Evidence Advisor, Data Analysis and Statistics - 31273

The Environment Agency are fully committed to having an inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve. We don’t just talk about diversity; we seek it, embrace it and live it, for the benefit of our staff, our communities and our environment.

Are you passionate about using data to make real-world impact and ready to take on the challenge of making sense of complex environmental data to tell compelling stories about our water environment? Join the Environment Agency’s Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) Programme as an Evidence Advisor focusing on the design and analysis of data from our new water monitoring networks covering rivers, small streams, groundwater, lakes and estuaries and coasts. The EA’s NCEA programme is part of the wider Defra-led NCEA, a multi-agency programme gathering broad scale comprehensive data on our ecosystems to reveal their benefits for people and the economy, i.e. their natural capital. Your analyses in this role will provide evidence and insight that will ensure policy and decision makers consider the true value of nature, helping the UK meet its environmental, net zero, and biodiversity targets.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide statistical input into network design/implementation, offering expertise in either hydrogeology, freshwater ecology, or estuarine and coastal environments
• Collaborate with network designers to evaluate and assure that networks are unbiased and representative
• Apply robust analysis techniques to evaluate network performance, assess statistical power, and support interpretation of environmental monitoring data
• Develop reproducible analytical pipelines
• Conduct exploratory data analyses to identify key environmental relationships, drawing on your domain knowledge, and using systems mapping where appropriate
• Integrate alternative datasets to support regional and trend analysis reporting
• Contribute to developing metrics, indicators and advising on future reporting requirements

The team

You will join the Data Analysis and Statistics work package of the NCEA programme, and be supported by the Strategic Evidence Design and Assessment (SEDA) team, which ensures the best environmental evidence is at the heart of decision making. Working in a dispersed way, expect a friendly welcome and engaging work environment. We have a strong team dynamic, believe in staff development and embrace diversity. You will be given all the training and support needed.

Experience/skills Required

Background & Knowledge:

• Degree or higher qualification in a relevant discipline, e.g., environmental science, hydrogeology, freshwater ecology, incorporating data analysis and statistics training
• Background in or good understanding of freshwater, coastal and estuarine, or groundwater management and monitoring.
• Experience analysing data and undertaking statistical modelling of environmental or ecological data, including a strong understanding of the complexities, dependencies, interactions and biases within such data.
• Familiarity with current/emerging environmental data science practices
• Experience of statistical model fitting and robustness testing advantageous

Key Skills:

• Self-motivated with the ability to work independently
• Strong written and oral communication skills
• Ability to code in R
• Detail-oriented with a passion for data analysis and problem-solving
• Ability to engage and collaborate with internal and external stakeholders
• Strong organisational skills, managing workloads, deadlines, and priorities effectively
• Strong interpersonal skills to build trust and gain buy-in

This is a national role, with remote working. You are expected to travel for face-to-face team meetings, usually held quarterly in Birmingham or Bristol (frequency/location are flexible). Everyone that joins us is required to undertake training and participate in incident response duties when the need to respond arises. Having an incident role is an essential part of working for the Environment Agency and an active way to support communities and prevent harm to the environment.

We are fully committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve. We welcome flexible working patterns for all our vacancies, including job share, so please include clearly any information regarding your preferred working arrangements on your application. We also have a Guaranteed Interview Policy to support those with a disability who are seeking employment. We have committed to guaranteeing an interview to anyone with a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.