Nature Project Manager

Caerlaverock Estate, on behalf of the Caerlaverock Cluster, is excited to offer the role of Nature Project Manager for the delivery phase of a large-scale biodiversity project.

Location Caerlaverock Estate, Southwest Scotland.
Contract Fixed term (2 years)
Hours Full-time (flexible working arrangements possible)
Salary Competitive, based on experience
Closing Date Friday 1 May 2026

What’s the role?

Caerlaverock Estate has a longstanding history of conservation and environmental stewardship. Having recently completed its own nature restoration project (which involved the creation of ponds, wildlife corridors and meadows in a low-lying area of the Estate, adjacent to the saltmarsh) the Estate is now working with its tenant farmers and neighbouring landholders (together, the Caerlaverock Cluster) on a landscape scale nature-based restoration project to deliver environmental and community benefit to the wider Caerlaverock area.

The Caerlaverock Cluster has spent the last 12 months in Development Phase, funded through the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund (administered by NatureScot), designing and planning this exciting new project. The Cluster has now secured a mix of private and public delivery phase funding to begin delivering the project. An experienced Project Manager is now required to lead the Cluster’s delivery phase activity.

The Project Manager will work closely with Caerlaverock Estate, its tenant farmers, neighbouring land holders, and the local community to ensure the successful delivery of what will be a truly transformational and landscape changing project, spanning an area of circa 20km2, designed to enhance the area’s biodiversity and resilience to climate change.

The successful candidate will play a key role in shaping an innovative nature-based restoration project that balances environmental benefits with sustainable land management, commercial enterprises and local interests.

This is a unique opportunity to be involved in an innovative, forward-thinking project which seeks to redefine how nature-based projects are designed and managed in the wider context of rural life.

What’s the project?

Through this delivery phase, the aim is to physically deliver on the plans created by the Caerlaverock Cluster, to create a large scale, connected biodiversity landscape, which include:

• further restoration and creation of habitat through the formation of ponds, wildlife corridors, and meadows. Carrying on the theme of responding to coastal squeeze but also expanding this work further inland.
• the improvement of water flow and water quality to meet the needs of nature, food production and the community, and the restoration of habitats adjacent to these freshwater courses.
• controlling invasive, non-native species that could be detrimental to the delivery of the above points and to the community more generally.

The project is a unique example of landowners and tenants coming together as one rural community to support the interests of nature and the environment in a way that still enables them to run successful and sustainable agricultural and land-based businesses. The farmers within the Cluster plan to do much of the work to deliver the project activities themselves, and the role of the Nature Project Manager will therefore be to facilitate and manage this collective input.

Responsibilities

The Project Manager’s responsibilities will include:

• Preparing a detailed process and timeframe for all delivery phase activities.
• Liaising with Caerlaverock Cluster members to create detailed action plans, on a holding-by-holding bases, for the completion of the planned works. Taking into account the desire for the Cluster farmers to carry out as much of the work as possible themselves and giving thought to efficiencies that can be gained in buying materials etc in bulk.
• Advertising the delivery phase project and conducting community engagement activities.
• Liaising with relevant wildlife or environmental groups and organisations (including relevant species-specific organisations) to seek input and advice, as the delivery phase progresses.
• Managing several sourced of funding and working within the project budgets. Identify and liaise with other potential funders re support for, as yet, uncommitted aspects of the Cluster’s plans.
• Updating project maps (using GIS mapping software or equiv.) to record the delivery activity.
• Contributing to monthly progress reports and preparing and presenting a project completion report to document all of the above.

The person

Essential

• An open and questioning mind.
• A keenness to learn.
• Proven experience in project management of delivery phase projects.
• Practical experience in areas such as ground excavation, fencing and tree planting.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Skills in using mapping software.
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to work collaboratively across different interest groups.
• Strong problem-solving ability.
• Experience in managing contractors on site and in managing related regulatory and compliance requirements.
• Self-motivated and able to manage own workload to deliver outcomes on time.
• Full UK Driving Licence.

Desirable

• Experience in managing nature or environmental based projects, particularly in land use, nature restoration, conservation, or sustainable agriculture.
• Knowledge of funding mechanisms for environmental and rural projects.
• Familiarity with Scottish rural and land management policy.
• Experience working in or with agricultural communities.

Employment details

The Project Manager will work for and on behalf of the Caerlaverock Cluster but will be employed by Caerlaverock Estate and will report to the Caerlaverock Estate Manager.

The Project Manager will be based at Caerlaverock Estate Office primarily, but some travel within and outside of the Estate will be required as part of the role.

The contract will be of fixed duration, commencing as soon as possible after 1 May 2026 and ending 30 March 2028.

It is anticipated that this role will be a full-time role, but there is some flexibility in that. Equally, flexible working arrangements are possible.