Active Forests Marketing and Communications Manager

Job summary

The Active Forests programme, delivered in partnership with Sport England, inspires and enables active visits to the nation’s forests to improve wellbeing through physical activity and deeper connections with nature. Across more than 20 sites, Forestry England teams curate a varied programme of physical activity, health and wellbeing experiences, creating engaging activities for both new and returning visitors.

Our vision is to create inclusive forest experiences that inspire movement and enhance physical, mental and social wellbeing, and delivery focuses on those people facing the greatest barriers, targeting groups currently underserved by physical activity and nature organisations.

As Active Forests Marketing and Communication Manager, you will lead the marketing and communications activity for the Active Forests programme, increasing participation in physical activity across the nation's forests. You’ll develop and deliver marketing campaigns, promote activities and events, support the development of new products targeted at less active audiences, and manage sponsorship and partnership marketing activities, ensuring these align with and support the delivery of the Active Forests marketing strategy. You’ll also communicate the programme's impact to key stakeholders and funders.

This role sits within the national Engagement, Marketing & Communications team and involves close coordination with the Active Forests programme team and colleagues across the country.

Please see the job description below for more information and details about what we need from you.

Job description

Key responsibilities & accountabilities

• Work closely with the national Visitor Marketing team and wider marketing and engagement team to ensure that Active Forests campaigns and messaging is aligned with organisational priorities and the Forestry England core brand.

• Lead on development and delivery of Active Forests national multi-channel marketing and storytelling campaigns working closely with the Active Forests Digital Marketing Officer and wider national marketing and engagement team. Drive continuous improvement of campaigns through marketing plans, collaborative working and robust monitoring and evaluation.

• Provide leadership, guidance and support to district colleagues to enable effective local delivery of national marketing campaigns.

• Work with national and local marketing colleagues to ensure ‘always on’ marketing of core active offer.

• Work with the Active Forests Digital Marketing Officer to identify content and channel opportunities and developing relationships and deliver effective influencer campaigns.

• Manage the Active Forests marketing budget and work closely with the Active Forests Digital Marketing Officer to maximise spend.

• Work closely with colleagues from Sport England (and other associated government departments) on both the development of marketing campaigns to drive visits and communications activity to demonstrate impact.

• Lead on the planning, development and delivery of the internal communications strategy for the programme, including ownership of the internal comms planner and Active Forests newsletter.

• Represent Active Forests at key internal and external meetings including district marketing forums and Active Forests team meetings.

• Lead the marketing elements of corporate partnerships and sponsorship agreements, ensuring delivery against agreed objectives.

• Line manage the Active Forests Digital Marketing Officer, supporting their development and encouraging innovation in marketing channels and audience engagement approaches.

Person specification

Skills, knowledge & experience

Essential professional and technical experience

• Demonstrable experience of successfully developing and delivering a range of marketing and communications initiatives within a similar role, using a range of channels to support achievement of marketing and communications objectives.

• Demonstrable experience of managing directly employed team(s) and/or contractors to ensure effective delivery against organisational objectives.

• A relevant professional qualification or equivalent experience gained within a marketing, communications or similar income generating role.

• Demonstrable expertise in implementing marketing campaigns across a range of channels and multiple platforms to deliver against organisational marketing strategies.

• Demonstrable experience in internal and/or stakeholder communications

• Strong digital and IT skills, with experience of Microsoft Office suite of applications, together with e-marketing tools, web content management and social media platforms.

Desirable professional and technical experience

• Experience of developing and delivering marketing partnership programmes.

• Engaging effectively and intelligently with funding and delivery partners.

• Knowledge of behaviour change, physical activity promotion and/or public sector campaigns.

Qualifications

Desirable

• Full UK driving license.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £41,802, Forestry Commission contributes £12,110 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).

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

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

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours.

This is a Temporary Appointment for until 31 March 2030 with the possibility of extension or permanency but no guarantee.

How to apply…

We cannot accept applications via email. Please follow the steps outlined below. Any CVs and/or personal statements sent outside the system will not be considered for shortlisting.

You will be asked to write a 200 word statement on your relevant experience and career history, along with a personal statement of no more than 500 words. You will be assessed on both during sifting. More details about how to apply are listed on the application form.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions

You may also be assessed on Experience, Strength based questions, and/or the Technical Success Profile at the interview. The technical element could include a presentation, practical or written task.

Successful candidates will undergo a criminal record check and the government baseline personnel security standard check.

If you require any reasonable adjustments, please email fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk.

If you're planning to use AI to support your application, please ensure you've read our guidelines here first.

Read more about our application process and working with us on the Forestry England website.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk
• Email : fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk

Further information

Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of appointment on the basis of fair and open competition and appointment on merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact FCE by email: englandhr.services@forestryengland.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.

Attachments

Forestry England Job Description - Active forests marketing and communications manager Opens in new window (pdf, 177kB)