Flexa
RSPB • Titchwell Marsh

Warden - North West Norfolk Reserves

Employment type:  Contract
Salary:  £26,180 – £29,043 per annum

3–4 days/week at home

Fully flexible hours

Dog friendly

Job Description

An exceptionally rare opportunity has arisen to join the RSPB’s North West Norfolk team as a Warden until November 2023.

The reserves

Due to an internal secondment, this is a unique opportunity to be part of the team that cares for two of the RSPB’s most prestigious reserves, RSPB Titchwell Marsh and RSPB Snettisham, as well as two non-public reserves in West Norfolk.

RSPB Titchwell Marsh has been the RSPB’s showcase reserve on the North Norfolk coast since its acquisition in 1973. Situated on the beautiful North Norfolk Coast it is a dynamic and compact, yet diverse, wetland site including a beach, dunes, saltmarsh, freshwater lagoons, freshwater reedbed, and a small woodland.

The site is managed for a diverse mix of nature including breeding bittern, bearded tits, marsh harriers, avocet, ringed plovers and oystercatchers. It is also managed for passage waders, wintering wildfowl and turtle doves, as well as the plants and insects that make this coastal environment so unique.

The reserve sits within one of the best birdwatching destinations in the UK and is one of the RSPB’s most popular reserves and a key tourist attraction on the coast.

RSPB Snettisham has been the RSPB’s showcase reserve on The Wash since its acquisition in 1972. Situated on the east coast of The Wash, the reserve covers an extensive area of intertidal habitats with a smaller area of saline lagoons and vegetated shingle, offering two of the best wildlife experiences in the UK -internationally important numbers of wading birds on the highest tides throughout the year, and similarly important numbers of pink-footed geese during the late autumn/winter.

Together, the saltmarsh, saline lagoons and shingle beach are important habitats for breeding redshank, avocet, ringed plover, common tern, and gulls.

Job purpose

We are looking for someone experienced in managing wetland nature reserves, both ecologically and from a visitor perspective. You will become part of a diverse team that is continually striving for improvement. You will be organised, resilient, responsible, and trustworthy.

Excellent knowledge of coastal wetland birds and habitats and experienced in surveying and monitoring throughout the seasons is a requirement of this role.

Key result areas

  • Along with the Site Manager, responsible for the implementation of the reserves management plans including habitat management and record keeping ensuring delivery of objectives and compliance obligations for the site and RSPB
  • Undertake and co-ordinate species/habitat surveys and monitoring work on site to ensure delivery of site objectives
  • Along with the reserve team, plan, coordinate and undertake maintenance of the reserve estate (incl machinery) to ensure efficient and safe operation and use to meet the RSPB’s sites’ Health and Safety and other obligations
  • Manage volunteers as required to ensure delivery of the sites work programmes
  • Supervise contractors to carry out work on site safely and legally to deliver the management plan targets
  • Ensure the reserve is managed in accordance with best practise with respect to Health and Safety, environmental management and legal compliance of conservation and land management operations
  • Manage medium and small projects using the RSPB’s Project Management Framework to achieve site/s objectives/delivery of management plan objectives

What we need from you:

Essential skills, knowledge and experience:

  • Conservation land management, including a proven track record of reserve or land management
  • Relevant ecological knowledge of wetland habitats (reedbed, lagoon management, coastal habitats and woodland /scrub)
  • Health, safety and environmental compliance relevant to site management
  • Communication and teamworking skills
  • Estate management
  • Record keeping and data management
  • Organisational skills including time management and prioritisation
  • Problem solving
  • Full, manual Driving Licence, valid in the UK
  • Biological monitoring
  • Working with volunteers
  • Machinery operations, equipment servicing, (LANTRA or equivalent qualifications for brushcutter, chainsaw)

Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

  • Working with visitors
  • Working with contractors
  • LANTRA or equivalent qualification in herbicide use
  • IT and database (Merlin)
  • First Aid at Work certificate

Additional Information

This is a Fixed-Term Full-Time role for 37.5 hours per week.

This role will involve lone working and working in remote locations.

This role will require occasional weekend, early morning and evening working so will need someone who is able to be flexible.

The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs at the end of the contract term.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position on Tuesday, 25 October 2022. For further information please contact Hayley Roan at: hayley.roan@rspb.org.uk

As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above.

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

Before applying for this role, we recommend reading through the candidate guidance notes attached to the top of this advert.

Company benefits

Open to part-time employees
Open to compressed hours
Sabbaticals
Enhanced maternity leave
Enhanced paternity leave
Adoption leave
Shared parental leave
24 days annual leave + bank holidays
Enhanced sick pay

The FlexScore® is the result of a rigorous 2-step verification of a company’s flexibility

First we assess the flexibility options RSPB provides and then we anonymously survey a statistically significant proportion of their employees to make sure RSPB is as flexible as they say they are. Our assessment is based on the six key elements of flexibility: location, hours, autonomy, benefits, role modelling and work-life balance.

We ask the hard questions so you don’t have to.

Working at RSPB

Company employees

2400

Gender diversity (male:female)

41:59

Office locations

Across all 4 UK Countries

Hiring Countries

Liberia
United Kingdom

Awards & Achievements

Most flexible companies

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Flexa100 2024
Charity & Tech For Good

Charity & Tech For Good

Industry awards 2023
Most flexible companies

Most flexible companies

Flexa100 2023
2nd – Charity & Tech For Good

2nd – Charity & Tech For Good

Industry awards 2022