Safety Case graduate programme

Wherever there is a nuclear hazard, there is a safety case.

Safety Cases are at the heart of everything we do at Sellafield. They enable us to understand hazards, assess risks and identify the controls needed to protect people, the public and the environment. They provide the evidence and justification needed to ensure activities can be carried out safely, making them central to Sellafield’s mission and licence to operate.

As a Safety Case Graduate, you’ll help solve some of the UK’s most complex technical and environmental challenges. You’ll work alongside experienced professionals to develop the safety arguments and assessments that underpin the operation, retrieval, design, modification, decommissioning and demolition of nuclear facilities.

From your first placement, you’ll contribute to meaningful work that directly supports Sellafield’s mission. You’ll collaborate with engineers, operators, designers and subject matter experts across the business to understand hazards, manage risks and enable the safe delivery of projects and operations.

  • Graduates in Safety Cases typically start in their first placement in the role of a Nuclear Safety Assessor specialist areas. As part of their development, they are able to explore these different specialisms of nuclear safety assessment, as well as the opportunity to try a placement as a Safety Case Advisor (ensuring that nuclear safety controls are in place and maintained on a facility). Both roles offer a future career pathway, with foundational training that builds understanding of principles and the opportunity to develop specialist skills.

  • Criticality

    Criticality Assessors focuses on preventing uncontrolled nuclear chain reactions. Specialists assess how fissile materials are handled, stored and processed, using analysis and modelling techniques to identify safe operating limits and controls.

    Dose & Shielding

    Dose & Shielding Assessors assess radiation exposure risks and develop solutions to ensure doses remain within legal and company limits. This work helps protect workers while supporting safe project and facility operations.

    Nuclear Fire

    Nuclear Fire Assessors assess how fire could impact nuclear facilities, safety systems and operations. They identify measures to prevent, control and mitigate fire-related hazards using a range of analytical and modelling techniques.

    Radiological

    Radiological Assessors assess the risks associated with radioactive materials and identify controls to protect workers, the public and the environment. The role involves understanding both normal operations and potential fault scenarios.

    Human Factors

    Our Human Factors Assessors become involved with safety assessments, processes such as Hazard Management Strategies, HAZOPs and design reviews, Designation and specification of the human contribution to risk management, Task Analysis, Human Reliability Assessment, Human Machine Interface design.

  • Beyond the graduate training, Safety Cases career pathways offer a range of progression opportunities, whether through specialisation in a technical discipline or taking responsibility for the management of teams and safety cases for our nuclear facilities.

  • Our existing team has a wide range of STEM degree backgrounds. In particular, historically we have found the following degree areas are a good fit to the different safety case specialisms:

    Criticality: Physics, Maths, Chemistry

    Dose & Shielding : Physics, Maths, Chemistry

    Nuclear Fire: Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Sciences

    Radiological: Any STEM degree

    Human factors: Psychology, Ergonomics, Human Factors

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