regulatory visits, ensuring full preparedness and documentation. 

Emergency Planning

• Implement emergency response procedures and ensure readiness of all teams.

• Lead on event-specific emergency planning, including coordination of external services as needed.

• Organise drills and debriefs in collaboration with the event management team and the Head of FM and Event Safety Staff Training & Development

• Coordinate delivery of training for all staff on event safety, emergency response, and legal duties.

•Monitor attendance, effectiveness and records of mandatory and ad hoc training.

• Line manage and develop the Facilities and Health and Safety Administrators ensuring effective delegation and accountability at all levels.

Partnership Working

• Liaise with external partners including PSNI, NIFRS, Belfast City Council, event security, medical providers and others.

• Foster collaborative working across Event Management, Facilities, Technical, Control and Hospitality teams.

• Act as key liaison during event build, delivery and break-down periods.

• Ensure Security control teams in both Waterfront and Ulster Hall have adequate Assignment instructions.

• Run monthly contract meetings • Oversee day to day security team activities.

• Ensure team’s ongoing adequacy to mee the needs of the business, particularly from an operational standpoint e.g. competency to carry out C1 or C2 position during a full emergency evacuation of the venue.

General Responsibilities

• Ensure tasks are carried out in line with BWUH Ltd policies including health and safety, customer care, and equality, diversity and inclusion.

• Act as an ambassador for the business in promoting a high standard of venue presentation and service.

• Undertake any other duties as required to support business continuity and operational readiness. 

Key Relationships

Internal

• Director of Finance, Risk and Corporate Services

• Head of FM & Venue & Event Safety

• Facilities Coordinator(s)

• Facilities and H&S Administrators

• Events, Production and facilities Teams

• SLT and ELT

• Control Room

• Facilities

• Hospitality External

• Event Security & Medical

• PSNI

• NIFRS

• Belfast City Council

• Contractors

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Competencies

Applicants will be required to demonstrate evidence of the following competencies through the selection and recruitment process: Competencies Applicants will be required to demonstrate evidence of the following competencies through the selection and recruitment process:

Risk, Compliance and Regulatory Governance In close liaison with the Head of FM the H&S manager will advise and report on statutory compliance across building safety, venue access, hygiene, contractor performance, emergency planning, and business continuity.

Champions a proactive risk culture and embeds structured processes (Plan–Do–Check–Act) for audits, inspections and ongoing legal compliance. Maintains credibility with statutory partners (e.g., HSE, NIFRS, licensing authorities) through transparent and collaborative working.

People Leadership & Organisational Development Inspires, coaches and supports direct reports to drive departmental excellence.

Builds cross-functional trust and alignment between facilities, event and production teams to deliver high-impact customer outcomes.

Models the company’s values consistently, particularly under operational pressure or change. 

Financial & Contract Management Develops, monitors and reports on significant capital and operational budgets across contracts such as Security control.

Drives value for money through effective procurement, contract performance reviews and supplier engagement. Identifies commercial risks and opportunities related to infrastructure and utilities.

Stakeholder Communication & Influence Engages effectively at senior level both internally (Board, ELT) and externally (contractors, authorities).

Translates technical and risk-based topics into clear decision-making information for non-technical stakeholders. Builds credibility through a values-led leadership approach and excellent written and verbal communication.

Contractor management It is envisaged that due to the broad range of duties in this role that portions of the task will be outsourced. Experience in effective contractor and project management will give the candidate in strong footing

Continuous Improvement & Innovation Proactively reviews systems, processes and infrastructure to identify opportunities for better service, safety or efficiency. Fosters a culture of innovation, learning and improvement within the team, encouraging new ideas and smarter working practices. Drives modernisation of facilities management through use of tech integration and smarter analytics.

Essential Criteria

Applicants must meet either of the following criteria by the closing date for applications:

Qualification and Experience

• NEBOSH general certificate

• Minimum 3 years’ experience at a senior Health and Safety level • Demonstrable experience in leading Health and Safety within an organisation and managing contractors

• Strong knowledge of statutory compliance in Health and Safety

• overseeing large, public-facing venues or estates

• Excellent interpersonal, influencing and report-writing skills

• Experience working cross-departmentally in a fast-paced environment Desirable Criteria It is desirable for applicants to demonstrate:

• Degree level (H&SaW) or equivalent H&S qualifications

• Experience with modern ICT systems

• Experience in live events or hospitality venue environments

• Membership of a relevant professional body (e.g. IOSH or equivalent) is highly desirable and may be considered equivalent to formal academic qualifications.

Shortlisting criteria

BWUH Ltd. reserves the right to shortlist only those applicants who have demonstrated the appropriate level of experience as noted in the Job Description. The applicant should highlight on their CV industry specific qualifications, certificates and experience as well as educational achievements. Please note that it is the applicants’ responsibility to ensure that their CV, covering letter and Monitoring Form are submitted by this closing date and time. Any offer of employment is subject to the receipt of proof of eligibility to work in the UK and proof of any required qualifications.

BWUH Ltd. treats personal data collected during the recruitment process in accordance with the organisations data protection policy. Information about how your data is used and the basis for processing your data is provided in the BWUH Ltd. applicants’ privacy notice, a copy of which is available on our website.

To Apply

To apply for this post, please upload your CV, and a covering letter detailing how you meet the essential criteria via the following link:

https://iccbelfast.com/careers

or by post to; HR Team, Waterfront Hall, 2 Lanyon Place, Belfast. BT1 3WH

The deadline for applications is 12 noon on Friday 15 May 2026. The applicant should highlight on their CV industry specific qualifications, certificates and experience as well as educational achievements.

Please note that it is the applicants’ responsibility to ensure that their CV, covering letter and Monitoring Form are submitted by this closing date and time.

Any offer of employment is subject to the receipt of proof of eligibility to work in the UK and proof of any required qualifications.

Short-listing, testing and interview dates

It is envisaged that interviews will be held on W/C Monday 18 May 2026.

BWUH Ltd. will make all reasonable efforts to accommodate applicants who are unavailable on the specified interview date, but it is under no obligation to do so.

Requiring Reasonable Adjustments Section

We encourage any applicants with a disability to contact us to discuss reasonable adjustments, the intention of which is to enable full participation in the application and selection process. If you want to contact us to discuss reasonable adjustments, please call us on 07585888240 or Hrinbox@waterfront.co.uk

Guaranteed Interview Schemes We welcome applications from people with disabilities and operate a Guaranteed Interview Scheme. This means if you have a disability, and you apply and meet the essential criteria for one of our positions, we will consider your application under this scheme and guarantee you an interview.

Your application will be considered like all others, by measuring it against the essential criteria as set out in the employee specification but any short-listing or desirable criteria will not be applied to you. Selection methods, such as computer-based skills tests, paper-based aptitude tests, situational judgement tests, driving assessments and assessment centers, are deemed to be part of the essential criteria. This means that all applicants must sit and pass these tests or assessments.

If you want to more information about the Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please call us on 07585888240 or send an email to HRinbox@waterfront.co.uk