Communications Manager

This role leads communications and public engagement for a high-profile national programme to create and install Covid‑19 commemorative features in the nation’s forests. The features will provide spaces for reflection, remembrance and recognition of the lives lost, the impact of the pandemic, and the sacrifices made across society.

Working closely with the programme director, a multidisciplinary team and communications colleagues in Forestry England’s national team and six districts, you will manage all aspects of communications for creating and installing the features in forests. This will include media relations, stakeholder and community engagement. The role requires strong communications management, excellent content creation skills, and a commitment to inclusive and accessible communications. It also requires the ability to lead compassionate engagement with people affected by loss and trauma, ensuring their voices are heard with care, respect and dignity.

This is a fixed‑term role aligned to the lifespan of the programme, with a strong emphasis on legacy, accessibility and community collaboration.

The role will be based in a local Forestry England office with flexibility for blended working. We anticipate the role spending one day each fortnight in our Bristol head office. Travel across England will be required, with occasional overnight stays necessary. This role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas.

Alongside your salary, Forestry England contributes an average of 28.97% towards your pension. You will become a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension Scheme. You will receive 25 days holiday a year, raising by one day every year’s service, up to 30 days (pro‑rated for part‑time employees) plus additional days such as bank holidays. STaRis, our employee benefits scheme, offers discounts on everyday supermarket shopping, as well as other items such as hotel stays, clothes, mobile phones, other electrical items, medical and car insurance, holidays, gym discounts and a Headspace wellbeing app. Free parking at Forestry England sites and free entry to our National Arboretums at Westonbirt and Bedgebury is also provided. A commitment to lifelong learning through career development is emphasised, with support for individual learning plans and sponsored membership of professional bodies.

You will be asked to answer the following question: Set out your experience of planning, delivering and evaluating community and stakeholder engagement on a sensitive issue or project. (150 words) You will then be asked to write a 200‑word statement on your relevant experience and career history, along with a personal statement of no more than 500 words. You will be assessed on both during sifting. You will also be assessed on behaviours and strength‑based questions during your interview, and asked to do a short presentation.

We expect interviews to be held on 21st and 22nd July in person at our Bristol office. Successful candidates will undergo a criminal record check and the government baseline personnel security standard check.

If you require any reasonable adjustments, please email. If you’re planning to use AI to support your application, please ensure you’ve read our guidelines first.

Forestry England is part of the Civil Service. The Civil Service has a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS). This means candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria during the application process will be guaranteed an interview. We also offer a Redeployment Interview Scheme to current civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the role. This role is also part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans and Prison Leaver Recruitment initiative.

Within Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016, it is essential that applicants should have the ability to provide conversation in accurate spoken English. Our recruitment process makes appointments based on fair and open competition and merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.