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We are Forestry England.

We live and breathe forests.

Job title – Ecologist - Biodiversity

Salary- £33,854 per annum

Contract type – Fixed Term Appointment until end of March 2029, with the possibility of extension or permanency

Hours – 37 hours per week

Vacancy closes - 2nd August, 23:58

Join us. We're foresters, professionals and experts. We are a passionate team who love to share our enthusiasm and want to make a positive difference for you and the environment.

Together, we’re using our scale and expertise to grow the nation’s forests for everyone. We’re already adapting our landscapes for tomorrow, and getting stuff done today, like creating amazing places and experiences for you to enjoy. We're providing vital homes for wildlife, making our air cleaner to breathe and producing sustainable timber.

What you’ll do…

Our vision is that the nation’s forests will provide the most valuable places for wildlife to thrive and expand in England. The Biodiversity Ecologist will play a key role in the delivery of that vision by inspiring others to support our work for nature. A key responsibility of the job is the maintenance and enhancement of SSSI condition through the creation and implementation of management plans. The postholder will also focus on the conservation of important protected habitats and species through Defra funded projects. The role will provide ecological advice to ensure species, habitats and designated sites are managed in accordance with wildlife legislation, policy and best practice guidance when implementing these projects. The postholder will also assist in the restoration of ancient woodland and connectivity across the District through supporting operational teams.

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

Where you’ll work…

The post can be based at our Bellingham office, Hexham, Northumberland, or Grizedale, Cumbria with blended working opportunities.

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.

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 strength based questions during your interview.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

• Seeing the big picture

• Delivering at pace

• Working together

• Making effective decisions

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.

“If candidates pass the interview but are not the leading candidate they can be placed on a reserve list. We may offer candidates on the reserve list for this role the opportunity to be considered for other roles at the same or lower pay bands.”

Nationality requirements…

Read more about nationality requirements here.

Working for the Civil Service…

Forestry England is part of the Civil Service. The Civil Service has a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS). This means candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria during the application process will be guaranteed an interview. We also offer a Redeployment Interview Scheme to current civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the role. This role is also part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans and Prison Leaver Recruitment initiative.

Within Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016, it is essential that applicants should have the ability to provide conversation in accurate spoken English.

Our recruitment process makes appointments based on fair and open competition and merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in in line with/according to these principles and you wish to make a complaint, please email: englandhr.services@forestryengland.uk.

This role is funded by DEFRA rather than through Forestry England generated revenue, and is therefore subject to government spending reviews. While DEFRA has indicated long term support for the Biodiversity Programme and we expect funding to continue, it is possible that funding levels may change at the end of any financial year depending on DEFRA’s budget allocations. In the event of funding changes, we would prioritise retaining staff posts wherever possible. This approach is consistent for roles within publicly funded organisations. We are committed to keeping staff informed and supported through any changes.