Naval Overseers – Combat and Weapons

Job summary

At Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S), we supply and maintain vital equipment and services for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. Together, we deliver a vast range of essential defence programmes, and strive for what's next. Because it helps keep our military at the top of their game and our nation safe – for today, and tomorrow.

DE&S has recently been integrated into the National Armaments Director (NAD) Group. The NAD Group brings together key Ministry of Defence (MOD) organisations to unite expertise across science, technology, procurement, infrastructure, and support to provide integrated capabilities faster and more efficiently for our armed forces and our allies. This is an exciting new opportunity to enable better ways of working and empower greater collaboration across Defence. For further information about the NAD Group, please visit: National Armaments Director Group - GOV.UK

We offer 25+ days’ holiday, flexible and hybrid working, enhanced parental leave schemes, shopping discounts, and an exceptional employer pension contribution of 28.97%, to help make work work for you.

This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and obtain Security Check (SC) security clearance . Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you’ve been recruited for. If it isn’t obtained, or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining SC security clearance can be a lengthy process, and we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made if the necessary security clearance isn’t obtained within 12 months. We’re unable to offer visa sponsorship.

Job description

This is your opportunity to join a flagship defence programme and be at the forefront of delivering the backbone of the Royal Navy’s future frontline surface fleet.

As a Naval Overseer working alongside industry partners in a dynamic shipyard environment, you will provide on-site technical oversight of ship construction and trials, ensuring quality standards and contractual requirements are met throughout delivery. Using your technical expertise and professional judgement, you will identify and resolve issues at the earliest opportunity, support timely decision-making, and help mitigate programme, performance and delivery risks while contributing to testing and acceptance activities. The role offers the opportunity to participate in sea trials, spending time at sea and seeing first-hand how your work contributes to operational capability.

The Type 26 frigate is a strategically important acquisition programme, contributing to the UK's defence prosperity agenda and strengthening international collaboration. This role offers exceptional development opportunities and hands-on experience, and will expand your engineering knowledge and skills, build relationships to engage effectively with colleagues and stakeholders across Government and industry, and foster leadership experience.

If you’re, curious, hands-on and enjoy finding solutions to technical engineering challenges, this is an outstanding opportunity to make a and want to make a tangible contribution to the future effectiveness of the Royal Navy and be part of a programme that will leave a lasting legacy for UK Defence.

Working environment

This role is based within operational shipbuilding facilities and requires regular attendance aboard vessels under construction and trials. Successful candidates must be able to safely access all areas of a ship, including climbing ladders, negotiating narrow access routes, entering confined spaces, and working around scaffolding and temporary structures. Whilst the role is not primarily physically demanding, it requires a suitable level of mobility, agility, and resilience to safely undertake inspection, assurance, and oversight activities within an industrial maritime environment. The successful candidate will be required to obtain an Eng1 Medical Certificate demonstrating they have suitable physical fitness to undertake this role, which will involve frequent visits to ships in manufacture/maintenance and potentially on sea trials, often with difficult or confined access arrangements.

This is an on-site position based at the BAE Systems facility on South Street, Scotstoun, Glasgow, G14. The role offers a compressed working pattern of 8-hour days Monday to Thursday and a shortened day on Friday (37 hours/week), and there will be opportunities to support occasional night and weekend working.

What you’ll be doing

• Provide professional engineering oversight of ship construction and trials, acting as a MOD/NADG representative in the shipyard and helping to ensure ships are delivered to the required contractual, technical and quality standards.
• Undertake on-site ship build assurance and inspection activity, identifying and recording defects, quality shortfalls and emerging issues early, and supporting timely resolution with the shipbuilder and MOD project team.
• Use engineering judgement to support local decision-making, provide clear recommendations, and escalate issues where required to help maintain delivery tempo while managing risk appropriately.
• Support acceptance and assurance activities, including attendance at key inspections, tests, trials and readiness events, and contribute to the evidence needed to demonstrate compliance with agreed requirements.
• Work collaboratively with industry partners, ship’s staff and MOD stakeholders to maintain effective communication, understand delivery risks, and support continuous improvement and lessons from experience.
• Promote safe, compliant and professional working in shipyard and trials environments, supporting the management of safety, environmental and indemnity risks within the scope of the role.

Person specification

To be successful with your application, you'll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria :

• Have experience of providing technical advice and delivery of successful Electronic Systems and Sensors (ESS) or mechatronic engineering outcomes in a maritime environment (Lead criterion).
• Have technical ESS or mechatronic experience in in a variety of contexts across a broad range of maritime equipments e.g. weapons systems, communication systems, combat management systems.
• As a minimum hold either:

o A Science, Technology, Engineering and/or Mathematics based qualification at RQF Level 6; or

o A Science, Technology, Engineering and/or Mathematics based qualification at RQF Level 4, plus

• Hold current professional registration with a Professional body/institution related to your discipline, at the level listed below;

o A Science, Technology, Engineering and/or Mathematics based qualification at RQF Level 3, plus a minimum of 3 further years of relevant professional experience;

o With a Professional body/institution related to your discipline, hold current professional registration at the level listed below, plus a minimum of 3 further years of relevant professional experience;

• Professional Registration List (minimum levels provided)

• o Engineering Technician (EngTech) or
• o Marine Technician (MarTech) or
• o Registered IT Technician (RITTech) or
• o ICT Technician (ICTTech)

Note: Alternatives to RQF listed above (which cover England, Wales and Northern Ireland only), are the Scottish SCQF; or an international equivalent qualification, which must be supported by a statement of comparability from UK ENIC.

Please see the Professional Engineering Institution Equivalences for a list of approved equivalent professional registration as per the requirements listed above.

AND

Be able to satisfy requirements of and obtain ENG1 seafarer medical fitness certificate. For recruitment purposes, external candidates do not need to hold these but must have no known reasons not to achieve this within 6 months of employment.

In addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:

• Core Behaviour 1 : Making Effective Decisions – CSBC 3
• Core Behaviour 2 : Working Together – CSBC 3
• Technical Competence 1 : ECF 1.3 Setting Technical Requirements, Evaluation and Acceptance (Supervised Practitioner)
• Technical Competence 2 : ECF 3.4 Technical Decision Making (Supervised Practitioner)

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £37,600, Ministry of Defence contributes

£10,892 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).

• 25 days’ annual leave +1 day a year up to 30 days, 8 bank holidays and a day off for the King’s birthday
• Market-leading average employer pension contribution of 28.97%
• Annual performance-based bonus and recognition awards
• Access to specialist training and funded qualifications
• Support for progression
• Huge range of discounts
• Volunteering days
• Enhanced parental leave schemes

Improving innovation and enriching our culture, diversity of thought is vital to our success. So whether you’re looking for a new opportunity, a next step, or a helping hand as you return from a career break, bring your experiences and help deliver for the defence of tomorrow. Here you’ll find a supportive, family-friendly organisation to be a part of - and if you need any assistance with your application, just let us know.

#LI-Onsite

Further Information

• Civil Service Recruitment Principles: Recruitment Principles - Civil Service Commission
• Candidate Information Pack: https://bit.ly/DES-candidate-information-pack
• Terms and Conditions: https://bit.ly/DES-Terms-and-Conditions
• Civil Service Code: The Code - Civil Service Commission

Any personal data that you provide during the Recruitment process will be treated in accordance with the MOD Privacy Notice which can be accessed here .

Disability Confident:

Please note as a Disability Confident Leader we want to ensure you receive any reasonable adjustments that you need throughout the recruitment process. If you do require any reasonable adjustments, you can let us know on your online application under the section ‘Please indicate and give details of any reasonable adjustments you may require during the recruitment process.’

Conflicts of Interest:

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.

Things you need to know

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.

Selection process details

Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:

• Pre-sift - We will check your application to ensure that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.
• Sift - Your CV will be assessed ag