Forest Operations Officer in Welshpool

The role involves managing Wales' woodlands, ensuring they flourish for generations to come. As a Forest Operations Officer, you will oversee forestry operations across the Welsh Government Woodland Estate, including silviculture, harvesting, thinning, restocking, and long-term forest stewardship. Your work will support strategic management plans, ensuring compliance with legal, environmental, and certification standards while promoting best practices in sustainable land management.

You will lead on contract management and collaborate closely with a knowledgeable team, developing operational plans, supporting senior officers and supervisors, and ensuring the safe, efficient, and responsible delivery of all forestry activities. Your professional insight will be key to maintaining excellence in operational performance and promoting a strong culture of health, safety, and environmental responsibility.

This role is a meaningful opportunity to contribute to Wales' environmental resilience, rural economy, and woodland legacy. If you are ready to lead with purpose and make a tangible impact on the landscapes we cherish, we would be delighted to hear from you.

About us: Our team plays a vital role in the sustainable management of the Welsh Government Woodland Estate, practising multifunctional forestry that delivers for both nature and people. We balance high-quality timber production with a commitment to protecting biodiversity, improving ecosystem resilience, and enhancing public access to some of Wales' most cherished landscapes.

As a member of the Mid North East Forest Operations team, you will work closely with Technical Support colleagues, Senior Officers, and the Team Leader to deliver well-designed, well-managed forest programmes across our area. Collaboration sits at the heart of everything we do, and you'll regularly partner with teams across forest operations, land management, engineering, and wildlife as part of the wider Mid Wales Operations network.

Your role will focus on specific forest blocks, combining thoughtful desk-based planning with hands-on site visits that connect you directly with the places we look after.

What you will do:

• Support technical advice for specific sector or technical issues.
• Implement team work plans and deliver agreed actions to contribute to business planning.
• Participate in NRW technical or represent NRW on external forums as a technical representative.
• Interact with peers in NRW to promote consistent industry and specialist subject practices.
• Have responsibility for direct delivery of delegated programmes and agreed delegated budgetary control, including all relevant compliance and adherence to procurement processes.
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post.
• Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy.
• Be committed to your own development through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
• Required to take part in incident response activities.
• Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.

Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills:

In your application and interview, you will be asked to demonstrate the following skills and experience using the STAR method:

• Experience of working across a wide range of land management disciplines.
• Knowledge of sustainable forest management, UKWAS, and forest certification schemes.
• Experience of community liaison and public engagement activities.
• Knowledge and experience of designated sites, and all aspects of forest practice, including land liabilities, forest planning, and forest operations.

Welsh Language level requirements:

Essential: Level A1 - Entry level. Please note if you do not meet the A1 requirement, NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Benefits:

• Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97%.
• 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days.
• Generous leave entitlements for all your life needs.
• Commitment to professional development.
• Health and wellbeing benefits and support.
• Weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose.

We are passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. We are committed to equal opportunities, and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we ensure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale, and annual increments are paid each year.

Unless otherwise stated, Natural Resources Wales is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this position. Although we hold a Skilled Worker visa sponsorship licence, it applies only to specific roles that meet both the eligibility criteria and salary requirements set out by the UK Government under the Skilled Worker visa route.

We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on a variety of topics, stay current in their field, and continue to learn as their career progresses.

We are a bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards. Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop, and use their Welsh language skills.