HS2 is a state-of-the-art, high-speed line critical for the UK’s low carbon transport future. It will provide much-needed rail capacity across the country, and is integral to rail projects in the North and Midlands – helping rebalance the UK economy.

WHY JOIN HS2?

Whatever your experience or expertise, HS2 is an outstanding place to start or develop your career. You can help us provide much-needed rail capacity and connectivity across the country and rebalance the UK economy.

We embed equality, diversity and inclusion into all our activities. Minimising the potential for discrimination, harassment and bullying and seeking out opportunities to promote inclusive development.

Get to know more about HS2 from our Meet the Employer event

APPLYING TO JOIN US

At HS2 we utilise the Clear Talents tool in our recruitment process. This allows you to tell us about the adjustments you need at the point in the recruitment process you need them.

A Clear Talents link is sent to each job applicant. When you complete your profile it will generate a report which allows us to make relevant adjustments should you need them.

HS2 is committed to ensuring every applicant can demonstrate their skills and abilities at their best.

When filling out your application form for HS2 roles your leadership competencies and values are just as important as your technical skills.

If you are invited to interview you will meet with a panel of three HS2 employees including the line manager, a representative from HR and a third individual, potentially from outside the team or function. A diverse interview panel helps us to consider candidates from a broader range of perspectives and this makes our roles more accessible and our decisions better.

Our interviews are designed to measure behaviours, skills, knowledge and experience. If you’re selected for an interview, consider how your experience demonstrates your ability to do the job. It’s likely we’ll also ask you about the HS2 project, our Leadership framework and our corporate values.

For more information on the support available to you. Please visit our careers website: https://www.hs2.org.uk/jobs-and-skills/careers-with-hs2-ltd/application-process/

Maria’s Story

 

Maria Grazia Zedda
HS2’s workforce equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) manager

Maria was attracted to HS2 as she has experienced first-hand how London centric the economy can be.

“By creating new, faster, frequent and more reliable services, HS2 is creating jobs and opportunities across the country so that we’re a more ‘United’ Kingdom and I’m privileged to be part of this in a small way.”

Being severely to profoundly deaf Maria uses hearing aids and is passionate about inclusion.

“Growing up I was expected to cope in a world designed for hearing people. This personal need to feel included motivates me to ensure others are included too, regardless of walks of life, culture, disability, gender or age.”

Maria’s email signature reminds people to use text, email or FaceTime (Maria lip reads) instead of audio on phone calls. During conference calls Maria uses a captioning service which provides live subtitles almost immediately on her phone or laptop. As a mum of 2 teenage girls the ability to work flexibly to be able to juggle school and doctors’ appointments is also important.

A personal understanding of how a deaf and disabled employee can be included in the workplace motivates Maria to share this information and help make sure HS2 is inclusive in the way we recruit, retain and assess our people.

“Our Employee Networks are great for helping people feel included at work. We have a Veteran’s network, a disabled employee network, a Gender Balance and an LGBT Network as well as a new Cultural and BAME inclusion network and all of them do fantastic work.”

As part of HS2’s equality, diversity and inclusion team one of Maria’s responsibilities is looking after the Reverse Mentoring project, which sees all the members of our Senior Leadership Team (66 of them) being mentored by a non-senior or more junior employee.

“Our CEO is reverse-mentored by one of our young apprentices! People are matched so that they work with someone who is not part of their function, often they’re from different backgrounds, genders and experiences so that they can benefit from each other’s feedback and are exposed to other ways of working. This helps our people feel more connected with each other and the business.”

Disability Power 100 list

On 17th October 2022, Maria was recognised by the Shaw Trust for her work supporting people with disabilities, by being named in the UK’s top 100 most influential people living with an impairment or disability.

Her achievements over the last 12 months, which were pivotal to her award win, include the development and launch of HS2’s new accessibility policy and digital accessibility hub – which launched on International Disabled People’s Day in December 2021.

Speaking about her award win, Maria said:

“It’s an absolute honour to have been recognised and I thank my colleagues at HS2 for their continued support, as we drive to set new standards which embed and promote equality and diversity in everything we do

“I want people to feel empowered to speak up, and speak out, about their disability and HS2 shares that passion. With a 28,000-strong workforce, we can make a real difference to people’s lives and drive positive change right across the construction sector.”

Maria describes her ultimate goal as the day in which accessibility becomes ‘business as usual’ and not a special request. Her own reliance on captioning and lipreading to communicate is a simple reminder of how quickly a person can feel disconnected.