Outreach Adviser - South Yorkshire Woodland Trust

The Woodland Trust is looking for an Outreach Advisor - South Yorkshire. This Heritage Funded project role will engage with landowners of Ancient and Long-Established Woodland within the South Yorkshire Combined Authority area, assess their woodlands using WT methodologies, provide advice, seek commitment through woodland management plans and then facilitate active restoration.

The Role:

• Lead the delivery of woodland restoration projects, ensuring agreed outcomes are achieved on time, within budget and in line with funder requirements.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with a wide range of landowners, partners and stakeholders, from private woodland owners and large estates to local authorities and environmental organisations.
• Undertake site assessments and provide expert advice and recommendations to support the restoration, protection and sustainable management of ancient woodland.
• Support landowners to develop and implement practical woodland management solutions that balance conservation objectives with their long-term management goals.
• Manage external consultants and specialist contractors, ensuring high-quality, cost-effective delivery of management plans, surveys and technical outputs.
• Identify and secure opportunities for woodland restoration funding, providing guidance to landowners and working with partners to maximise project delivery.
• Maintain accurate project, financial and spatial records, managing budgets, reporting requirements and Woodland Trust systems to support effective project management and performance monitoring.
• Work collaboratively across teams and with external partners to share expertise, promote innovation and best practice, and increase the impact of woodland restoration initiatives.
• This is a homebased role, requiring regular travel to locations within the South Yorkshire landscape and wider Yorkshire, sometimes to remote locations. You would be expected to live within reasonable travelling distance of your area of responsibility. Occasional travel to regional offices and overnight stays will be required.
• This is a fixed term contract for 18 months.
• A company vehicle will be provided for this role. Please note that our Company Vehicle Policy is under review as part of our Job Families and Contract Review project, so eligibility criteria may change.

The Candidate:

• Experience of engaging with and advising a wide range of landowners and stakeholders, including local authorities, environmental organisations, farmers and other land managers, on woodland management and conservation.
• Strong knowledge of ancient woodland restoration and management, including assessing woodland features, condition, threats and opportunities, and applying practical restoration approaches.
• Experience of using recognised woodland assessment methodologies and preparing or advising on UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) compliant Woodland Management Plans.
• Experience of managing consultants, contractors or specialist providers to deliver surveys, management plans, restoration programmes or capital works to a high standard.
• Good understanding of the funding, grants, regulations and policy requirements associated with ancient woodland restoration and sustainable woodland management.
• Proven project and budget management skills, with the ability to plan, prioritise and manage competing workloads to deliver outcomes on time and within budget.
• Ability to work independently across a large geographical area while building effective relationships and collaborating with colleagues, partners and stakeholders on landscape-scale projects, supported by GIS capability.
• Qualified to degree or HND level in forestry or an associated discipline (or equivalent relevant experience), with chartered status or a willingness to work towards chartership, and a full UK driving licence with the ability to travel, including occasional overnight stays.

Benefits and Wellbeing:
Joining our team means you’ll be part of our fight for a greener, healthier planet for people and wildlife. We take good care of our staff, offering support and training opportunities. We also offer:

• Enhanced Employer Pension
• Life Assurance
• Flexible and hybrid working options (7am - 7pm)
• Generous annual leave - 25 Days plus Bank Holidays (pro rata for part-time)
• Buy and sell holiday scheme
• Enhanced parental pay
• Employee assistance programme

To support inclusivity and remove barriers for candidates, we publish all salaries upfront and proudly follow the We Show the Salary pledge. The salary listed is the set salary for this role, and we don’t ask applicants to state their current pay or expectations. If you choose to apply, we’ll take that as confirmation that the advertised salary meets your expectations.

About Us:
The Woodland Trust is the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity. We want to see a world where woods and trees thrive for people and nature. The Trust engages and inspires people to make a difference by protecting, restoring and creating woodland and getting more trees in the ground.

Our commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:
To achieve our mission, we need to better reflect society and the communities we work in. People of colour and disabled people are currently under-represented across the environment and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we particularly encourage you to apply.

Application information and advice:
For fairness we keep our candidates’ personal details hidden from the hiring managers, and we do not ask for your CV at application.
Make sure that your personal statement clearly shows how your skills and knowledge link to the specifications in the job description and you share with us your passion for the role.
Completed applications will be reviewed by a hiring manager and/or a member of the recruitment team, and you will receive an update on the outcome of your application via email.

Acceptable Use - Artificial Intelligence (AI):
We understand that candidates may choose to use AI tools to support their job applications. However, we ask that any information submitted reflects your own experience, skills and understanding. During interviews, candidates are expected to respond independently without the use of AI tools.

Apply now:
If you’re ready to make a difference and grow with us, apply today. We might close advertising early if we get a lot of applications, so it’s a good idea to apply soon. If we do close the advert early, and you have an application in progress, we will email you prior to closing to give you time to complete.

Interviews will take place via teams on Wednesday 16th December. Interview questions will be provided before the interview to help you prepare.

For queries about this role, reasonable adjustments, or support with your application, please contact: recruitment@woodlandtrust.org.uk