Ecologist

Job summary

Never has there been a more important time for trees and forests to help tackle the climate
emergency and provide a much-needed sanctuary for people and wildlife. We aim to at least
treble tree planting rates in England by the end of this Parliament, reflecting England’s
contribution to meeting the UK’s overall target of planting 30,000 hectares per year by the end
of this Parliament. This acceleration in current planting rates in England will contribute to
meeting the net-zero by 2050 ambitions, and to government’s wider environmental targets. This
is supported by the £640m Nature for Climate Fund (NCF) announced in the March 2020 budget.

The Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Forestry
Commission have set up a joint NCF tree programme for England to support the forestry sector,
landowners and communities in the delivery of these ambitions.

Forestry Commission leads the delivery of the following parts of the tree planting programme:
developing sector capacity woodland creation on public land woodland creation on private land
promotion and engagement. If you are passionate about the role of forestry in creating a better
future for England, and want to play a key part in realising that, we want to hear from you.

By joining the Forestry Commission, you will become part of a team of passionate, committed
colleagues, and be able to build on a wealth of expertise to take this ambitious work forward.
You will be able to make your mark by helping the Forestry Commission to transform how we work
together and reach new stakeholders.

This role will provide ecological advice on forestry schemes and proposals to Area colleagues
and support the work of the national Natural Environment Advisors. This local, expert
specialist advice will enable well informed and timely decision making that fully accounts for
the existing ecological interests of both woodland and non-woodland (open) priority habitats
and species and their potential for enhancement in line with the Government’s 25 Year
Environment Plan.

The South West Area contains some 250,000 ha of woodland, of which 83% is owned and managed
outside of the Forestry Commission’s estate. The Area is of exceptional landscape quality with
a diverse array of woodlands, encompassing all or part of fourteen AONBs, Dartmoor and Exmoor
National Parks and the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. We have internationally important
ancient woodlands and very productive commercial plantations; as well as a number of important
community initiatives and valuable peri-urban woodlands.

Job description

Supporting the Area team and national Natural Environment team to enable the forestry sector to
protect, improve, expand and connect England’s woodland resource, through:

1. Providing technical expertise on ecological issues relating to forestry and woodland
   protection, management and creation across the area.
2. To support the Area team in promoting and delivering sustainable forestry and woodland
   management to ensure the Government’s woodland and tree establishment targets enhance
   biodiversity for woodland and non-woodland priority habitats and species.
3. To build and maintain a network of contacts across the statutory and NGO ecology and
   conservation sector to promote the work of the Forestry Commission and foster collaborative
   working.

This post is also supporting the England Tree Planting Programme (ETTP) and will help ensure
that the Forestry Commission’s commitments and responsibilities to protect and enhance the
natural environment are met in delivering this programme.

The successful applicant will have a passion for woodlands and forests and for the benefits to
society, the environment ad the economy they provide. They will advocate the knowledge and
enthusiasm the environmental and other benefits that woodland creation provides and will be a
trusted and reliable source of sound ecological advice related to woodland creation and
management

KEY WORK AREAS –

Provision of ecological advice

• Work closely with area and national team colleagues to provide casework support as needed,
  most notably concerning woodland creation and management proposals
• Work with Area team colleagues to provide technical input to woodland creation and woodland
  management plan development, benefiting both wooded and open priority habitats and associated
  species
• Work with Area team and national colleagues to support the delivery of national scale
  projects at the Area level, g. contribute to the development of Local Nature Recovery
  Strategies
• Provide ecological advice on major infrastructure project occurring within the Area, g.
  road, rail, airport, energy and reservoir projects etc.
• Provide input to Local Plan consultations responses where there will likely be a
  significant impact upon ancient and native woodland and its associated biodiversity
• Provide technical advice on ecology across the Area, ensure European Protected Species
  (EPS) guidance is embedded in practice, raise awareness of EPS guidance, supporting national
  team colleagues as appropriate
• Provide representation on / contribute ecological expertise to species recovery projects in
  the area where forestry and woodland is a key issue/ habitat g. woodland birds, threatened
  lepidoptera, red squirrel, beaver and pine marten etc.
• Keep up to date with the latest developments in conservation, ecology and biodiversity in
  the region and communicate these to Area colleagues
• Provide support with special projects as required and the development and delivery of
  specialist training to national and Area teams

 WORK WITH OTHERS –

• Develop a close working relationship with the Area woodland resilience officers to support
  their work on climate change adaptation and the responses to tree pest and disease, providing
  expertise on biodiversity issues
• Build and maintain good working relationships with Defra group colleagues including Natural
  England and the Environment Agency and the non-governmental conservation sector, contributing
  to partnership projects and facilitate knowledge exchange and sharing of best practice
• Engage in catchment level working with EA team biodiversity technical specialists where
  woodland biodiversity and wider environment benefits can be achieved eg. species recovery and
  natural flood management
• Develop and maintain a close working relationship with Forestry England District ecology
  teams that overlap the area and in particular to support collaborative working where the
  nation’s forests provide an important contribution to existing local ecological restoration
  zones / the developing local nature recovery strategies

Person specification

ESSENTIAL – 

• In-depth understanding of woodland and forestry’s role in providing biodiversity benefits
  (habitats, species and ecosystem services), and how to build the resilience of the woodland
  resource
• Working knowledge of environmental impact assessments, habitat and species surveys and how
  they apply to forestry and conservation
• Working knowledge of environmental regulations, standards and good practice of relevance to
  forestry and nature conservation
• Experience of advising on conservation land management including on non-woodland priority
  habitat restoration / creation
• An understanding of the key Section 41 habitats present across the Area, both wooded and
  open habitat types such as species-rich grassland and lowland heathland
• Competent IT user with experience of the MS Office suite of applications
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

TECHNICAL SKILLS – 

• Degree or equivalent in Ecology, Environmental Management or a closely related discipline

DESIRABLE – 

• Expertise in ancient and native woodland restoration
• A knowledge of the peatland resource and its condition
• Experience of the planning system, development control and planning gain and land-use
  change
• Experience of successfully operating in a complex stakeholders’ landscape
• Experience of developing site management plans for protected areas and priority habitats
• Working knowledge of the forestry sector
• Masters degree in Ecology, Environmental Management or a closely related discipline
• Membership of (or working towards membership of) the Institute of Chartered Foresters (ICF)

Memberships

Membership of (or working towards membership of) the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM). Applications will also be considered where applicants do not possess CIEEM full membership but meet the other essential job criteria and would be willing to work towards achieving this status (with our support) within their first year of appointment.