Data Scientist

Forestry Commission; Wrecclesham; Hybrid; GBP 33,000; Full time

Job summary

Join the Forestry Commission as a Data Scientist, where you will engage in cutting-edge environmental science. This role involves analyzing woodland data to support forestry policy and practice, providing opportunities for professional development and a flexible work-life balance.

Benefits

Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension

Flexible working options

Generous annual leave allowance

Paid volunteering leave

Employee Assistance Programme

Qualifications

• Significant experience in data analytics and programming languages like R and Python.
• Experience with geospatial tools and relational databases.
• Proven record in problem solving with large data sets.

Responsibilities

• Plan, design, carry out and report on analyses based on NFI data.
• Develop and support NFI analytical software.
• Collaborate with NFI team to maintain data quality.

Skills

Data analytics

Problem solving

Pattern recognition

Creative thinking

Attention to detail

Education

Degree in STEM or equivalent analytical experience

Tools

R

Python

ESRI

QGIS

SQL

Job description

The role can be based in Northern Research Station, Roslin, Midlothian EH25 9SY or in Alice Holt, Farnham, Surrey GU10 4LH with blended working which gives you the option to work some of the week from home, and some of the week from the workplace. You will be asked to express a location preference during the application process.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas.

Job Summary

Want to work at the cutting edge of environmental science? Passionate about making a difference and playing your part in tackling the climate and nature crisis? Forest Research (FR) is all about giving top quality evidence and advice to policymakers and practitioners to make a positive impact on the ground. Internationally recognised, we need people who have the skills and passion to work on excellent science and provide practical solutions for nature.

We’re small enough that your voice is heard, yet large enough, as part of the Forestry Commission, that we have everything on hand to get the job done, as well as a variety of career pathways. Our staff are dedicated to their work and sharing it with others to bring positive change for our planet. You will find us a flexible and inclusive employer, so you can have a work life balance that is tailor-made to your circumstances. So, whether it’s climate or carbon, pests or pathogens, behaviour or biodiversity that interests you, you can be assured of a warm welcome to the team. To find out more, visit www.forestresearch.gov.uk

The National Forest Inventory (NFI) programme monitors the location, extent and condition of woodlands throughout Great Britain. It does this by means of construction, regular maintenance and updating of a digital spatial map of British woodlands using information from aerial photography, remote sensing and administrative sources. This is augmented with a large field survey operation with many thousands of individual survey sites covering a representative sample of woodlands across Great Britain. The NFI field survey is designed as a continuous survey of woodland on a 5-year cycle, with repeat surveying of most sites in each cycle. The operation is approaching the end of the third cycle of assessments 2020-2025.

Outputs from the NFI provide evidence to decision makers across GB supporting the development of forestry policy, the timber industry and the environment and biodiversity within our forests. Through a series of repeat measurements and assessments at our sample sites, we are building a picture of how Britain’s woodlands are changing. Take a look at National Forest Inventory - Forest Research for more information about the range and depth of the outputs from the NFI programme.

Job Description

We are looking to appoint a Data Scientist to join a multidisciplinary NFI team that includes data engineers, analysts, statisticians, mapping and remote sensing specialists, and field data collection experts. Specifically, this role involves geospatial, analytical, and IT-related tasks related to forecasting the extent and condition of GB woodlands in response to environmental, commercial, policy and disturbance factors. You will also contribute to a variety of data driven projects across Forest Research. There will be opportunities for skills development into related areas. Reporting to the Production Forecast Manager, you will work closely with the entire NFI team and build networks more widely across Forest Research.

This is an interesting and varied role, the successful candidate will:

• Plan, design, carry out and report on analyses based on the NFI and associated data sets
• Develop and support the custom built NFI analytical software specifically, but not limited to, FR’s proprietary Production Forecasting system
• Develop a deep understanding of timber forecasting and the tree measurement data collected by the NFI programme
• Collaborate with colleagues in the NFI analytical team in maintaining the quality of data, ensuring it is fit for purpose for the growing range of analytical tools based on the NFI systems.
  
  

Analyses and reports will vary in complexity and scale, from relatively simple requests to multi-year projects; you will have the opportunity to develop new analytical tools as and when required. Each analysis will include a variety of techniques; there will often be a spatial element and they will frequently involve assessing historical changes in Britain’s woodlands.

The role will empower the right candidate to apply data science knowledge and geospatial skills in the world of forestry.

Key Work Areas:

• Provide support to users of Forest Research’s Production Forecast system, including:
• Acting as the first point of contact for technical support and user queries
• Producing and maintaining technical and user documentation
• Managing bug fixes and change requests
• Planning and delivering knowledge transfer seminars
• Contribute to the strategic development of the Production Forecast system, helping to shape its future in line with evolving user needs and forestry practices.
• Develop and support other analytical systems within the NFI, delivering innovative solutions that enhance the capacity, accuracy, and effectiveness of Forest Research’s analytical capabilities.
• Design, execute, and analyse workflows involving raw NFI data and outputs from Forest Research systems—primarily, but not exclusively, the Production Forecast system.
• Prepare reports for publication, presentation, and submission, and present findings to internal and external audiences, including senior Forest Research management and government stakeholders.
• Carry out project management tasks to tight deadlines, including gathering requirements, managing time and resources, and overseeing project delivery.
• Develop and maintain data pipelines, including spatial analysis workflows and database operations.
• Collaborate with Forest Research scientists and researchers, ensuring alignment across teams.
• Build relationships with external stakeholders, including commercial clients and senior representatives from DEFRA and the devolved forestry bodies across the UK.
• Support the negotiation of project funding and contribute to the planning and resourcing of new initiatives.
  
  

We are looking to appoint a Data Scientist to join a multidisciplinary NFI team that includes data engineers, analysts, statisticians, mapping and remote sensing specialists, and field data collection experts. Specifically, this role involves geospatial, analytical, and IT-related tasks related to forecasting the extent and condition of GB woodlands in response to environmental, commercial, policy and disturbance factors. You will also contribute to a variety of data driven projects across Forest Research. There will be opportunities for skills development into related areas. Reporting to the Production Forecast Manager, you will work closely with the entire NFI team and build networks more widely across Forest Research.

This is an interesting and varied role, the successful candidate will:

• Plan, design, carry out and report on analyses based on the NFI and associated data sets
• Develop and support the custom built NFI analytical software specifically, but not limited to, FR’s proprietary Production Forecasting system
• Develop a deep understanding of timber forecasting and the tree measurement data collected by the NFI programme
• Collaborate with colleagues in the NFI analytical team in maintaining the quality of data, ensuring it is fit for purpose for the growing range of analytical tools based on the NFI systems.
  
  

Analyses and reports will vary in complexity and scale, from relatively simple requests to multi-year projects; you will have the opportunity to develop new analytical tools as and when required. Each analysis will include a variety of techniques; there will often be a spatial element and they will frequently involve assessing historical changes in Britain’s woodlands.

The role will empower the right candidate to apply data science knowledge and geospatial skills in the world of forestry.

Key Work Areas:

• Provide support to users of Forest Research’s Production Forecast system, including:
• Acting as the first point of contact for technical support and user queries
• Producing and maintaining technical and user documentation
• Managing bug fixes and change requests
• Planning and delivering knowledge transfer seminars
• Contribute to the strategic development of the Production Forecast system, helping to shape its future in line with evolving user needs and forestry practices.
• Develop and support other analytical systems within the NFI, delivering innovative solutions that enhance the capacity, accuracy, and effectiveness of Forest Research’s analytical capabilities.
• Design, execute, and analyse workflows involving raw NFI data and outputs from Forest Research systems—primarily, but not exclusively, the Production Forecast system.
• Prepare reports for publication, presentation, and submission, and present findings to internal and external audiences, including senior Forest Research management and government stakeholders.
• Carry out project management tasks to tight deadlines, including gathering requirements, managing time and resources, and overseeing project delivery.
• Develop and maintain data pipelines, including spatial analysis workflows and database operations.
• Collaborate with Forest Research scientists and researchers, ensuring alignment across teams.
• Build relationships with external stakeholders, including commercial clients and senior representatives from DEFRA and the devolved forestry bodies across the UK.
• Support the negotiation of project funding and contribute to the planning and resourcing of new initiatives.
  
  

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Degree in a STEM subject or alternative numerate subject or equivalent analytical experience
• Significant experience in data analytics and a good knowledge of writing and applying languages such as R and Python for data extraction, wrangling and workflows
• Significant evidence of a proven record of problem solving and pattern recognition when dealing with the analysis of large and complex data sets
• Significant evidence of creative thinking, attention to detail, and quality assurance when preparing reports - scientific, technical or other - for presentation and publication
• Experience of ESRI or QGIS geospatial tools, relational databases, data models and SQL query languages
  
  

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience of working in a small/medium sized technical team with regular interaction with a range of stakeholders.
• Evidence of planning for and delivering projects and/or reports to agreed timetables
• Knowledge of forestry practice, forest inventory and forecasting
• Knowledge and experience of the use of mathematical models, especially empirical models
  
  

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Delivering at Pace
• Changing and Improving
• Working Together
  
  

Alongside your salary of £32,089, Forestry Commission - Forest Research contributes £9,296 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Your career

• Excellent professional development opportunities which are tailored to your role, with paid professional membership subscriptions, mentoring, and Civil Service Learning available to all
• access to world class laboratory facilities, as well as state of the art buildings within forest or science park settings
  
  

Your work/life balance

• flexible working options such as: up to two days flexi leave per month, blended working, part-time working, paid special leave, career breaks, and unpaid leave. Parents and carers will be supported to enable you to manage work and family responsibilities
• A generous annual leave allowance of 25 days on entry increasing by 1 day each year to a maximum of 30 days (pro-rata for part-timers). Plus 2.5 days of additional leave and 8 days’ paid bank/public holidays
  
  

Your wellbeing

• A culture which promotes a diverse and inclusive work environment
• A range of wellbeing benefits including Employee Assistance Programme 24/7
• We want you to feel part of something bigger and we encourage a community feel in our workplaces, with everything from cookery competitions to Pilates and fell running, plus topical talks at Wellbeing Wednesdays and Feelgood Fridays
• Paid volunteering leave of 3 days per year so you can give back to your community and charitable causes by sharing your skills and time
  
  

Your Benefits

• a highly competitive Civil Service Pension of 28.97% your salary
• an employee benefits scheme offering discounts on groceries, gym memberships, holidays, days out, online retailers and high street shops
• Cycle to Work scheme and Interest free loans
• Free parking is offered on-site, alongside electric car charging ports
• With maternity, adoption, and/or shared parental leave there’s the flexibility to have up to 26 weeks full pay, followed by 13 weeks statutory pay and a further 13 weeks unpaid leave. Paternity leave of up to two weeks is available with full pay.
  
  

Any move to Forest Research from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Please apply at Civil Service Jobs - GOV.UK, you will be asked to supply:

• A CV - setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role
• A Personal Statement – (limited to 500 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification.
  
  

We will use this information to assess your application against the essential criteria in the person specification.

Shortlist

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the Essential Criteria set out in the Person Specification. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Sift will take place by 18-19th June 2025

Interviews will take place week commencing 2nd July 2025

If we receive a large volume of applications, then we will sift on CV and the lead behaviour, Delivering at Pace. Candidates will be expected to answer questions on all behaviours listed at the interview stage.

Candidates invited to attend for interview will be required to prepare a 5 minute presentation on: Innovation and Data. Please describe an example of your creative thinking in data extraction, analysis or presentation.

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions in Forest Research which may be at a lower grade but have a potential skills match.

Diverse perspectives and experiences are critical to our success and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role.

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Visa Sponsorship

FR Holds a Licence To Sponsor Skilled Workers Under The Home Office Points-based Immigration System. Candidates Wishing To Apply Should Note That The Likelihood Of Obtaining Sponsorship Would Depend On An Assessment Of This Role Against Defined Criteria, Which Include:

• Whether the Job role has been identified as being a Critical Role in FR, which has been identified in the Workforce Plan, and / or
• Whether the Job role is a known Capability gap, which has been identified in the Workforce Plan for the relevant Centre, and
• Evidence of significant recruitment challenges in filling the Job role previously
  
  

Skilled Worker sponsorship may be available, subject to an application and assessment process and the Home Office points-based system.

For further details, please refer to the Sponsorship for Skilled Workers – guidance for applicants and managers on our website.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This Job Is Broadly Open To The Following Groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
  
  

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job Contact :

• Name : [e-mail]
• Email : [e-mail]
  
  

Recruitment team

• Email : [e-mail]
  
  

Further information

Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of appointment on the basis of fair and open competition and appointment on merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact FR HR Services by email: [e-mail] you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.