Principal Ecologist - Scotland

APEM Group; Scotland; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

APEM Group is seeking a Principal Ecologist to lead and grow their terrestrial ecology team in Scotland. This role offers the opportunity to manage impactful projects, develop a team, and contribute to environmental consultancy efforts that support regulators and conservation bodies. Candidates should have strong ecological consultancy experience and leadership skills.

Benefits

Private medical insurance

Access to mental health first aiders

Comprehensive income protection

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Strong ecological consultancy experience, ideally including Scotland and England.
• Demonstrable experience leading protected species surveys.
• Experience mentoring and project delivery.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage a small team of ecologists.
• Deliver a portfolio of terrestrial ecology projects.
• Influence business strategy and mentor junior consultants.

Skills

Ecological consultancy experience

Knowledge of UK and EU ecological legislation

Leadership experience

Excellent communication skills

Education

Protected species licences or FISC Level 4+ in botany

Job description

About The Role

Are you an ecologist with management experience and a passion for delivering important, impactful, terrestrial ecology projects in Scotland? Are you ready to lead a small team and grow the team and their capability? Are you looking for role that allow you some strategic influence with hands-on project delivery?

We’re looking for a Principal Ecologist to join and help build APEM’s terrestrial ecology team in Scotland. This is a rare opportunity to play a key role in developing a team and expanding our consultancy offer across the region, while delivering meaningful, environmentally focused work for clients ranging from regulators and conservation bodies to utilities and developers.

We are open to an ambitious, experienced Senior looking for their next role or a Principal looking for more autonomy and the opportunity to influence a path to Associate in the short/medium term.

As you grow into this role, you’ll help deliver business strategy, recruit and mentor a team of consultants, and deliver a broad portfolio of terrestrial ecology projects. You’ll be part of our UK-wide management team, with the autonomy to influence how we work, whilst benefiting from the support of a highly experienced, multidisciplinary consultancy group.

To be successful in this role, you’ll need:

• Strong ecological consultancy experience, including working on complex projects and advising clients
• Demonstrable experience working in both Scotland and (ideally) England
• Deep knowledge of UK and EU ecological legislation, planning policy and EcIA
• One or more protected species licences (or FISC Level 4+ in botany)
• A track record of leading protected species surveys and/or mitigation work
• Experience in team leadership, project delivery, and report review
• Excellent communication skills, with a collaborative and mentoring mindset

Desirable, but not essential:

• Full CIEEM membership (or eligibility)
• A successful history of winning work and building client relationships
• Experience presenting at industry events or conferences

You will be offered the chance to work on a variety of projects, many of our employees have worked on projects that have been of personal interest to them. We match this with a commitment to continuous development and learning to support your career. We also offer benefits to look after you, from private medical insurance for all employees, access to mental health first aiders and comprehensive income protection if you cannot work. We also offer superb flexible working options, balancing work with your life.

Next steps

We are focused on creating a diverse and inclusive team. If you can’t tick every box on our job description, then we are still keen to hear from you and are open to supporting your development. That may be working part time or supporting you to gain experience in a specific area – we are a growing company and are able to adapt roles to reflect individual skills.

If you think you have what it takes to join our fast-growing business, then please apply immediately on our website. All we need some basic information and your CV, we will review all applications quickly and will respond to all applications.

About Us

The APEM Group is a global environmental consultancy, we work with a range of clients including large corporations and governments to help themunderstand and solvea wide variety of environmental projects in the UK andglobally.Our successful pioneering work has enabled usto grow and combine forces with other businesses who share our ethos andintegrity. At our core, our people are working towardsthe protection of the environment across the globe.