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The Organisation

Do you have a passion for nature and the environment? Do you want to make a real difference and secure significant environmental gains in the present and the future? Do you enjoy working in a team? Can you see yourself advising communities and customers to maximise gains for the Natural Environment?

If this appeals to you, a career at Natural England offers rewarding opportunities to secure environmental improvements and play your part in creating a better future for people and nature.

The priority work Natural England is delivering includes:

• Establishing a Nature Recovery Network to help wildlife thrive
• Monitoring environmental changes to identify and help reduce the effects of climate change
• Working with farmers and landowners to develop greener food production methods
• Advising on plans for new developments to maximise gains for nature, and
• Providing ways for people to better connect with nature, including green social prescribing.

We are the Government’s Adviser for the natural environment, playing a vital role in delivering the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan, an ambitious vision which brings new opportunities to protect and enhance and to achieve real outcomes for the environment.

Find out more about the work of Natural England at www.gov.uk/government/organisations/natural-england

Job description

Job Summary

An exciting opportunity to join an expanding work area as a Chargeable Services Senior Adviser in Natural England’s Wildlife Licensing Service, enabling better collaboration and engagement with our partners to aid Nature’s Recovery and put people at the heart of the environment.

The Team:

The Natural England Wildlife Licensing Service (NEWLS) is a national team responsible for the issuing of protected species licences under our main purposes of species management, European protected species mitigation, science and conservation, and other strands of activity.

The team has undergone a significant period of team forming and changes to the way we undertake our work to enable us to deliver key ambitions under Natural England’s (NE) Action Plan. This will help us provide a quality service to our customers and unlock our ability to deliver substantial outcomes for the species which we protect through licensing.

Working closely with our colleagues in National Delivery, Area Teams, and the Sustainable Development Programme, we have an ambitious programme of activity under our Licensing Review which will deliver outputs over the next five years and significantly improve how we undertake our wildlife licensing role.

NEWLS is a large team with more than 190 people. We comprise of:

• Central Delivery Team which is our point of entry for 15,000 items of casework a year
• Five Delivery Teams who each have key links into their geographical area
• Species Team made up of expert staff
• District Level Licensing Team
• Reform Team in relation to data management and continuous improvement
• Learning and Development Team

Over the next 5 years, working in partnership with our colleagues across NEWLS, Complex Case Unit (CCU) and the Sustainable Development Programme, we aim to deliver change in the accessibility and efficiency of the licensing system through chargeable services. This is part of an ambitious vision for our licensing team, securing good outcomes for people, for nature and its recovery.

The Role:

These roles sit within our Species Team and involve being at the forefront of improving outcomes for our customers and the environment through developing our chargeable services offer. Our chargeable services are NE’s Discretionary Advice Service (DAS) and NEWLS’s Pre-Submission Screening Service (PSS). Through these services we collaborate with partners to ensure beneficial outcomes for people and for nature from the outset.

This role provides the opportunity to lead and support the delivery of our chargeable services casework through the following activities:

• Strategic thinking on how casework outcomes can be improved through engagement in our chargeable services
• Implement and expand on a programme of external educational workshops across the ecology sector
• Develop and implement bespoke yearly plans focussing on opportunities for growth for chargeable services to improve outcomes for NEWLS, wildlife, and our customers
• Build capacity and capability across the team in delivering chargeable services
• Manage own budget and generate income to agreed targets
• Lead on multiple Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) assessments for a variety of species
• Work in conjunction with NEWLS’s Senior Adviser network to coordinate DAS and PSS delivery and quality control
• Ensure consistency in the delivery of wildlife licences in line with current legislation, seeking innovative approaches where appropriate
• Be a role model for Natural England’s ways of working and lead by example in complying with Natural England’s procedures
• Proactively encourage an inclusive atmosphere in the team and provide an open forum to team members to share suggestions, innovations, and improvements to the ways of working

Benefits

Wherever possible Natural England accommodates requests for both full-time and part-time hours and other flexible working patterns to help employees achieve a good work/life balance and maintain their health and wellbeing.

Natural England provides excellent opportunities for career progression, training and development tailored to your role. From induction to ongoing learning and development, everyone in Natural England is supported to develop their skills and capabilities. Everyone has 10 days to devote to personal learning and development, as well as an additional 3 days to volunteer.

You will have access to Civil Service Pension and benefits arrangements and generous leave allowances (33 day per year pro rata), as well as flexible working, to help you achieve a work-life balance that works for you and us.

You will have access to a range of benefits including discounts on shopping vouchers, cycle to work scheme, and childcare vouchers. You can also join the Civil Service Sport club which offer discounts on a range of sports and leisure opportunities as well as social events.

Natural England is a fantastic place to work, where difference is celebrated.

We’re committed to fairness and equality for all, so you feel valued for who you are and what you do. Our shared values help us work together to benefit the communities we serve. Our thriving employee-led diversity networks support our inclusive culture and contribute to our Diversity Action Plan.

Locations

Natural England is adopting hybrid working – which means our staff work from a flexible range of locations, encompassing home, offices (ours and our partners) and relevant sites. All new staff will be formally linked to one of our 25 offices across England and the expectation is that all new staff will be able to access their local office to be part of the community of staff in their geographical area. Full time staff are expected to attend their associated office for a minimum of one day a week.

Staff members are required to carry out all their duties working in this way and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time. Travel expenses will be paid if work related travel is required but does not apply to travel between home and your associated office.

National team roles can be linked with any Natural England office while Area Team roles will be linked with an office in the relevant geographic area.

NEWLS is a national team and therefore these roles can be associated with any Natural England office.

View a map of our office locations here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/natural-england-office-locations

Pay

It is Natural England policy to employ at the entry point of the salary range.

How to Apply

We welcome and encourage applications from all communities. Natural England is accredited to the Disability Confident Scheme, which denotes organisations which have a positive attitude towards disabled people. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum requirements for the role at the shortlisting stage are guaranteed an invitation to interview.

If you require a reasonable adjustment at interview, or there is anything else you would like the panel to take into consideration, you should notify us of this at application stage where possible, or well in advance of your interview.

This vacancy uses competency-based assessment. We'll assess you against the competencies below during the selection process:

• Technical Skills and Knowledge
• Personal Effectiveness
• Work Delivery
• Putting People at the Heart of the Environment

When completing the application form you should present relevant examples using the STAR format. Give us an example of how you have demonstrated the competency (which can be work related or from another area of your life) and tell us about the Situation, the specific Task you had to undertake, the specific Actions you took, and the Result (both immediate and in a wider context) of your doing so.

Please note that STAR format is not required when answering the Technical Skills & Knowledge competency.

Examples should be given in no more than 250 words for each competency.

Next Steps

If we receive a significant number of applications, we reserve the right to evaluate applications on the first two competencies of Technical Skills and Knowledge, and Work Delivery only.

If you are successful at the shortlisting stage, you will be invited to attend an interview via MS Teams or a suitable alternative, where you will be asked to give examples for all four competencies as set out in the Job Description.

Successful candidates will be allocated roles in merit order based on scores achieved at interview.

Competencies

Competence 1

Professional competency

Detail

Technical Skills and Knowledge
(STAR format is not required for this competency but please give evidence of your skills
and knowledge)

Description

• Knowledge of the Wildlife & Countryside Act and the Habitats Regulations as well as Natural England's wildlife licensing duties (Essential)
  
  • Knowledge of other legislation such as Protection of Badgers Act and the Mammals Act is desirable.
  • Knowledge and experience of writing or assessing Species Management and European Protected Species wildlife licence applications (Essential)
  • Experience of working and engaging with key stakeholders, non-government organisations (NGOs), and other key partners (Essential)
  • An understanding of the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) process (Desirable)

Competence 2

Professional competency

Detail

Work Delivery

Description

• Manage and deliver your work to meet agreed targets and deadlines. (Expert)
  
  • Consider the financial implications of your work and seek income from products and services. (Practitioner)

Competence 3

Professional competency

Detail

Personal Effectiveness

Description

• Make and explain objective decisions which combine your professional judgement and evidence. (Expert)
  
  • Act with integrity, addressing challenging issues and managing conflict through being open and objective. (Practitioner)

Competence 4

Professional competency

Detail

Putting People at the Heart of the Environment

Description

• Listen to and understand our diverse partners and customers so that you achieve the best outcomes for them and your organisation. (Practitioner)
  
  • Nurture trusting partnerships and collaborate to achieve pragmatic outcomes that help deliver your organisation's vision, mission and aims. (Practitioner)

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Job contact :

Name :
Tasha Kaur
Email :
[email protected]

Recruitment team

Email :
[email protected]