Ecological Advisor

Join us to play a key role in one of the country’s leading landscape recovery projects –
Wyescapes

Introduction

In 2023 Herefordshire Rural Hub, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, Herefordshire Meadows, and theWye
Valley National Landscape successfully applied for a two-year project development phase for
“Wyescapes” one of DEFRA’s landscape recovery schemes.

The project’s aim is to restore the Wye
catchment to a healthy condition, so its rivers and their tributaries can support the unique
wildlife that depends on them, provide clean and plentiful water, be resilient to climate change,
mitigate flood risk, enable sustainable farming and provide places for people to enjoy.

We need you
to join us as our Ecological Advisor, one of our key project roles needed to ensure success. 

About us

Herefordshire Wildlife Trust (HWT) is a wildlife conservation charity for everyone who cares about nature in Herefordshire. We are dedicated to protecting the unique habitats and special wildlife in Herefordshire and encouraging people to enjoy, care for and act for nature. We own and manage 60 Nature Reserves across the county and have over 7,000 members. Our 2023-26 Business Strategy aims to place nature’s recovery at the forefront of tackling the climate emergency – for wildlife itself, for the natural services it provides and for everyone’s wellbeing. Together we can make sure that future generations living in Herefordshire will be able to enjoy the sense of wonder and well-being that nature offers.

HWT is committed to creating an organisation that recognises and truly values individual differences and identities. We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone is able to be themselves and to reach their full potential.

Purpose of the job

The Wyescapes project is split into a number of different activities including the production of: a land management plan, a stakeholder engagement plan, an access plan, a monitoring plan and a business plan. Herefordshire Wildlife Trust will be co-ordinating the delivery of the land Management plan as part of the wider project and need to recruit a skilled and motivated Ecological Advisor – you could be a trained ecologist, or someone with great biodiversity knowledge and experience.

The land management plan provides the foundation for all other project deliverables and will also inform the 20 year implementation agreement between the project and DEFRA. Over 40 Landowners have signed up to this scheme spanning 4500 hectares, this package of work will require the appointed land advisor to liaise with each of the participating landowners.

The successful candidate will work with the participating farmers and landowners to identify opportunities to change current agricultural land use and create beneficial habitats along the River Wye corridor. As a part of this project on each farm you will be required to:

• Identify and map current land use, environmental features and habitats;
• Identify and map existing access into and around the land including public rights of way, common land, permissive aces etc;
• Complete baseline surveys for target species and habitats using UK Hab assessment criteria;
• Complete BNG assessments using UK habitat criteria to identify potential units available;
• Use the farm carbon calculator tool to identify carbon credits;
• Identify and map invasive non-native species;
• Liaise with the landowner/farmer to discuss opportunities for habitat creation as part of the landscape recovery project;
• Identify and map the agreed activities that would be undertaken during the 20 year implementation phase and the outcomes that will be achieved;
• Demonstrate how the recommended actions are in the right place taking into account relevant factors;
• Liaise with contractors to provide an estimate of the expected costs for completing each activity (ie wetland creation, woodland creation etc);

The successful candidate will be working with advisors from other organisations to deliver this work and will report to a dedicated project officer based at Herefordshire Wildlife Trust. They will be required to attend regular meetings with the project steering group and will need to liaise with other organisations that will be delivering associated elements of this project. They will need to have an understanding of nature recovery networks, habitat creation, local ecology, wildlife connectivity. The successful candidate will need to be competent using Landapp and ARCGIS. They will need to be able to undertake baseline habitat surveys and undertake natural capital assessments.

Other duties  

1. Undertake Health and Safety duties commensurate with the post and as detailed in the
   Trust’s Health and Safety policy; 
2. Comply with all other organisational policies and relevant legislation e.g. Equal
   Opportunities – it being the responsibility of the post holder to make themselves aware of such
   items 
3. Carry out administrative duties, manage budgets and accounts, and report regularly to the
   line manager
4. Take advantage of formal and informal opportunities for personal and professional
   development, participate in appropriate training activities in consultation with your line
   manager 
5. Cascade relevant skills and knowledge to relevant staff and volunteers 
6. Act as an ambassador for Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, constructing and maintaining
   positive relationships with volunteers, visitors and other organisations 
7. Actively encourage those you with whom you come into professional contact to become members
   of HWT (all staff are regarded as membership recruiters) 
8. Promote HWT through participation in HWT events, provision of ‘good news’ briefings for
   internal and external communications and engagement with the media 
9. Undertake any other work that might be deemed necessary by HWT commensurate with the level
   of responsibility of this post. Work with the broader HWT team on any other activities that
   match your skills and abilities as agreed with your line-manager 

Skills and abilities

It is essential that the post holder has:

• Full valid driving licence and own car, insured for business use 
• Degree level or equivalent in environmental sciences/conservation management/ecology or
  similar. Equivalent related experience will be considered as highly as academic
  qualifications. 
• In-depth knowledge of the UK Habitat Classification and assessment criteria 
• Experience using ARCGIS/QGIS and Landapp software 
• Experience in habitat surveying and habitat mapping 
• Excellent communication skills, for establishing and developing relationships with clients 
• Self-starter able to work on your own without day-to-day supervision. 
• Reliability, with good attendance and work performance. 
• Confidence to carry out lone working
• Excellent organisational/admin skills and attention to detail 
• The ability to work on your own initiative and as part of a team 
• Good attention to detail and accurate record keeping

Desirable skills:

• Experience using the Farm Carbon Toolkit calculator
• Knowledge of Herefordshire and the Wye Catchment 

Benefits

• 25 days holiday plus bank hols p.a. pro rata with incremental increase with length of service
• 5 % Employer pension contributions
• Flexible working
• Health cash plan
• EAP (Employee Assistance Programme)
• Life Assurance
• Sick Pay
• Free parking
• HWT work wear as relevant
• Training & development
• Work and live in a beautiful rural county with a relatively low cost of living