Waste & Logistics Operations Manager

Job Overview

Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust is looking to appoint a highly skilled leader dedicated to sustainability, operational efficiency, and impactful change to oversee Waste and Logistics services across the Trust. This senior role reports to the Head of Quality and entails full responsibility for the development and execution of safe, efficient, and environmentally sustainable waste and logistics operations at the Trust.

As the specialist lead, you will advance the Trust's environmental objectives, foster innovation, and ensure adherence to national legislation and NHS standards. Your role encompasses strategy creation, implementation, and ongoing enhancement of waste management, transport, and logistics services to meet the Trust’s Green Plan and Net Zero goals while maintaining excellent operational outcomes.

Collaboration with clinical and corporate teams is key, providing leadership and expert advice on waste, sustainability, transport, and logistics to ensure resilient, compliant, future-ready services. This is a unique opportunity to influence strategic policies and champion environmental best practices that benefit patient care and local communities.

Main Responsibilities

• Direct the strategic and operational management of Waste and Logistics services Trust-wide, ensuring compliance with legal requirements, service robustness, financial stability, and alignment with green initiatives.
• Design and deploy pioneering strategies, policies, contingency plans, performance metrics, audit programs, risk controls, and continuous improvement agendas.
• Serve as the Trust’s subject matter expert on waste management, logistics, environmental regulations, and related legislation, advising senior management, clinicians, and governance groups.
• Lead investigations into service incidents and complaints, conduct root cause analyses, implement corrective measures, and maintain accurate national reports such as ERIC submissions.
• Manage financial aspects including budgets, procurement, contracts, tenders, and pursue funding opportunities to ensure cost-effective service delivery.
• Implement sustainability efforts including waste minimization, reuse, recycling, segregation improvement, optimized routing, digital tracking, and adoption of green technologies and practices.
• Supervise courier, internal mail, distribution, and goods movement across multiple hospital locations ensuring safety and responsiveness.
• Develop collaborative partnerships with NHS bodies, local authorities, contractors, and other stakeholders to advance joint procurement, infrastructure projects, and decarbonisation efforts.
• Lead, develop, and support teams through robust leadership, workforce planning, training, appraisal, and succession, fostering inclusion, innovation, safety, and continuous service improvement.

Person Specification

Qualifications:

• Essential: Undergraduate and Master’s degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent experience.
• Evidence of ongoing professional development.
• Desirable: Chartered status or membership in recognized professional bodies such as CIWM, CILT, or IEMA.

Experience:

• Extensive senior management experience in waste, logistics, or sustainability within complex organisations.
• Proven ability to design and apply strategic plans and policies.
• Experience managing budgets, business cases, and large-scale change initiatives.
• Track record leading multi-site multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong background in compliance and auditing.
• Preferred: Experience within NHS or healthcare, capital/infrastructure projects, and familiarity with NHS ERIC or national environmental reporting systems.

Skills & Knowledge:

• Comprehensive understanding of UK waste legislation, HTM 07-01, and environmental standards.
• Expertise in logistics operations.
• Knowledge of NHS sustainability priorities including Net Zero and circular economy concepts.
• Contract management proficiency.
• Strong leadership and people management capabilities.
• Strategic mindset aligning operations with long-term goals.
• Solid financial and analytical skills to interpret complex data and metrics.
• Effective stakeholder engagement and relationship-building across organizations.
• Exceptional communication skills, including reporting at board level.
• Ability to handle competing priorities and operate under pressure.
• Desirable: Familiarity with NHS governance/strategic frameworks, emerging environmental tech, digital logistics, and senior-level influence.

Additional Information

This position does not offer Skilled Worker visa sponsorship; candidates must already hold UK work authorization for the entire contract term.

The Trust promotes inclusivity, disability confidence, and is recognized for Armed Forces employment. It offers outstanding professional development and diverse training opportunities.

Work-life balance is valued, with flexible working arrangements encouraged to meet employees’ and service users’ needs.

Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust serves over 900,000 people covering Berkshire, Hampshire, Surrey, and South Buckinghamshire. Its strategy, FHFT 2030, aims to establish a leading healthcare environment prioritizing care quality and employee wellbeing with strong values of excellence, collaboration, innovation, and compassion.

Significant investments are underway including new hospital buildings, expanded diagnostics, and enhanced maternity services, focused on sustainable, energy-efficient infrastructure aligned with NHS Net Zero targets.

The Trust embraces digital transformation including the 2024 launch of an electronic patient record system advancing safer, connected care and operational efficiencies that contribute to carbon reductions.

All efforts are shaped by the Trust’s core values focused on patient-centric care and sustainable healthcare futures.