Senedd Advocacy Officer

This is a critically important time for our natural world. The nature and climate emergency requires urgent action and environmental policy is developing at pace in Wales. Join RSPB Cymru and help us to ensure nature's voice is at the heart of decision-making in Wales in 2024. 

What’s the role about?

We are looking for a politically-savvy environmental advocate to join our Policy and Advocacy Team here in Wales during 2024. This is a temporary role to provide cover for a secondment (approximately 10 months). The Senedd Advocacy Officer will seek to ensure RSPB Cymru is at the forefront of influencing environmental policy development in Wales at a critical time for nature.

In this role you will be part of a team working at the forefront of environmental policy development in Wales. You will seek out opportunities to influence political audiences to address the nature crisis working with policy experts in advocating their priorities at the Senedd and beyond. You will engage with politicians and their staff, civil servants and broader stakeholders to ensure our work has political resonance. You will work with policy, campaigning and communications colleagues to find innovative and creative ways to build support for RSPB Cymru and its policies in Cardiff Bay by building and maintaining key relationships with political influencers.

As well as working with RSPB colleagues, this role will require you to form strong relationships with colleagues across the NGO sector, including through the various partnerships we are involved with.

What we need from you:

We are seeking a talented and knowledgeable advocate to support our advocacy work. You will be an excellent communicator with the ability to engage Members of the Senedd with detailed policies in a compelling manner in order to influence the major policy and legislative challenges for nature and the sustainable management of our countryside and seas. You will have a strong interest in and be passionate about tackling the nature and climate emergency.

You will have the ability to work in a fast-paced environment, prioritising work-streams and ensuring a strategic narrative is in place across all our advocacy.

You can form effective partnerships and create engaging and innovative ways to connect parliamentarians with the work of RSPB Cymru and the natural world.

This job may require some travel across Wales but also sometimes elsewhere in the UK. The post holder will be working within the RSPB Cymru Policy and Advocacy team. This role can be based out of our Cardiff Office or home based, but please be aware that a fair amount of travel to Cardiff (and some other sites across Wales) will be required with the role.

Essential skills, knowledge and experience:

• Demonstrable experience of advocacy and negotiation to successfully influence others
• Effective prioritisation in response to many competing demands
• Persuasive, professional and engaging written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex issues in an accessible manner to a range of audiences.
• Demonstrable experience of analysing complex issues in a fast-paced environment
• A good understanding of politics and political processes in Wales.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with a clear ability to build relationships
• Strong time management and organisational skills
• Educated to degree level or equivalent in a relevant subject or work experience providing the same level of ability
• Competent use of Microsoft Office

 Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• A working knowledge of political institutions at a UK level in relation to their impact on environment/biodiversity policy
• Understanding of environment/biodiversity policy with experience in undertaking parliamentary advocacy in a relevant field.
• Understanding of the role of communications/campaigns in supporting policy advocacy
• Proven experience of operating in a communications, policy, campaigning or advocacy in a role that has secured better decisions
• Educated to Masters level or equivalent in a relevant subject.
• Spoken and written Welsh.

This is a temporary full-time role whilst the current post holder is on secondment. We would be willing to consider part-time applications as well.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from 12th March 2024. For further information please contact laura.cropper@rspb.org.uk

The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs at the end of the contract term.

As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above.

We are committed to developing an inclusive and diverse RSPB, in which everyone feels supported, valued, and able to be their full selves. To achieve our vision of creating a world richer in nature, we need more people, and more diverse people, on nature’s side. People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application. Contact us to discuss any additional support you may need to complete your application.

The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

The RSPB is a licenced sponsor. This role is eligible for UK Visa Sponsorship.