Join our team at Raise Cumbria

We have a new opportunity for a Woodland Creation Officer to join our team at Raise: Cumbria Community Forest.

Job Title: Woodland Creation Officer

Location: Hybrid (minimum 1 day per week in shared workspace, Carlisle)

Contract type: Fixed term contract until 31 March 2026 (extension subject to funding)

Salary: £28,963 - £33,250 (depending upon experience)

Hours: Full time, 36 hours per week

Reports to: Woodland Creation Forester

Job Overview:

Raise: Cumbria Community Forest
It takes a community to raise a forest

Launched in 2021 and covering 1385 square miles, Raise: Cumbria Community Forest hugs the western edge of the Lake District National Park and stretches from Carlisle in the north to Barrow-in-Furness in the south.

We are a growing collective of foresters, artists and academics, working with communities, landowners and regional policymakers to make a difference. Together, we plant trees and create new woodlands, meaningfully engaging with communities who face the greatest barriers to accessing nature and green spaces. Our aim? To increase economic, environmental, health and social benefits, resulting in a positive impact on both people and nature.

The Woodland Creation Officer is a new role created in response to our growing woodland creation pipelines, and the emerging opportunity to increase our services and support to landowners.  The expansion of our team is critical to increasing the impact of Raise: Cumbria Community Forest to benefit the communities of Cumbria, to create a lasting legacy.  It’s an exciting time to join our team.

The Woodland Creation Officer will increase the capacity of our expert woodland creation team to not only deliver more sites each year, but also to trial providing contract management and delivery services to landowners.  The Woodland Creation Officer will lead on the contract management of the delivery of woodland creation sites, where landowners are unable to do so themselves. 

We are a member of England’s Community Forests – collectively, the work of 15 community forests has formed the largest environmental regeneration initiative in England - and part of the Community Forest Trust, a registered charity, providing all of our team opportunities to work at both local and national levels.

The successful candidate will have proven experience in the practical delivery and contract management of works associated with woodland creation and/or maintenance and management, including planting, fencing and ground works.

The ability to work collaboratively with diverse landowners and stakeholders – including local communities - is a must, as well as the ability to work under pressure, meeting deadlines and managing multiple activities at a time.

We are of course passionate about the environment, so the postholder must be committed to the benefits of woodland creation and community engagement.

The perks:

• Competitive rates of pay

• Hybrid and flexible working

• 25 days annual leave per year, plus bank holidays

• An enhanced pension scheme

• In-house training opportunities

To apply, please submit your full CV and a covering letter detailing your relevant skills and experience to our HR Team at HR@cf-trust.org

You can download a full copy of the job description and person specification for this role by clicking the link below:

Woodland Creation Officer Job Description

If you would like to discuss the role or our Organisation further you are welcome to contact James Cobbold (Director) by email: info@raisecumbria.co.uk

The closing date for this advertisement is 18 July 2024 with interviews expected to be held on 1st August 2024.

We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applicants from all sections of the community.