Visitor Services Manager

Job summary

As Visitor Services Manager, you will take a leading role in shaping outstanding visitor experiences at Wendover Woods. This dynamic position will see you lead and manage a committed team of staff and volunteers to deliver efficient, safe and high-quality daily operations.

Your leadership of a dedicated recreation team will help shape an exceptional visitor experience at Wendover Woods. Drawing on your background in managing outdoor attractions, activities and events, you will ensure every visitor enjoys a safe, memorable and positive day in the forest.

You will also play a vital strategic role, contributing to the wider success of our business through strong commercial awareness and effective partnership working. As a key budget holder, you will manage resources responsibly and confidently identify opportunities to improve financial performance, whether through smarter operational practices, enhanced service delivery or the development of new income‑generating initiatives.

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

Job description

• lead and manage the recreation team through coaching, support and promoting a positive and inclusive culture.
• ensure compliance with health and safety guidance, and communicate the importance of working safely, to manage risks across operations for staff, volunteers, the general public, and contractors.
• manage income and expenditure against budgets and report on variances, identifying areas for commercial growth
• undertake contract management for recreation-based contracts such as cleaning, chargeable parking systems and gate locking
• work closely with other departments such as Forestry & Land Management, Civils, Ecology, Estates and Marketing
• build and maintain good working relationships with external partners, tenants, and concession operators
• participate in relevant internal meetings providing updates and site information. Represent Forestry England at external meetings when required.

And any other tasks, reasonably requested by your line manager.

Person specification

Essential professional and technical experience

• evidence of working within a busy recreation / public facing role in a similar environment.
• managing or supervising staff, volunteers, contracts, and contractors.
• experience of managing health, safety and wellbeing including accident investigation and reporting.
• experience in managing events and activities
• understanding of budget management.
• competent IT user with experience in MS Office suite of applications and ForesterWeb.

Desirable professional and technical experience

• understanding of Forestry England recreation management practices.
• knowledge of managing volunteers.
• project management.
• managing tenants and/or partnership businesses.

Qualifications

Essential

• a GCSE in Maths and English or functional skills equivalent.

Desirable

• a degree or equivalent in relevant discipline.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £33,854, Forestry Commission contributes £9,807 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• 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

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, a technical skill which will be assessed via a 10 minute presentation, behaviours and strength based questions during your interview.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

• Leadership
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

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.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 - Visitor Services Manager Opens in new window (pdf, 112kB)