Forest Works Supervisor - Ecology

Job summary

Central England Forest District encompasses 30,000ha of the nation’s forests within a triangle formed by Preston, Grimsby and Milton Keynes. The area comprises a range of habitats and designated sites; from woodland and wetland, to grassland and heathland. As well as supporting a range of wildlife, the District produces approximately 150,000 tonnes of timber annually and manages seven visitor centres, attracting over 2.5 million visits a year.

Working within the district’s Environment Team, you will utilise your forestry and ecological expertise to facilitate operations in line with Forestry England objectives, whilst ensuring compliance with environmental legislation, policy and regulatory standards.

Reporting to the District Ecologist, the post holder will work alongside district-based staff, including ecologists, foresters, planners and civil engineers, as well as national colleagues.

Job description

Key responsibilities & accountabilities

• Support District Ecologists with provision of appropriate ecological advice to facilitate operations.
• Complete site assessments and data gathering to inform operational planning; such as eDNA testing, habitat suitability assessments and protected species surveys.
• Facilitate management interventions required to maintain designated sites, priority habitats and Scheduled Monuments.
• Lead on site supervision of Forestry England staff and contractors, ensuring best practice is implemented in line with environmental legislation and policy.
• Monitor health and safety practices of contractors and Forestry England staff to ensure high standards of safety.
• Support with procurement and management of contracts, in line with Forestry England regulations.
• Manage ecological GIS data and survey permits.
• Alongside district and national colleagues, build and maintain relationships with relevant stakeholders including landowners, non-governmental organisations, charities and academia.
• And any other tasks, reasonably requested by your line manager.

Person specification

Skills, knowledge & experience

Essential professional and technical experience
• Relevant experience in the forestry sector and /or conservation land management sector.
• Good wildlife identification skills, especially for protected species.
• Understanding of health and safety in forestry or land management operations.
• Experience of engagement with internal and external stakeholders.
• Practice of working to deadlines, meeting objectives and problem solving.
• Team worker, able to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and taking ownership of the responsibilities of the role.
• Adaptable in the face of changing situations.
• Excellent communicator, both written and verbally, able to adapt to a range of audiences.
• Competent using information technology, and sound knowledge of Microsoft Office suite.

Desirable professional and technical experience
• Experience in contractor supervision.
• Knowledge and / or experience of procurement and contract management.
• Experience using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), such as Forester Web and Field Maps.
• A working knowledge of environmental legislation and UFKFS / UKWAS requirements, including their
practical application.

Qualifications

Essential
• A full and current driving licence that enables you to drive in the UK.

Desirable
• Qualification in ecology / forestry or similar discipline and/or experience in conservation and/or land management.
• A member (or working towards membership) of a relevant professional body, e.g. Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management, Institute of Chartered Foresters.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £31,159, Forestry Commission contributes £9,026 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

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 selection process may include additional assessment and/or interview stages. Candidates will be informed of the assessment format and arrangements during the recruitment process.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

• Seeing the bigger picture
• Delivering at pace
• Working together

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 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 - Forest Works Supervisor - Ecology (1) Opens in new window (pdf, 170kB)