Forest Operations & Land Management Graduate Placement

Company Description

The role

This is a graduate placement role for individuals who have recently (within 18 months) gained an undergraduate or masters qualification in an environmental related course, such as forestry or forest management, woodland management and conservation, environmental science, environmental management, geography, or a related subject

The role will provide support to NRW across Forest Operations, Land Management, Land Stewardship and wider operational teams. The purpose of the role is to develop the practical experience, knowledge and skills to establish your career in the forestry and land management sector.

You will work closely with and be mentored by the Forest Operations and Land Management Team Leaders and their Specialist Advisors.

As an organisation we support flexible working. 

• You will be contracted to the NRW office at the above location and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

Successful candidates will be invited to attend a first round interview which will be on (week of) and will take place through Microsoft Teams in the week beginning 23^rd February.

A final round of interviews will follow the week beginning 16^th March these will be face to face (details of time and location will be shared in advance)

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. 

About us

The forest operations and land management teams are responsible for the sustainable management of the Welsh Government Woodland Estate. We practice multifunctional forestry, working with other teams across NRW to deliver sustainable timber production within NRW’s vision of nature and people thriving together. One day you might be monitoring pine marten boxes, the next a harvesting contract.

You will work alongside the Technical Support Officers, Contract Management Officers, Senior Officers and Team Leader to contribute to the busy programmes of work we deliver. 

The role is based in Welshpool but the teams you will work with cover a wide area, extending to Dyfnant Forest in the North to Radnor and Presteigne Forests to the South, Talybont forest in the West, to the Welshpool blocks in the East. Your work will be focussed in specific forest blocks but you will be expected to travel across the whole area.

Throughout the placement you will have the opportunity to work with other teams across NRW, who are involved with other aspects of forestry and land management.

As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to the NRW office at the above location and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

What you will do

• Apply your professional training in real world situations
• Develop good working relationships internally and externally
• Deliver work plans and agreed actions to contribute to business planning.
• Participate in NRW technical groups.
• Contribute towards the teams delegated responsibility for delivery of work programmes such as:
  • Assisting in the management and supervision of operational contracts.
  • Collating forestry and conservation information.
  • Maintaining GIS data.
  • Carrying out site surveys and evaluation.
  • Assisting with the creation of documents of a technical nature.
  • Plan and deliver work related to forest regulations
• Have responsibility for direct delivery of delegated aspects of programmes.
• Interact with peers in NRW to promote consistent industry and specialist subject practices.
• Shadow more senior members of staff, both within and outside your direct team, to understand the breadth of work undertaken by NRW
• 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.

1. A graduate qualification (completed within 18 months of the job advert) in an environmental and sustainability related course, such as forestry or forest management, woodland management and conservation, environmental science, environmental management, geography, or a related subject (essential).
2. Good understanding of working in land and forestry management disciplines, including sustainable forest management.
3. Good written and verbal skills and the ability to communicate confidently, with excellent customer service skills.
4. Good inter-personal skills with the ability to work under pressure using your own initiative in order to meet tight deadlines.
5. Strong ICT skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint.
6. Full UK driving licence (essential)

Welsh Language level requirements 

• Essential: Level A1 – Entry level 

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.