SSR Specialist High Risk and News Safety

Package Description

Band: D

Contract type: Fixed Term Contract until 30 March 26

Location: London based role with some flexibility - i.e. hybrid working

Salary: c.£55,000 - £57,000 and London Weighting Allowance of £5319 – Total c.£60,319 - £62,319

Any offer of employment with the BBC will be conditional upon you having the right to work in UK

We’re happy to discuss flexible working. Please indicate your choice under the flexible working question in the application. There is no obligation to raise this at the application stage but if you wish to do so, you are welcome to. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

•    Excellent career progression – the BBC offers great opportunities for employees to seek new challenges and work in different areas of the organisation.

•    Unrivalled training and development opportunities – our in-house Academy hosts a wide range of internal and external courses and certification.

Benefits - We offer a competitive salary package, a flexible 35-hour working week for work- life balance and 26 days annual leave (1 of which is a corporation day) with the option to buy an extra 5 days, a defined pension scheme and discounted dental, health care, gym and much more.

Job Purpose

The BBC SSR Group exists to help get programmes made for TV, Radio and On-Line: by finding safe and healthy ways to enable the creation of the distinctive and world-class content that our audiences demand; by ensuring that our people, productions, and premises remain secure and on air.

The High Risk and News Safety team is based in London Broadcasting House, delivering specialist safety, security and risk management advice to BBC Divisional heads, senior managers, producers, and staff across a number of departments.

This Fixed Term Contract (FTC)  SSR Specialist- High Risk and News Safety role is a London based position, working in a Hybrid way from both London Broadcasting House and Home. You will deliver 2nd line support across the teams’ various portfolios to BBC activity across the globe. You will on occasion be expected deploy overseas in support of BBC work. You should plan for his role will close end of March 2026, although there is a possibility it may become a continuing role.

Key Responsibilities and Accountabilities

As SSR Specialist High Risk and News Safety your key remit is to ensure that staff (and others for whom the BBC has a duty of care), buildings, assets and information in hostile environments are appropriately and reasonably protected from a wide range of threats including (but not exclusive to) terrorism, war, crime, and natural/human instigated disasters.

You will support the High Risk and News Safety team across its full portfolio, including News Safety work, covering various work streams when other staff are deployed, on leave/TOIL, on training courses etc; this will mean you having with key responsibility for:

•    Providing specialist support and/or advice for BBC High Risk activities

•    Complete any necessary threat analysis, risk assessments, safety equipment support and operational logistics required.

•    Provide Production Safety advice.

•    Support Operational Crisis Management deputising if required for High Risk & News Safety management.

•    Support the development of security policies and guidelines.

Please ensure that you read the full range of responsibilities and requirements outlined below, prior to making an application. Please note that this IS NOT a Close Protection (CP) role.

Role Responsibility

Provide specialist support and advice for BBC High Risk activities and/or operational deployments in hostile environments.  This will include threat analysis and risk assessment, safety equipment support and operational logistics. The role is desk based, supporting deployments, with occasional travel and deployments in support of BBC productions.

•    Provide production safety advice as required.

•    Support to operational crisis management at all levels, deputising for High Risk and News Safety management as necessary.

•    Initiate and manage information and threat warnings to BBC staff in UK and abroad, potentially within compressed timelines.

•    Provide weekend out of hours high risk advice and support, as dictated by the High Risk and News Safety Team on-call roster, to all customers as required.

•    Support the development of security policies, guidelines, standard operating procedures, and risk assessment documentation as necessary.

•    Contribute to periodic reviews of threat classifications.

•    Liaise with national and international governments, military and intelligence agencies as directed.

•    Carry out other planning duties (e.g. detailed studies into specific safety and security threats, making recommendations for suitable hazard mitigation and control strategies).

•    Travel overseas, as necessary, to support the safe delivery of BBC activities.

•    Be prepared to conduct protective security inspections and assessments for BBC staff and property overseas, including hostile environments including the drafting of clear written reports with recommendations and mitigations.

•    As directed, lead or assist in the investigation of accidents or safety related incidents in UK and abroad, undertaking close liaison with UK and international government agencies and related authorities as necessary and potentially for extended periods.

•    Debrief deployed safety advisors and staff on return from hostile environments, on specific incidents such as fatalities, injuries and near misses.

•    Be willing to complete BBC HEFAT and Public Order training.

•    Be prepared to assist in monitoring BBC High Risk training courses, including HEFAT Basic, HEFAT Refresher, HEFAT Overseas and Public Order.

•    Be prepared to advise on the procurement of new specialist safety/security equipment, including equipment on the open market, meeting with providers and ensuring all equipment purchased is up to the specifications required by the BBC.

•    Develop effective professional relationships and contacts with colleagues, peers, and external professionals across a wide range of governmental and non-governmental organisations, media and others who are operating in hostile environments.

•    Manage relationships, as directed, with external commercial suppliers (intelligence, security support, specialist support), ensuring that such relationships do not compromise the BBC brand.

•    Be prepared to represent the BBC and High Risk and News Safety Team at external conferences, events, at internal events and across internal communications.

Are you the right candidate?

The ideal candidate will have recent operational experience in a security and / or risk management role in hostile environments within a relevant organisation, with experience of supporting a division with practical safety advice in a variety of environments. They will need to available in a short time period due to the operation need.

They'll need to be conversant with the techniques of violent attack, the planning and execution of safety and security protection, intelligence assessment, modern security equipment and first- hand knowledge of security management issues.

The ability to influence and communicate effectively both orally and in writing, including to senior audiences, is important, as is being able to work on multiple concurrent tasks and deliver to tight deadlines.

A current medical qualification of FREC3 and/or MIRA, and a recognised security qualification such as CPP, PSP, CBCI, CSyP is desirable but not essential.

Essential

•    An appropriate military and/or government or other security background with a wide portfolio of operating in overseas challenging hostile environments.

•    Experienced operative with wide ranging experience from operational environments, including warfighting, counter-insurgency, covert surveillance/close protection training.

•    Be physically fit enough to cope with the demands of working in hostile environments, willing to work flexible hours and on occasion be able to deploy at short notice if required.

•    Will have NEBOSH cert or be willing to complete this early on during your onboarding.

Desirable

•    A B driver qualification and a basic knowledge of vehicle maintenance.

•    A recognisable military/government skill at arms training and range management qualification.

•    An understanding and experience in general logistics and equipment care.

•    A working knowledge of satellite communications.

•    An ability to produce succinct written reports.

•    Relevant specialist diploma or equivalent (CSMP, PSP etc) and professional institute membership (e.g. ASyl, MSyl, CSyP)

•    Experience of working with media teams.

•    An in date first aid qualification/proficiency (a minimum of FREC 3 up to MIRA 2).

Personal Attributes

•    The ability to forge strong, effective relationships and to be a dependable team player, based on dynamic inter-personal skills.

•    The ability to thrive under pressure, remaining calm and handling crisis management effectively.

•    The strength of character and assurance to be responsive, supportive, and adaptable, but still able to be assertive in order to make safety critical decisions.

•    The self-confidence, agility, and acuity to enable the delivery of editorial goals through using initiative and remaining proactive, in potential absence of close top down direction and guidance.

•    Honesty, integrity, trust, and a willingness to accept personal risk and responsibility.