Senior Site Manager - RSPB : Job Details

We are looking for an organised, dynamic, and passionate person to lead the team and work programme delivery on this large and exciting upland partnership reserve.

Senior Site Manager - RSPB HaweswaterReference: FEB20249912Location: Haweswater, Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2RPSalary: £41,593.00 - £44,651.00 Per AnnumHours: Full-Time, 37.5 hours per weekContract: PermanentBenefits: Pension Scheme, Life Assurance Scheme, 26 days' Annual Leave

Wild Haweswater is a collaborative partnership between RSPB and United Utilities at the heart of the English Lake District. This is an exciting and varied role that presents a fantastic opportunity to make a real difference for nature, at scale! Haweswater is one of the RSPB’s most significant flagship upland reserves, and this role will see the successful candidate drive forward our joint landscape scale conservation delivery and working to re-enable natural processes on this extensive site.

To make a success of this opportunity, you will be a capable manager with the ability to work well with a broad range of contacts, both within the RSPB and United Utilities and beyond. You will be able to apply your strong programme and people management skills in a pragmatic and focused way to enable the reserve team to deliver the best possible outcomes for water quality, priority habitats and species.

What's the role about?

This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in driving and overseeing a significant and complex work programme across Haweswater with a wider landscape impact.

The reserve sits in the Eastern Fells in Cumbria within the Lake District National Park. It hosts important populations of many species, such as rare alpine plants, a suite of woodland birds like Pied Flycatcher and Wood Warbler, Mountain Ringlet and Marsh Fritillary butterflies, Ring Ouzel and Red Squirrels. The reserve has extensive areas of mountain and montane habitats, Atlantic oak woodland and flower rich hay meadows. We have undertaken a significant programme of high-profile habitat restoration works to date, including peatland restoration, upland woodland creation and river restoration. Our in-house farm team manages the site with extensive cattle grazing utilising NoFence technology, to deliver our ecological land management. The reserve sits at the heart of Cumbria Connect, a landscape scale restoration project with us featuring as a core site alongside our neighbours and partners at Lowther Estate. The role will see you working closely alongside our wider conservation team and partners alike.

Haweswater has long been an important site for demonstrating innovative techniques for habitat restoration, sustainable agriculture and upland management and remains one of our most important demonstration sites where we spend a significant amount of time hosting visits to the reserve.

Management on the reserve is often multi-layered and complex, so good project management skills twinned with forward thinking, and a keen willingness to solve practical problems will be required.

The successful candidate will have an important external role, building positive relationships with key partners and stakeholders, so that partnerships policies and messages are understood and furthered within relevant partnerships, communities, the media and to a range of stakeholders and decision makers.

Key elements of reserve management include managing the team, budgeting/financial management, H&S, compliance, project management, management planning, reporting and public relations.

Essential skills, knowledge and experience:

• Effective project and budget management skills
• Ability to prioritise work programmes
• Strong team management experience
• Experience of managing large nature reserves, sites or land management operations
• Knowledge of the wildlife and habitats of the area
• Knowledge of upland livestock management systems
• Ability to work effectively as a team or partnership member
• Excellent communication skills (verbal, written and presentational) -including an ability to speak in public to a variety of audiences to share best practice and advocate positions to landowners and managers, local politicians, members and volunteers who have differing views.

Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• Experience of working to survey, protect and/or manage important sites, species, or habitats, especially in the uplands
• Knowledge of upland land management, especially in relation to upland farming and grazing, woodland creation and rewilding
• Understanding of the importance of a range of management interventions including predator control and professional deer management

Closing date: 23:59, Sunday, 21st April 2024We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from 2nd May 2024, at RSPB Haweswater reserve.

Interested?

If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application.

We are committed to developing an inclusive and diverse RSPB, in which everyone feels supported, valued, and able to be their full selves. To achieve our vision of creating a world richer in nature, we need more people, and more diverse people, on nature’s side. People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application. Contact us to discuss any additional support you may need to complete your application.

The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Please note that this position does not qualify for sponsorship. The chosen candidate must be able to present a valid right-to-work document.

No agencies please.