The role
Are you interested in playing an active role in restoring Wales’ peatlands? Do you want to feel like you are making a difference?
Natural Resources Wales are looking to recruit three Field Survey and Monitoring, National Peatland Action Programme Officers, with one role in NRW’s Mid Wales Area, and one in NRW's North Wales Area and a third that is flexible in location across Wales.
We are recruiting enthusiastic people who enjoy working outdoors, often in remote locations, and who have an eagerness for monitoring the success of our expanding peatland restoration programme across Wales.
Your skills will primarily be botany-based and you will have experience of habitat surveying, preferably of peatlands. Reporting of baseline and post-restoration conditions are a key aspect of this role. The post will also require you to undertake other site monitoring activities such as peat depth recording and mapping of topographical and hydrological features using our established surveying and monitoring protocol. Other species-specific surveys may also be required.
Whilst our peatlands are wonderful places, you will need to undertake fieldwork in sometimes physically demanding environments.
Peatlands are a jewel in Wales’ natural crown and they play a critically important role in both carbon capture and biodiversity resilience, so we are looking for someone who feels passionate about joining us to make a positive difference.
As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to an NRW office within the place base / location above and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.
To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Karen Wilkinson at karen.wilkinson@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk
Interviews will take place through Microsoft Teams
Successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) check. Appointments are normally made within 4 to 8 weeks of the closing date.
What you will do
- To undertake baseline condition assessment and installation of permanent monitoring plots in line with NPAPs Ecological Monitoring Programme and to support ground-truthing of the emerging Earth Observation work stream.
- Undertake repeat monitoring visits to re-assess permanent monitoring plots.
- Undertake validation and entry of monitoring data using GIS and Excel platforms.
- Analyse monitoring data to assess change and produce written monitoring reports.
- Undertake ecohydrological assessments of selected sites and implement other monitoring protocols for specific attributes, including peat accumulation, ecological surveys and hydrological surveys.
- Undertake survey of prospective NPAP restoration sites, collecting peat depth data and mapping key features to be restored, including drains, gulley's etc.
- Supervision and training of supporting trainee posts.
- Undertake surveys of afforested peatlands using the NPAP methodology and Afforested Peat Toolkit.
- Support ongoing development of NPAPs monitoring methodology.
- Undertake training of external partner staff in the use of NPAP monitoring and survey methodologies.
- Support NRWs wider programme of condition assessment on statutory peatland sites.
- Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post
- Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy, together with an understanding of how it operates within the responsibilities of the post
- Be committed to your own development through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
- Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.
Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills
In your application and interview you will be asked to demonstrate the following skills and experience using the STAR method.
- A degree level qualification in a relevant subject area or the equivalent level of knowledge.
- Experience of analysing samples, field-based monitoring / surveillance, interpreting and reporting on environmental data and practical knowledge of a wide range of monitoring activities and methodologies.
- Expertise in terrestrial ecology.
- Excellent report writing skills and knowledge of relevant legislation.
- Experience of monitoring data management systems, as well as practical understanding of technical monitoring solutions and practices.
- Good analytical skills including statistics, and knowledge of data handling including GIS.
- An excellent communicator with good organisational skills.
- Ability to undertake fieldwork in sometimes physically demanding environments.
- A full and valid UK driving license.
Welsh Language level requirements
North Wales postholder:
Mid Wales and Flexible postholder
- Essential: Level A1
- Desirable: Level C1
Welsh language levels
Please note if you do not meet the A1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.
Benefits
This role will offer a range of benefits, including:
- Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97% (successful internal staff will remain in their current pension scheme)
- 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days
- generous leave entitlements for all your life needs
- commitment to professional development
- health and wellbeing benefits and support
- weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose
See full details for all the employee benefits you will receive.
Please keep reading
We’re passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
We are committed to equal opportunities, and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we make sure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale and annual increments are paid each year.
We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on variety of topics, stay current in their field and continue to learn as their career progresses.
We are a Bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards. Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills.
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