Communications Officer

We need someone with excellent writing skills and a keen eye for a story to help us promote our charitable education work. Trees and woodlands provide us with many benefits for the economy, health, wellbeing, and the environment; they have never had a more important role to play to mitigate the negative impacts of our rapidly changing climate. However, our trees and woodlands are facing multiple, serious threats including a lack of people with the skills and knowledge needed to properly care for trees, an increasing number of pests and diseases, and increasing incidences of severe weather brought about by climate change. Come and join our friendly and dedicated team and play your part to help protect trees and woodlands in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Location: Home based, hybrid working or on site (choice for the right candidate) at The Royal Forestry Society, The Hay Barns, Home Farm Drive, Upton Estate, Banbury, OX15 6HU.

Salary: Part-time, 28 hours a week; £25,400 (equivalent to £31,750 FTE)

Reporting to: RFS Development Manager, Jen Turner

About the RFS: For more than 140 years, the Royal Forestry Society (RFS) has dedicated itself to sharing knowledge on the art and science of woodland management so that the accumulated wisdom and experience of landowners, foresters, arborists, and others is transferred from one generation to another. Transparency, honesty, and equity are really important for our small team. Everyone is supported and valued for the important role they play in our charity. Authenticity is also very important to us, and we pride ourselves on forming and building meaningful, human relationships with our members and supporters. For this reason, we would always rather hear an authentic voice in the content we share, rather than something that has been written or edited using Artificial Intelligence (AI). We are flexible and accommodating in the way that we work together and home working and flexible hours could be accommodated in this post if required. The successful candidate will receive a tailored training package and will be supported in their progress and development by their line manager.

Responsibilities and Duties: As our RFS Communications Officer, you will support the Development Manager and the Digital Communications Manager to promote the work of our Charity. You will plan and write engaging content for Press Releases, magazines, blogs, and newsletters to support our regular communications and special campaigns. Your work will help to keep our members and supporters engaged with (and informed about) the charity’s activities and promote the work we do to the wider sector and members of the public.

• Communicate strong, positive, and informative messages about the value of forestry in its broadest sense, and the work of the RFS to our membership and to a broader audience.
• Research, commission, and place articles in target publications.
• Create and write (or commission) press releases, case studies, and blogs.
• Forge or strengthen contact with identified media and political/policy sources, including being a first point of contact for television and radio broadcasters.
• Write the news section for each issue of the RFS’s Quarterly Journal of Forestry (QJF) and identify appropriate contacts for possible future articles that the editors can follow up.
• Liaise with representatives from other forestry sector organisations to enable knowledge exchange and collaboration.
• Play an active role in promoting RFS events and initiatives.
• Track press coverage regarding the RFS, our staff, volunteers, and supporters.
• Represent the RFS at other external events when required.

There is considerable scope within this role to develop creative skills in marketing and develop as a leader. Knowledge of, or an interest in (and a willingness to learn about) the following areas of our work would be highly desirable:

• Advocating for good woodland management in the face of a changing climate and with increased threats from tree pests and diseases.
• Communications campaign planning, including campaign development, budgeting, and risk management.
• Marketing innovation and trends.
• Production of engaging and well-designed printed marketing materials.

Person specification:

• Meticulous attention to detail, especially in written communication (including formal and informal writing styles). This is the single most important attribute for this role.
• A real passion for trees and woodland management.
• Ability to operate at a university degree level, demonstrating advanced skills in all forms of communication, critical thinking, working in teams, and personal responsibility.
• A willingness to understand and get involved in other areas of our charity will accelerate your learning.
• Personable, outgoing, positive, and capable of developing good professional relationships with our stakeholders.
• A measured approach to managing workload and multiple time-critical projects and excellent problem-solving skills.
• Confidence using standard Microsoft software (including Word and Outlook).

• A university degree (or equivalent) in a subject relevant to the role.
• Confidence creating and posting engaging content on social media channels (particularly YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook).
• Experience of writing for different print publications.
• A full UK driving licence and willingness to travel.