Land Manager / Ranger

Are you experienced in land management with a passion for community and the environment?

Are you motivated to play a key role in maximising the use and benefits of Chippenham’s outdoor spaces?

Would you like a varied role combining outdoor maintenance tasks, project management and engaging with stakeholders from local environmental charities to schools? A job where no day is the same and you could be laying woodland paths in the morning, delivering a talk in the afternoon and responding to unexpected issues in between. 

CBLC is looking for a part-time, experienced Land Manager/Ranger would focus on day-to-day operational management of the land, risk management, as well as working with the CEO and Board on a land management, preservation and development strategy. 

We have over 70 acres of land in central Chippenham, maintained for community use, including: the popular Westmead Open Space, land at the Pewsham Community Centre, Baydons Meadow, Mortimores Wood and Little England Copse.

Our land requires continual management. Currently this work is undertaken by contractors and volunteers – involving a reactive approach of dealing with issues as they arise and little proactive activity, for example: post flooding works, fallen trees, path maintenance etc. Coordination of this work is currently shared between the CEO and Administrator. 

We want to do things differently.  

The creation of this new Land Manager/Ranger role marks an exciting step change in how we take forwards our use and development of our outdoor spaces to benefit local communities and the environment. You will help us to identify areas requiring the most attention and those which present us with the greatest opportunity, plan and execute projects and in doing so, make a valuable difference. 

The role will cover four key areas:

• Land planning and management, working closely with our CEO on our strategy and plans, writing project briefs and reports and monitoring expenditure. 

• Maintenance, including day-to-day management of our open spaces from grass-cutting to safety checks, responding to incidents, ensuring our lands are safe for visitors, creating woodland infrastructure and environmental surveys, planning/overseeing any major works, plus general warden duties.

• Volunteer coordination, including recruitment, training and engaging community groups in activities such as controlling invasive species.

• Community development, such as delivering talks and creating environmental projects for school groups. 

To be successful in this role you will need:

• Experience in land management, ideally in a community setting

• Good knowledge of health and safety requirements

• Ability to use tools and equipment safely

• Passion for conservation and environmental stewardship

• Good maths, English and IT literacy skills (e.g. for report writing and monitoring expenditure)

• Confident communication skills, able to engage with a wide variety of stakeholders

• Proactive, organised and able to prioritise a varied workload. 

• Physical fitness and happy to work outdoors in all weathers!

A full job description and person specification is available on our website.

If you are excited about this opportunity and feel you have the right skills and experience, we would love to hear from you. Please submit your CV and covering letter, outlining what appeals to you about the role and why you’re a strong candidate, to recruitment@krhrconsultancy.co.uk by Sunday 7th April. Interviews will take place during w/c 15th April 2024.