6528 - Freshwater Senior Officer

Key Tasks/Principal Accountabilities

• Provide oversight and direction of the team’s engagement and input into Strategic Water Planning. Taking an ecosystem and hydro-ecological process approach to identify and secure opportunities to address the challenges affecting our water environment e.g. climate change, drought, flooding, abstraction, pollution

• Provide technical advice and leadership for the team on hydrological issues to build resilient ecosystems

• Seek effective solutions to long standing freshwater issues working with others to implement them, using innovative and novel approaches where appropriate

• Commission and / or deliver work to build our evidence base to support nature recovery

• Work with colleagues from across the organisation, both local and national, and lead on technical input into major water projects and / or casework including Discretionary Advice Services
• Strategic engagement and relationship management of key partners (such as the Environment Agency, Water Companies, Local Planning Authorities, stakeholder groups and organisations) to maximize joined up and effective delivery of opportunities
• Build and lead effective networks to facilitate and influence thinking in this area, building resilience and sharing information across the freshwater team, Thames Solent Area Team and neighbouring Area Teams

• Provide risk oversight and act as the escalation point for freshwater related high-risk casework in the area team in accordance with NE’s schemes of delegation

• Work with all our work areas (eg. protected sites, integrated farm advice, sustainable development and marine) and support our Officers to deliver water outcomes across all our work to ultimately deliver nature recovery at scale
• Provide technical input where possible / relevant into Protected Sites Strategies in the Area
• Provide mentoring and training to grow the capability and capacity of our teams to provide technical water advice, and create resilience in this work area

Knowledge, Skills & Experience

• Familiarity and experience of Strategic Water Planning, or similar strategic approaches, e.g. Water Company Plans and Price Review, RAPID, River Basin Management Plans, Diffuse Water Pollution Plans, Water Level Management Plans, Local Plans, Water cycle studies. (essential)
• Understanding of the challenges affecting our water environment e.g. climate change, drought, flooding, abstraction, pollution, management. (essential)
• Understand how freshwater dependent ecosystems function, recognising and advising on impacts which could affect the resilience of an ecosystem (including ecological networks) (essential). This could include:
  • Knowledge of freshwater and/or wetland ecology and systems such as open waters, rivers, estuaries, fens, reedbeds or grazing marshes
  • Knowledge of water supply, quality or resource protection issues
• Understand the use of Habitats Regulations and give appropriate consent, assent and advice (essential)
• Identify and apply relevant environmental, water and/or planning legislation, policies and processes to deliver effective and proportionate evidence-based solutions and advice (essential)
• Understand the environmental value of designated sites, utilising evidence on site condition and explain that to partners, stakeholders and customers. (essential)
• Knowledge of water quality, hydrology and hydrogeology (desirable)
• Ability to use available evidence and make decisions (essential)
• Ability to oversee complex technical cases/issues in the team (essential)

 Benefits

At Natural England, we support a healthy work-life balance by offering full-time, part-time, and flexible working arrangements. 

We provide excellent opportunities for career progression, training, and development tailored to your role. This includes ten days annually for personal learning and development, plus three additional days for volunteering. 

You’ll receive a generous leave allowance of 33 days per year (pro rata), access to the Civil Service Pension scheme with a 28.97% employer contribution, and a range of benefits such as shopping discounts and a cycle-to-work scheme. Staff can also join the Civil Service Sport club for discounts on sports, leisure activities, and social events. 

We are committed to fairness, equality, and inclusivity. Our employee-led diversity networks help foster a welcoming environment where everyone feels valued and supported. 

 Locations

Natural England has adopted 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. Staff are expected to attend their associated office for 20% of their contractual hours. 
 
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.  

View a map of our office locations here: online map of 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. We now provide primary interview questions in advance for all formal recruitments. 

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 Action. 

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. 

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 competencies as set out in the Job Description. 

As with all roles in NE, these roles require office attendance of a minimum of 20% of the working time – one day per week for those who work full time, subject to any reasonable adjustments and/or existing contractual homeworking.

Join us in shaping a future where nature and people thrive. Whether you're drawn to hands-on conservation or playing a vital part behind the scenes, your work at Natural England will support lasting benefits for the environment and society. 

Our Role

Natural England is the Government’s adviser for the natural environment and the Nature regulator with a wide range of statutory duties and powers. We provide the evidence, expertise and advice to recover Nature and shape better places for people to live. We do this working through and with others. 

Strategic Outcomes for Nature

Our strategy is framed through four strategic outcomes. Each of these outcomes reinforces and amplifies the others, and together they address environmental, social and economic actions critical to thriving nature. 

• Recovering Nature– Increased scale and quality of places where nature thrives. 
• Building Better Places– Greener homes and infrastructure create healthier, more investable places, recognising we live better where nature thrives around us. 
• Improving Health and Wellbeing– Build nature into everyday life so people can support, access and benefit from nature, wherever they live. 
• Delivering Security through Nature– Nature helps us adapt to the threats of a changing climate and improves our national security, supporting more resilient food production, healthy soils, clean and plentiful water and clean air. 

Find out more about the work of Natural England at: 

Natural England’s Strategy: Recovering Nature for Growth, Health and Security - GOV.UK

The Role

The role involves using your ecological and regulatory knowledge and a problem-solving approach to provide leadership and coordinating the delivery across the breath of work related to the freshwater environment within the team. The post holder will work closely with other senior and principal officers, locally and nationally including the Strategic solutions staff, to contribute to the wider strategic water programme in Natural England and the Area Team Nature Recovery ambitions.

You will support colleagues across the Area Team, providing technical advice and support, leadership and effective networks to support this. This role will also collaborate with staff in neighbouring Area Teams to encourage wider nature recovery and bring resilience by improving integration of water work at regional scale.

You will work closely with partners and stakeholders providing strategic engagement and relationship management - such as with the Environment Agency, Water Companies, Local Authorities and wider water stakeholders.

As part of the leadership team, you will contribute to building capability and capacity within the team by supporting staff development and sharing knowledge gained through national networks

Working for the Thames Solent Area Team 

The Thames Solent area covers many counties; Berkshire, Buckinghamshire (including Milton Keynes), Hampshire, Isle of Wight, London, Oxfordshire and Surrey. All of which have a diverse geology and natural environment, rich in history and habitats. Features include extensive areas and mosaics of wetlands, heathlands, coastal habitats and marine sites, ancient woods and pasture, chalk river catchments and estuaries. They are complemented by the rural nature of our agricultural landscapes. 

Partnerships for Nature Recovery are at the heart of everything we do. We work with a wide range of partners and stakeholders, including Water Companies, Local Authorities, Water Resources Southeast, The Environment Agency, Wildlife Trusts, Rivers Trusts, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, major landowners, farmers and our local communities. We want to help support the restoration of flourishing landscapes that are a source of rich biodiversity, pride, employment, access and enjoyment. 

Name: Laura Hughes

E-mail: laura.hughes@naturalengland.org.uk

Tel: 07825054393