Data and GIS Officer, National Peatland Action Programme

Do you want to use your data and GIS expertise to help restore Wales’ peatlands? Join Natural Resources Wales and play a vital role in the National Peatland Action Programme (NPAP) a flagship initiative tackling climate change and biodiversity loss.

The NPAP’s mission is simple but powerful: to restore and protect peatlands, which are vital for carbon storage, biodiversity, and climate resilience. To achieve this, we rely on high-quality data and GIS products that track progress and inform decisions. As part of our team, you’ll help design and maintain these systems, working alongside passionate specialists and collaborating with partners across the UK.

As a Data and GIS Officer, you’ll ensure the data behind peatland restoration is accurate, accessible, and impactful. Your work will shape decisions that protect these unique habitats and deliver real environmental benefits.

This is your opportunity to join a forward-thinking team that values innovation, collaboration, and evidence-based action. Together, we’re shaping a healthier, more resilient environment for Wales.

If you have strong analytical skills, experience with GIS and environmental data, and want to make a tangible difference for Wales’ environment, this role is for you.

As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to an NRW office closest to your home 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 Esther Clews at [email protected]

Interviews will take place through Microsoft Teams the week commencing the 9th February 2026.

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 Peatland Data Science Team sits at the cutting edge of environmental data innovation. We combine spatial and statistical tools to plan, monitor, and report on the National Peatland Action Programme (NPAP) a Welsh Government-funded strategic project that coordinates peatland restoration across Wales.

What you will do

• Work with the delivery teams to lead on data management and support analysis, using a range of GIS software packages and other platforms to accurately capture restoration activity data and inform and influence a strategic direction for peatland restoration programmes in Wales.
• To develop and manage data sets and data structures and ensure data security through adherence to NRWs data governance and licencing arrangements, standards and protocols.
• Undertake regular imports of data provided by NPAPs delivery teams and partners and support data entry and validation through training and mentoring.
• Undertake analysis and manipulation of data (including in Power Bi formats) to support a wide range of reporting requirements.
• Validate key data sets to ensure that the quality of NRW’s data is fit for its intended use.
• To support the provision and import of equivalent data from partners in suitable formats for migration into NPAPs data structure and their subsequent management and analysis.
• Work with the equivalent national programmes in the other UK nations and other peatland data managers (including University and Research Institute based staff) to support the development of consistent approaches to recording and reporting progress in peatland restoration.
• Contribute to the development of new and innovative data methods to drive forward efficiency and improvements to NPAP’s planning, recording, and reporting.
• Undertake occasional fieldwork to support delivery teams with primary data collection.
• Work collaboratively with other NPAP teams and NRW teams to deliver cohesive and strategic action on peatlands in Wales.
• 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).
• Required to take part in incident response activities.
• 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 degree level qualification in a relevant subject area or the equivalent level of knowledge including experience of working with field collected survey data, in one or more of the following areas: terrestrial ecology, freshwater ecology, hydrology water quality, or earth sciences. Awareness of a range of peatland restoration activities and methodologies is desirable.
2. Experience of data management systems, as well as practical understanding of handling environmental data.
3. Good analytical skills and experience of data handling both desk based and field based. You will have knowledge of one or more areas of data analysis, evidence synthesis, and use of statistical and spatial analysis applications (including R and ESRI).
4. You will have good organisational, problem-solving and communication skills, with the ability to extract key information and present this in a clear and concise manner to a range of audiences and in both written and oral forms.

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.