Lead Nature Recovery Officer

An exceptional opportunity to join West Oxfordshire District Council as Lead Nature Recovery Officer. You will lead on biodiversity-focused land management and enhancement projects providing high quality and robust ecological advice to facilitate Nature Recovery and enhancement across the district and on Council owned land, and thereby delivering on the Council’s climate change and nature priorities.

This permanent role offers the flexibility of working within the offices at Witney and agile working, allowing you that extra freedom and work life balance.

Our environmental service is fundamental to the success of the Council’s ambition for a sustainable future.. From high BNG requirements in the Salt Cross Garden Village to funding local Nature Recovery demonstrators, improving community access at Deer Park South and modifying Ubico’s maintenance regimes to encourage rewilding, our focus is to enable communities in West Oxfordshire to thrive, creating sustainable places for people to live, work, learn and enjoy.

We want our future generations to blossom too and are serious about tackling the climate and environmental emergencies. Now is a fantastic time to be joining us. We want to successfully deliver our Council priorities and shape our environment for the benefit of the local area and beyond.

We are seeking a highly competent Nature Recovery Lead to play a pivotal role in providing sound ecological advice. You will be a nature-conservation specialist in the Council’s climate team, spearheading biodiversity-focused land management and enhancement projects in the Council’s new Nature Recovery Plan, as well as some climate related workstreams.

You will work with a variety of different stakeholders to facilitate Nature Recovery and enhancement=through an innovative and practical solutions-based approach. You will also represent the Council in external collaborations and consultations, secure external funding for projects, report on the biodiversity budget to Central Government, and improve environmental policies to ensure positive sustainable outcomes.

Ultimately, we are looking for a proficient Nature Recovery Lead, but we would also welcome applications from candidates looking to step up in their career. We want to support you, harness your potential and for you to flourish in your role long term.

• A qualification in your area of expertise, equivalent to a degree in Biology, Zoology, Ecology or Conservation or relevant experience of five years

• Experience of working flexibly as part of a team and collaborating with colleagues and stakeholders

• Ability to remain calm and confident when dealing with challenging customers and environments 

• Ability to resolve complex issues by negotiation

• Deliver commitments and take ownership of own caseload, reshaping of plans to deliver required outcomes

For more information about this role please see the Job Description/Person Specification.

• Agile working allowing a mix of home and office working

• Flexible working arrangements (depending on the role)

• 27 days paid annual leave (pro rata if you are working part time) plus bank holidays and an extra two volunteering days off a year for you to support a charity of your choice

• Health cash plan giving you cash back on health, dental and eye care

• Pension scheme with a good employer contribution of 5% of your earnings

• Employee Assistance Programme 24/7, providing positive, preventative and supportive advice and counselling to deal with everyday events and issues

• Cycle to work scheme

• Salary sacrifice car lease scheme with huge tax and NI savings to be made on electric cars

• Access to digital financial advice (covering your pension scheme, mortgages and other finances)

• Generous sickness cover above statutory entitlements

• Additional income protection, covering 50% of your salary for potentially a further five years if you are unable to work due to sickness or injury

• Life assurance, currently four times your annual salary

• These are just a handful of the benefits that you can enjoy when you join us!

To apply for this position please click on "apply now" within this page and submit your CV and supporting statement. Please tell us about your skills, knowledge, qualifications, experience and how they meet the criteria listed above and in the job description/person specification. It’s important that we’re a good fit for each other, so let us know what’s important to you and why you want to work for Publica Group Ltd..

Your application will not be considered if you have not provided a supporting statement, in addition to your CV.

Accredited of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies - Please state this within your covering statement or in a separate email. 

Our organisation is committed to safeguarding the welfare of vulnerable adults, young people and children.  Safer recruitment practices are applied to all job vacancies

Safer recruitment practices are applied to all job vacancies. Successful candidates will be required to complete a pre-employment medical questionnaire; provide references;  proof of identity; nationality and immigration status; three years’ employment or education history (if applicable) and, in some cases, verification of criminal record.