Farm and Conservation Service Officer - ( Ref : 6756 )

Job summary

This position is based Nationally

Job description

The Farm and Conservation Service are a national team that sit at the heart of Natural England Operations within the National Delivery Environmental Land Management Services Directorate. We are a dedicated and experienced team with a mix of technical and non-technical skills which enable us to deliver advice and casework on Agri-environment schemes, Protected Sites, Facilitation Fund, Historic Environment, Inheritance Tax Exemptions and other areas to help Natural England meet its statutory duties.

We are looking for a team player who demonstrates Natural England’s ways of working and values and is passionate about providing a good service and meeting customer service standards.

Job description

As an Officer in the Farm and Conservation Service, you will work closely with colleagues to triage and deliver Protected Sites and Agri-environment casework, responding to customer queries within statutory deadlines and service level agreements, review and develop guidance, abide by robust recording protocols and support colleagues.

This is an exciting and important role within the Farm and Conservation Service as work capacity grows.

Key Tasks/Principal Accountabilities

• Answering queries from a range of stakeholders, working with a range of partners, customers and colleagues to meet Service Level Agreement deadlines.
• Deliver casework and administrative activities through the application of guidance and training with the support of functional management, across Protected Sites and/or Agri-environment casework.
• Resolve technicals queries which require researching and organising information within a relatively structured and defined area of activity, applying judgment were recommending or taking an appropriate course of action.
• Deal with issues and problems relating to the maintenance, coordination and improvement of established service delivery approaches within well-defined work areas.
• Where casework or activities require specific local knowledge, liaise with Area Teams and coordinate the response to the customer where relevant.
• Assist in reviewing and updating policies and guidance documents (as per the team and wider NE policies), including team training documents.
• Share knowledge and expertise with others within team so that you can develop together and be willing to learn new work areas.
• Assist in delivering the team’s communications plans as required.
• Capture, collate and input data onto corporate systems within policy guidelines and processes to ensure reliable data is captured with accuracy. Present information clearly and accurately, including on casework, customers or targets to support team delivery. Contribute to reviews of performance, systems and processes and seek opportunities for improvements, enhancements and innovation.
• Be willing to engage in the full working remit of the team as necessary which could include; SharePoint management, support and engage with team activities/events, and any other required tasks.

Knowledge, Skills & Experience

• Knowledge of Protected Sites (Sites of Special Scientific Interest) and Agri-environment schemes (Environmental/Countryside Stewardship), including experience delivering in a casework orientated environment. (Essential).

• Confidence in engaging with other teams within Natural England and external customers over the phone and via email. (Essential)

• Ability to analyse and interpret information in order to provide accurate guidance. (Essential)

• Working knowledge of: Microsoft including SharePoint, Tracking Systems, Customer Records Management Systems and Mapping Systems. (Desirable)

• Effective communication, using clear and appropriate language and communication styles. (Essential)

• Knowledge of information handling processes and General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). Handle data responsibly, adhering to strict confidentiality and security protocols due to sensitive information you will be handling. (Essential)

Competencies

Competence 1

Professional competency

Detail

Technical Skills and Knowledge (STAR format is optional for this competency)

Description

• Experience and knowledge of Protected Sites (SSSI consenting) and Agri-environment schemes (Environmental/Countryside Stewardship), including experience delivering in a casework orientated environment. (Essential). (Essential)
  • Confidence in engaging with other teams within Natural England and external customers over the phone and via email. (Essential)
  • Ability to analyse and interpret information in order to provide accurate guidance. (Essential)
  • Working knowledge of some, but not all, of: SharePoint, Genesis, EDRM, CRM, NE Maps, Siti Agri, Casework Tracker (Essential)
  • Effective communication, using clear and appropriate language and communication styles. (Essential)
  • Knowledge of information handling processes and General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). Handle data responsibly, adhering to strict confidentiality and security protocols due to sensitive information you will be handling. (Essential)

Competence 2

Professional competency

Detail

Personal Effectiveness

Description

• Be ambitious, identify and adopt ways to make improvements in your team and Natural England and inspire others to act. (Practitioner)
  • Make and explain objective decisions which combine your professional judgement and evidence. (Practitioner)

Competence 3

Professional competency

Detail

Work Delivery

Description

• Manage and deliver your work to meet agreed targets and deadlines. (Practitioner)
  • Handle data responsibly, understand your role in good governance, and comply with delegations, policies, and procedures. (Basic)

Competence 4

Professional competency

Detail

Putting People at the Heart of the Environment

Description

• Listen to and understand our diverse partners and customers so that you achieve the best outcomes for them and Natural England. (Practitioner)
  • Nurture trusting partnerships and collaborate to achieve pragmatic outcomes that help deliver Natural England’s vision, mission and aims. (Basic)

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £28,910, Natural England contributes £8,375 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

Please refer to Job Description

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

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).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.

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

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 : Rachel Bowden
• Email : rachel.bowden@naturalengland.org.uk
• Telephone : 02080268439

Recruitment team

• Email : defra-recruitment-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Further information

https://networkrecruitment.tal.net/vx/appcentre-7/brand-4/spa-1/candidate/so/pm/1/pl/8/opp/6756-6756-Farm-and-Conservation-Service-Officer/en-GB

Attachments

DEF-001h - Candidate Pack Natural England v3.1 Opens in new window (docx, 550kB)