Assistant Species Recovery Officer – Wildcat
Job Reference: forestryengland/TP/2891/634
Number of Positions: 1
Contract Type: Fixed Term Appointment
Working Hours: 37
Location: Bellingham Office, North District (based in Northumberland from our office in Bellingham or Kielder; will work across Kielder)
Closing Date: 25/06/2026
Job Category: Land Management
Region: North
Business Unit: North
Job Introduction
We are Forestry England. We live and breathe forests.
Job title: Assistant Species Recovery Officer – Wildcat
Salary: £30,105
Contract type: 3-year Fixed Term Appointment, with the possibility of extension or permanency
Vacancy closes: Thursday 25th 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…
You will assist with the development, feasibility and, if appropriate, delivery, of species recovery focused on European wildcat; whilst supporting ongoing species recovery efforts such as golden eagle and water vole.
Your main duties will be to help plan and undertake necessary ecological surveys to inform decision-making, including coordinating volunteers and contractors, as well as supporting the Species Recovery Officer with information dissemination via engagement events.
You will be based in Northumberland from our office in Bellingham or Kielder. The Assistant Species Recovery Officer will work across Kielder.
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.
- Safety 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.
Application & Assessment
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.
You will be assessed on a technical skill and strength based questions during your interview.
If you're planning to use AI to support your application, please ensure you've read our guidelines here first.
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.
In the event of a high number of applications, a pre-sift may be carried out.
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 line with or according to these principles and you wish to make a complaint, please contact the Civil Service.
