Project Officer – Species Volunteer Network

Volunteers are amazing. They enhance our organisational capacity and enable us to make a bigger
and better impact for nature. This is an exciting project which empowers people to take
conservation action for the UK’s most threatened species. 

We are looking for an enthusiastic and organised individual with a passion for working with
people to support species recovery projects in Wales. You will help us to increase volunteer
capacity, initially with existing work in our priority landscapes in North Wales.

What’s the role about?

The Species Volunteer Network is already supporting the recovery of species across England and
Northern Ireland. You will work with project teams in Wales to support the development of
projects for Curlew, Black Grouse and Chough. You will also be part of the expansion of the
project to support new species projects in Wales. This will include providing capacity building
and support for staff for initial species project set up, development and skills progression
for volunteer teams. 

You will work with Species Volunteer Network officers in other parts of the UK and support the
SVN project manager to compile the annual project report and promote the project internally and
externally.

The successful candidate will have proven experience of working as part of a team to deliver,
monitor and report on projects. You will be a team player, with experience in training and
supporting staff and volunteers in new ways of working and a range of tasks. You will have
experience of volunteer management and be passionate about the vital role volunteers and
communities play in delivering long-term, sustainable conservation. 

You will be responsible for:

• Recruit, and in some cases manage and support, volunteer co-ordinators who will take on the
  day-to-day organisation of defined tasks in support of the species recovery projects. 
• Working with staff and volunteers to ensure that actions are delivered to agreed standards
  of cost, quality, and time. 
• Helping to put in place the right governance structure to keep the project on track and
  assist area teams to identify roles and tasks for volunteers. 
• Contributing to area-based species recovery projects, undertaking agreed activities, such
  as volunteer and staff workshops, to deliver project outputs and objectives. 
• Assisting area teams with the recruitment and induction of volunteers where appropriate. 
• Helping with the development of an accreditation system for volunteer team development. 
• Ensuring an inclusive experience for volunteers, adhering to RSPB’s EDI (equality,
  diversity and inclusion) principles, through their whole journey; from recruitment through to
  any volunteer ending of role, liaising with our EDI team as appropriate and contributing to the
  wider development of EDI across volunteer teams 
• Producing relevant project documentation, such as contributions to reports, volunteer
  training guides and newsletters, as required. 
• Developing and delivering appropriate communication activities such as volunteer team
  ‘thank you’ events, media interaction, presentations and production of project promotional
  materials in association with communications colleagues to support delivery of the projects. 
• Coordinating meetings and reporting to the Wales SVN steering group. 
• Ensuring that risks and issues are highlighted to the project manager/internal project
  boards. 

Essentials:

• Experience of managing volunteers.
• Ability to work well as part of a cross-functional project team, working with area teams,
  volunteers and other stakeholders.
• Experience in developing and organising training events, workshops or facilitated
  discussions and meetings.
• Ability to produce clear and written communications with experience of producing written
  materials e.g. reports, newsletters and similar project related communications.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills. (The ability to do so through the medium
  of both Welsh and English is an essential requirement for this post in Wales). 
• Ability to communicate about the project in a passionate and credible manner.
• Ability to persuade and influence a wide range of people, both internally and externally.
• Ability to work under pressure and adapt to changing circumstances.
• Proven time management, organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Competent IT user (e.g. MS packages, Outlook etc).

Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• Excellent problem-solving skills and ability to find creative solutions.
• Experience of working with and engaging communities.
• Demonstrable experience of developing and working in partnerships to achieve shared
  outcomes. 

Additional Information

The focus in the contract period is North Wales primarily in rural, upland areas. Please see job description in Welsh on our site. 

The successful candidate will live within a reasonable travelling distance of central North
Wales. It is an essential requirement that you can travel independently to sites where public
transport may not be available. This role may require occasional travel to other parts of Wales
and short periods staying away.

This is a fixed-term, part-time role for 30 hours per week until March 2026, with possibility
of an extension.

The location of this role is flexible and will be home-based.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position via Teams on the 16th and 17th July. For
further information please contact [email protected]

The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of
Offenders Act 1974.

This role is not eligible for UK Sponsorship.