Peatland Action Project Officer

Salary: £37,614 – £45,041 (Band D)
Location: Grantown on Spey
Job Type: 3 year fixed term contract
Hours: Full time; 35 hours per week
Closing Date: 23:59pm, Monday 26 January 2026
Interview Date: Tuesday 24 February 2026

About Us

The Cairngorms National Park is an incredible place to live and work. The UK’s largest national park is a place of sheer abundance, having more high mountain ground than anywhere else in the UK, the largest Caledonian forest, some of Scotland’s purest rivers and finest livestock rearing farmland. It is also home to 25 percent of the UK’s rare and endangered species. It is a truly unique place to work, with our dedicated and passionate nature and climate change team who are committed to achieving the best for both conservation and land management, every day. Furthermore, there is access to some of the most beautiful countryside straight from our Headquarters office door.

The Cairngorms National Park Authority is a fantastic place to work and offers great opportunities to grow your career. The Park Authority is listed in the UK’s top 100 best not- for-profit companies to work for. We’re dedicated to both this amazing place and our employees.

We now have an exciting opportunity for a Cairngorms Peatland Action Project Officer to join the CNPA, identifying suitable projects which can reduce loss of carbon or promote carbon storage, restore peatland function, improve habitats and biodiversity, and increase the rate and scale of peatland restoration.

Equalities

CNPA is an inclusive organisation and we welcome applications from everyone irrespective of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, religion and belief, pregnancy and maternity, relationship status, disability, age and social class. We particularly welcome applications from individuals from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, disabled and LGBTQ+ communities, as they are under-represented in the environment sector.

We are Disability Confident committed employer, if you are an applicant with disabilities who meets the essential requirements of the post, we will interview you. In all circumstances CNPA appoints on merit-based evidence the applicant supplies in meeting the essential criteria for the post.

The Role

As one of our Cairngorms Peatland Action Project Officers, your role will vary from simply supporting applicants applying and delivering their own projects funded by the CNPA Peatland ACTION Grant Scheme, to fully supporting projects from conception to completion.

The role may involve scoping, survey, and design of restoration projects, obtaining permissions, assessing site constraints, defining suitable restoration technique and related costs, supervising works to ensure delivery is to the required standards and ensuring that projects are CDM (Construction Design and Management Regulations 2015) compliant.

As a Project Officer you will feed into Peatland Code aspects of restoration projects as appropriate and may be asked to quality assure / inspect Peatland ACTION funded works delivered by others within the National Park.

So, if you are keen to be our Cairngorms Peatland Action Project Officer and you can display the skills and experience listed here, this is the role you’ve been waiting for.

CNPA Benefits

• 25 days annual leave, increasing to 30 days with service, plus Public Holidays
• Professional development
• Flexible working
• Cycle to work scheme
• Use of fleet vehicles
• Civil service pension scheme – some of the benefits include:
  • member contribution rates among the lowest in the public sector
  • tax relief on your contributions
  • generous employer contributions
  • a secure, inflation-proof pension for life, with no investment uncertainty
  • the option of tax-free lump sum on retirement
  • potential access to ill health and injury benefits if you become too ill to work
  • life assurance cover
  • benefits for loved ones and dependants
  • options to increase your pension
  • keeping all your pensions in one place by transferring in a pension you have built up elsewhere
  • support from our trusted charity partners

About You

To be considered as our Cairngorms Peatland Action Project Officer, you’ll need:

• Good knowledge of upland land management practices and related challenges
• Practical experience of producing plans, specifications, and costs for habitat restoration schemes, with experience of specifying peatland works
• Direct experience of peatland survey, management, and restoration techniques
• Relevant botanical knowledge of upland and mire species
• Significant experience of supervising and managing contractors
• Experience of developing and maintaining positive working relationships with land managers, agencies, organisations, contractors, and suppliers to deliver successful land management projects
• Proven ability to manage workloads, achieve targets, and deliver projects on budget and on time.
• Articulate with excellent communication, interpersonal and negotiation skills
• Highly organised and possessing good time-management skills
• Computer and IT literate, including use of GIS
• Flexible approach to working hours as evening and weekend working will be occasionally required
• Physically fit and able to walk into remote locations and navigate across challenging upland terrain in all weather
• Proven track record of meeting challenges and overcoming conflict
• Permission to work in the UK
• A full UK driving licence

How to apply

To apply, please click on the ‘Apply’ button

Please note, we do not accept Curriculum Vitae (CV).

If you require more information, or if you require any adjustments to be made to the application process due to disability please contact us on 01479 873535 or email: [email protected]

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