Natura 2000 Sustainable Management Officer in Criccieth

The role involves being an essential part of one of NRW's Local Teams, helping to shape the sustainable management of Wales' most precious natural places. You will provide expert advice on the stewardship of Natura 2000 sites, directly supporting NRW's Biodiversity and Ecosystem Resilience strategy, Vital Nature. Your work will play a meaningful part in tackling the Nature Emergency, reversing biodiversity decline, and strengthening the resilience of our ecosystems.

With a particular focus on coastal habitats including saltmarsh, coastal heathland and cliff environments, you will guide and influence the decisions that safeguard these unique landscapes for future generations. This is a hands-on, outward-facing role where you will work closely with a wide range of partners, including NRW colleagues, the Welsh Government, landowners and local stakeholders. You will help shape and deliver management agreements, develop practical restoration projects, monitor their progress, and ensure that commitments are delivered effectively and on schedule.

Your ability to build strong relationships, communicate clearly, and provide sound ecological advice will be key to your success. This is an exciting opportunity for someone passionate about the natural world, eager to make a real difference, and motivated by the challenge of protecting Wales' most important habitats. Driving is essential to this role. You must hold a full and current UK driving licence.

As an organisation, we support flexible working. You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face-to-face meetings or training will be planned in advance. To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Huw Jones at huw.p.jones@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk. Interviews will be face to face (details of location will be shared in advance). Successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) check. Appointments are normally made within 4 to 8 weeks of the closing date.

This role is based within the North West Wales Place team and will lead on delivering a programme of coastal habitat work across North Wales. You will join a dedicated, multidisciplinary Environment Team of 12 specialists who work collaboratively to support environmental regulation and the effective management of designated sites. Together, the team plays a key role in delivering Natural Resources Wales' corporate plan outcomes, ensuring Wales' natural habitats are protected, enhanced, and sustainably managed.

In this position, you will contribute directly to safeguarding some of the nation's most valued coastal environments, helping to secure long-term environmental benefits for communities, wildlife and future generations.

What You Will Do:

• Work with NRW staff, Welsh Government and external partners to develop partnership projects that will reverse biodiversity declines.
• Identify and develop proposals for capital and grant aid funding for actions and projects in Place driven by NRW's Vital Nature Document and Area Statement priorities, consistent with Sustainable Management of Natural Resources (SMNR) principles.
• Work with Environment, Land Management Team and land owners to help deliver Management Agreements.
• Ensure that implementation and reporting of the project fully adheres to NRW policies and procedures.
• Monitor progress of work, which will include interpretation of data, contractor procurement and management, project delivery or compliance with management agreements.
• Identify and support any remedial actions to ensure outcome delivery.
• Gather evidence to check that claim submissions are appropriate.
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post.
• Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy, together with an understanding of how it operates within the responsibilities of the post.
• Be committed to your own development through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
• Required to take part in incident response activities.
• Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.

Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills:

• Experience of nature conservation, biodiversity, protected sites & landscapes in marine or terrestrial environment.
• Experience of working with landowners, managing contractors and/or other stakeholders.
• Strong and effective self-management and organisational skills.
• The ability to influence, negotiate and gain cooperation of others.
• Experience of dealing successfully with difficult people/situations is important.
• Excellent communication and inter-personal skills with a customer focus.
• Excellent at building effective working relationships with colleagues and external partners.
• Ability to write clear, concise technical reports.
• The ability to use specialised IT systems, such as GIS or NRW customised applications.
• Able to work well as part of a team.
• Hold a current full UK valid licence to drive NRW fleet vehicles.

Welsh Language level requirements:

Essential: Level C1 – Proficiency level. Welsh language levels. Please note, if you do not meet the A1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Benefits:

• Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97% (successful internal staff will remain in their current pension scheme).
• 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days.
• Generous leave entitlements for all your life needs.
• Commitment to professional development.
• Health and wellbeing benefits and support.
• Weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose.

We are passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. We are committed to equal opportunities, and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we make sure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale and annual increments are paid each year. Unless otherwise stated in the 'Role' section of this advert, Natural Resources Wales is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this position. Although we hold a Skilled Worker visa sponsorship licence, it applies only to specific roles that meet both the eligibility criteria and salary requirements set out by the UK Government under the Skilled Worker visa route. We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on a variety of topics, stay current in their field and continue to learn as their career progresses. We are a Bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards. Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills.