Principal / Associate Ecological Consultant

Principal/Associate Ecological Consultant
40 hrs per week, Monday to Friday tendersglobal.net Salary £45,000 –
£60,000 as well as a company vehicle
Flexible working arrangements tendersglobal.net Training, development &
industry representation
Based in North Aston, Oxfordshire, or Corby, Northamptonshire 

About Nicholsons

Nicholsons was founded over 40 years ago and has grown to
form a community of passionate and professional consultants and contractors, delivering expert
advice and quality results in garden and landscape design, forestry and woodland and tree
management, ecology and biodiversity net gain, environmental planning, soil science and plant
trade.

The Ecology Team

The Ecology department is the hub of the company, frequently collaborating
with fellow departments such as arboriculture, forestry and garden and landscape design. With a
focus on quality and technical excellence as well as an opportunity to make positive environmental
change through this interdisciplinary approach, our ecology team has a varied and interesting
client base. We are increasingly working with projects outside of the development sphere, for
example seeking new environmental opportunities via a restorative approach to land management.
Through our wider company links with industry bodies, there are also opportunities to feed into
changes at an even higher level.

Your Role:

Key responsibilities:

• Technical leadership of the company’s ecology team across both offices.
• Project management including delegation, supervision and mentoring others within the
  ecology team.
• Supporting the ecology team by providing technical expertise or complex project assistance.
• Project liaison, including engagement with stakeholders and attending meetings. Provide
  sound technical advice to clients, including complex projects.
• Preparation of reports, including more technical aspects of planning work such as
  Ecological Impact Assessments, Biodiversity Net Gain Assessments and protected species
  licencing.
• Sales generation and growing our customer base.
• Preparation and/or input into fee proposals, including more complex scopes of work for
  larger, multidisciplinary projects.
• Preparing and delivering team training as well as CPD to industry professionals.

Role
requirements:

• Have a passion for the protection and enhancement of our planet.
• Hold a degree in ecology, environmental science or a similarly related subject.
• Hold at least one protected species licence (bats or dormice preferred).
• Be a full member of CIEEM or working towards full membership.
• Sound understanding of current environmental legislation and the planning system.
• Experience in working with the DEFRA Biodiversity Metric.
• Experience in site appraisal, with demonstrable botanical ID skills (FISC Level 3 or
  above).
• Proven experience in project management, including larger and more complex sites.
• Experience in managing survey teams and/or subcontractors and the use of technical survey
  equipment.
• Experience being a named ecologist, alternative contact or accredited agent within species
  mitigation licences (bats preferred).
• Experience in designing and implementing mitigation for development projects.

Desirable
Skills

• Advanced skills in at least one specialist area of ecology, for example, botany.
• Registered under the Natural England Bat Class Licence / Earned Recognition schemes.
• Experience in leading more complex reporting work such as BREEAM, Habitat Regulations
  Assessments, or EIA chapters.
• Chartered membership of CIEEM or demonstrably approaching this level.
• Experience in driving technological improvements in ecology consultancy, e.g. electronic
  data collection or GIS mapping, bioacoustics, or advanced NVA set-ups.

Nicholsons Benefits

Nicholsons offers a range of employee benefits, including an enhanced pension scheme, access to
3 discounted holiday houses across the UK, subscriptions to professional bodies, opportunities
to participate in a range of committees and Smart Health which features a 24/7 virtual GP,
mental health support and nutritionist and fitness advice.

Role-specific Benefits

• £45,000 – £60,000 depending on experience.
• Flexibility to work at our Oxfordshire or Northamptonshire office.
• 26 days annual leave.
• A company vehicle will be provided.
• Generous training opportunities.
• Industry training/representation as well as opportunities to attend conferences and
  external courses.
• Flexible home/office working arrangements.
• Like-like TOIL (time off in lieu) for all out-of-hours work.
• Limited evening surveys to two nights a week where possible, avoiding dusk-dawn surveys.
  Most surveys are relatively local to our offices.
• Pool vehicles are available and full uniform and PPE will be provided, including an annual
  boot allowance.

If you have any questions about the role or would like to apply, please contact
Rachel Verdon, Nicholsons HR Manager: [email protected]