GIS and Planning Assistant

We are Forestry England. We live and breathe forests.

Salary - £30,105 per annum

Contract type – 3 year Fixed Term appointment with possibility of extension of permanency

Hours – 37 hours per week

Vacancy closes – Monday 22nd June, 23:58

Join us. We're foresters, professionals and experts. We are a passionate team who love to share our enthusiasm and want to make a positive difference for you and the environment. Together, we’re using our scale and expertise to grow the nation’s forests for everyone. We’re already adapting our landscapes for tomorrow, and getting stuff done today, like creating amazing places and experiences for you to enjoy. We're providing vital homes for wildlife, making our air cleaner to breathe and producing sustainable timber.

What you’ll do...

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are increasingly valuable tools for managing the nation’s forests. The GIS and Planning Assistant is an exciting role that will support our forestry, environment and wider land management teams in the East Forest District by coordinating the collection, processing and management of accurate and insightful spatial data. You will use this data to support important decision making processes, such as forest planning and operational planning. This will involve the production of maps, reports and other analyses and visualisations of spatial data. It will also involve working with a wide range of colleagues, from ecologists to foresters, to make sure that outputs are accurate and meet the high standards of our sustainable forest management certifications. You will be an important part of the Planning Team, who provide expertise in forest planning, in close collaboration with the Environment and Forest and Land Management teams. In particular, you will work closely with, and learn from, the Forest Planner. You will assist the Forest Planner in the production and review of forest plans and the coordination of our operational planning processes.

Where you’ll work...

The role will be based in the Santon Downham office with flexibility for some optional blended working. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. The District consists of myriad of habitats from the largest productive coniferous forest, mixed broadleaved woodlands, heathland, chalk and acid grasslands, to streams in diverse landscapes in south-east of England from North Norfolk to East Sussex. We are in the forefront of the climate change pressures, but also of the pro-active planning to ensure that the forests thrive and continue to support society in the future. We have launched Forest Resilience Plan outlining long-term changes towards lower impact silviculture systems and creating more diverse, healthy and connected habitats. We are accelerating our efforts in restoring Ancient Woodlands and trialling new tree species best suited for future climate. The duties of this post require the applicant to sometimes travel to remote locations that are not accessible by public transport. You will therefore need to hold a full and current driving licence that enables you to drive in the UK. We are willing to consider any proposals put forward by applicants that would allow them to do the job by other means.

Benefits...

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. 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 off such as bank holidays. STaR is our employee benefits scheme offering discounts on everyday supermarket shopping, as well as other things such as hotel stays clothes, mobile phones, other electrical items, medical and car insurance, holidays, gym discounts, household bills, Headspace wellbeing app. Free parking at Forestry England sites and free entry to our National Arboretums at Westonbirt and Bedgebury. A commitment to lifelong learning through career development. Forestry England will support your career development in a variety of ways, including continual professional development, support for individual learning plans and sponsored membership of professional bodies. Read more about the benefits on the Forestry England website.

How to apply...

You will 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. More details about how to apply are listed on the application form. You will be assessed on experience, a technical skill and behaviour-based questions during your interview. The Behaviours being assessed at interview are – Delivering at pace, Working together, Changing and improving. Technical skills in GIS will be assessed at interview by a practical test. If candidates pass the interview but are not the leading candidate they can be placed on a reserve list. We may offer candidates on the reserve list for this role the opportunity to be considered for other roles at the same or lower pay bands. Successful candidates will undergo a criminal record check and the government baseline personnel security standard check. If you require any reasonable adjustments, please email fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk.

If you're planning to use AI to support your application, please ensure you've read our guidelines here first. Read more about our application process and working with us on the Forestry England website.

Artificial intelligence...

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Nationality requirements...

Read more about nationality requirements here.

Working for the Civil Service...

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. If you feel your application has not been treated in in line with/according to these principles and you wish to make a complaint, please email: englandhr.services@forestryengland.uk.

This role is funded by DEFRA rather than through Forestry England generated revenue, and is therefore subject to government spending reviews. While DEFRA has indicated long term support for the Biodiversity Programme and we expect funding to continue, it is possible that funding levels may change at the end of any financial year depending on DEFRA’s budget allocations. In the event of funding changes, we would prioritise retaining staff posts wherever possible. This approach is consistent for roles within publicly funded organisations. We are committed to keeping staff informed and supported through any changes.