Community Engagement Officer

Purpose: To engage with communities and promote and support the delivery of the Ribble Revival:
Room for Rivers programme, specifically promoting collaborative working with communities and
partners, to enable greater catchment delivery by RRT and others.
Reports to: Head of People & Learning
Location: The post holder will be based principally within RRT’s offices in Clitheroe, with
travel around the catchment.
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Contract: Fixed term 2 years with possibility of extension

Ribble Rivers Trust (RRT) is a regional charity established in 1998 to conserve the Ribble
Catchment, particularly its rivers, brooks, becks, and streams. Over the last 10 years, RRT has
developed and grown into a sector leading organisation, known for getting things done, strong
partnership working and a collaborative approach.

We have five teams focusing on Data and Evidence, Land Management, People and Learning, River
Conservation and Core Services. Every team member is empowered to achieve their best. Our teams
work collaboratively on integrated projects to improve, protect and create a mosaic of habitats
and land uses that will lead to a healthy riverine environment. This is underpinned by a
science-driven approach that delivers multiple benefits.

The Trust also works collaboratively and in partnership with a range of organisations, such as
the Environment Agency, United Utilities, Jamie’s Farm, Woodland Trust, Lancashire Wildlife
Trust, Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, The Forest of Bowland AONB, and many Local
Authorities.

With Support from Defra’s Species Survival Fund we are launching a new programme of river
improvement projects called ‘Ribble Revival: Room for Rivers’. This programme has significant
amounts of on the ground habitat conservation activities, with most having elements of
volunteering and community engagement. These activities include; tree planting, woodland
maintenance, fencing, wetland creation, and Fish Passage, to name a few. The programme seeks to
put local communities at the heart of the projects, involving them in design, monitoring and
delivery. As such the programme requires a dedicated Community Engagement Officer. This role
will support the delivery of many of these activities, co-ordinating with other Programme Team
members, to ensure that we effectively embed communities in the programme, both during delivery
but also into the future.

To achieve this, we have set out a range of activities to involve people in the individual
projects. This will include citizen science and conservation volunteering, training and skills
development, and education and engagement opportunities that increase people’s knowledge about
the importance of our river habitats for our priority species and creating a healthy river
catchment.

The role requires an individual who is passionate about our freshwater environments and the
people who live and work in our catchment, with a clear understanding of the interaction
between people, catchments and rivers. They should be a confident and clear communicator with
experience in engaging and working with a range of stakeholders, from local residents and
community groups to senior professionals, academics and elected representatives.