Recreation Ranger

Job summary

What you’ll do…

Working four days a week from Sunday to Wednesday within the Recreation team the Recreation Ranger will apply themselves to tasks both individually, and as part of the wider team. The role has responsibility for managing a safe and welcoming visitor experience through: inspecting and maintaining facilities, working with site partners to ensure a quality offering, service contract monitoring and supervision of staff, contractors and volunteers.

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

Where you’ll work…

Cardinham Woods is a well‑established recreation site located near Bodmin, Cornwall, set within a wooded valley along the River Cardinham on the edge of Bodmin Moor. The site combines commercial forestry, heritage woodland, and high‑quality public recreation within a nationally recognised landscape.

The woods attract a high volume of visitors year‑round, including walkers, cyclists, families, dog walkers and organised groups. Facilities include waymarked walking and cycling trails, car parking, picnic areas, a visitor centre and café, and seasonal events and trails. The site is known for its accessible riverside paths alongside more challenging routes through managed woodland.

Job description

Key responsibilities & accountabilities
In this role, you'll have the opportunity to create memorable visitor/community focused experiences,
maintain our recreational facilities, and co-ordinate engaging community activities. Here's a snapshot of your
responsibilities:
• be the face of Forestry England: you'll provide a visible and welcoming presence for visitors by coordinating and supervising day-to-day site activities to ensure a positive and memorable experience.
• maintain safe and enjoyable sites: carry out regular inspections of car parks, cycle routes, and recreational
facilities, including play areas and litter management, to ensure a safe and enjoyable environment for all.
• collaborate with staff: support Forestry England staff with public access considerations during planning
and implementation of harvesting and conservation operations.
• promote responsible behaviour: deliver appropriate messages about responsible visitor behaviour and
professionally manage and resolve potential conflicts.
• strengthen community engagement: develop community involvement and recreation opportunities that
create meaningful connections between visitors and the nation's forests.
• support operational programmes: help with project delivery and align with internal guidance and district
plans to promote sustainable and responsible forestry practices.
• ensure health and safety: coordinate emergency procedures, provide first aid assistance, complete
accident and incident reports, and adhere to health and safety guidelines.
• manage stakeholder relationships: build strong relationships with external partners, tenants, and
concession operators. collaborate with local agencies, such as the National Park Authority Ranger Team, to
coordinate multi-agency work during peak times and reduce visitor impact and arson risks.
• represent Forestry England: participate in stakeholder meetings, events, and volunteer programmes to
showcase the great work of Forestry England and foster community engagement.
• inspire others: plan, lead, and safely manage volunteer groups and programmes connecting volunteers and
local communities with the nation’s forests.
And any other tasks, reasonably requested by your line manager.

Person specification

Essential professional and technical experience
• experience of working in a public facing role delivering high quality customer service requiring excellent
verbal and written communication skills both in person and via a variety of digital platforms.
• willingness and ability to work outdoors in all weathers and to carry out manual tasks
• practical experience of planning and delivering public engagement activities.
• excellent team working skills and the ability to work with dispersed team members.
• practical understanding of Health & Safety best practices and a commitment to a positive health and
safety culture in an outdoor environment.
• Competent IT user with experience in MS Office suite of applications.

Desirable professional and technical experience
• experience working with various social media platforms.
• experience of project and contract management.
• experience in working with volunteers.

Qualifications
Essential
• full UK driving license.
• A GCSE in Maths and English or functional skills equivalent/engineering subject, or prove equivalent to.

Desirable
• HND or equivalent in land or recreation management, tourism or leisure or similar
• 1st Aid
• health and safety qualification

Behaviours

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

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

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,105, Forestry Commission contributes £8,721 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Benefits…

Alongside your salary, Forestry England contributes an average of 28.97% towards your pension. You will become a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension Scheme.

• 25 days holiday a year, raising by one day every year’s service, up to 30 days (pro-rated for part time employees) plus additional days off such as bank holidays.
• STaR is our employee benefits scheme offering discounts on everyday supermarket shopping, as well as other things such as hotel stays clothes, mobile phones, other electrical items, medical and car insurance, holidays, gym discounts, household bills, Headspace wellbeing app.
• free parking at Forestry England sites and free entry to our National Arboretums at Westonbirt and Bedgebury.
• a commitment to lifelong learning through career development. Forestry England will support your career development in a variety of ways, including continual professional development, support for individual learning plans and sponsored membership of professional bodies.

Read more about the benefits on the Forestry England website.

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 and Strengths.

How to apply…

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.

You will be assessed on experience, and strength based questions during your interview.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

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

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 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.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 : FC Recruitment Team
• 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 - Recreation Ranger (PB6A) (5) Opens in new window (pdf, 84kB)