Head of Sustainability Programme
Salary: Competitive Plus Benefits
Location: London Store Support Centre and Home, London, EC1M 6HA
Contract type: Secondment
Business area: Marketing
Closing date: 20 July 2025
Requisition ID: 400004994
We’d all like amazing work to do, and real work-life balance. That’s waiting for you at Sainsbury’s. We’re one of the biggest supermarkets in the UK with one of the largest websites. So marketing here really happens at scale. We move a lot faster than you’d think too, across Brand Planning, Brand Comms and Creative, Digital Marketing, CRM and Loyalty, Nectar 360, Insights, and Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability. More people shopping with us each week means more interactions. And thanks to data insight, we understand customers in a way that almost nobody else does. We work alongside incredible brand partners and the best agencies around. So if you have a passion to learn, grow and experience new teams, come and explore it all with us.
Why join us
Joining Sainsbury's as the Head of Sustainability Programme means being at the forefront of driving transformational change and leading the delivery of our sustainability strategy, Plan for Better. You will have the opportunity to shape and execute impactful initiatives that protect our planet, our people, and ensure a resilient future for our business. You will inspire and collaborate with diverse stakeholders, working in an inclusive and dynamic environment where your strategic leadership and innovation can make a real difference to our company's sustainability commitments and overall success.
What you'll do
As the Head of Sustainability Programme at Sainsbury's, you will be the custodian of the company's sustainability strategy, Plan for Better, ensuring its successful delivery and alignment with corporate objectives. Your role will involve leading a team to drive the strategy's execution, governance, reporting, and stakeholder engagement, focusing on areas such as strategy development, programme management, reporting and disclosure, and communication. You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop and refine sustainability initiatives, manage key milestones and risks, oversee governance processes, lead reporting efforts, and engage stakeholders to promote sustainability efforts and build trust within and outside the organisation. Your strategic planning skills, stakeholder management abilities, and leadership qualities will be essential in driving long-term sustainability impact and fostering a culture of sustainability within the company.
Who you are
As the Head of Sustainability Programme at Sainsbury's, you are a strategic and analytical leader with a passion for driving transformational change within a large-scale environment. With a comprehensive understanding and proven experience of sustainability practises and reporting standards, you excel in developing and delivering long-term strategies that create positive impacts on both the business and the environment. Your strong stakeholder management skills, financial acumen, experience and ability to lead and inspire teams empower you to drive results, anticipate risks, and navigate complex challenges with agility and integrity.
We are committed to being a truly inclusive retailer so you’ll be welcomed whoever you are and wherever you work. Around here, there’s always the chance to try something new — whether that’s as part of an evolving team or somewhere else across the business - and we take development seriously and promise to support you. We also recognise and celebrate colleagues when they go the extra mile and, where possible, offer flexible working. When you join our team, we’ll also offer you an amazing range of benefits. Here are some of them: Starting off with colleague discount, you'll be able to save 10% on your shopping online and instore at Sainsbury's, Argos, TU and Habitat, and we regularly increase the discount to 15% at points during the year. We've also got you covered for your future with our pensions scheme and life cover. You'll also be able to share in our success as you may be eligible for a performance-related bonus of up to 65% of salary (which may vary for Nectar360), depending on how we perform (in cash and shares). Your wellbeing is important to us too. You'll receive an annual holiday allowance, and you can buy up to an additional week's holiday, and we provide private healthcare. We also offer other benefits that will help your money go further such as season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, health cash plans, salary advance (where you can access some of your pay before pay day) as well access to a great range of discounts from hundreds of other retailers. You'll also receive a company car cash allowance unless you are going to travel 10,000 business miles in your role, then you'll be able to choose a car. And if you ever need it there is also an employee assistance programme. Moments that matter are as important to us as they are to you which is why we give up to 26 weeks’ pay for maternity or adoption leave and up to 4 weeks’ pay for paternity leave. Please see www.sainsburys.jobs for a range of our benefits (note, length of service and eligibility criteria may apply).
