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Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru; Cross Hands; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Civil Service Pension

28 days annual leave

Wellbeing benefits and support

Training and development opportunities

Job summary

Natural Resources Wales is seeking an enthusiastic outdoor operative to protect flood risk assets and manage environmental land across South West Wales. Based at Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands, you will perform vegetation management, inspections, and maintenance using a range of plant and equipment.

Join a skilled team, commit to safety, training, and high standards, and contribute to emergency response duties while supporting development through industry qualifications.

Qualifications

• Hold relevant operator licences for tools, machinery and plant, or be willing and able to obtain these.
• Hold an IOSH Working Safely qualification, or demonstrate a willingness to achieve this following appointment.
• Demonstrate basic IT skills, including the ability to use digital systems to record and access information.
• Hold an Emergency First Aid at Work +F qualification, or be willing to obtain this through training.
• Experience working in forestry, construction, agricultural, environmental, or plant operations is desirable.
• Able to undertake physically demanding work, involving lifting, carrying, and walking over uneven terrain.
• Hold a full UK driving licence; Category B+E entitlement (trailer towing) is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Provide manual labour for the maintenance of NRW assets including flood risk assets and NRW managed land.
• Operate equipment such as hand-held tools including chainsaws.
• Act as a banksman and slinger/signaller.
• Understand technical plans and operate in compliance with the Construction Design and Management Regulations.
• Use small plant and machinery such as Aebi/Reform, pedestrian mowers, woodchippers.
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post.
• Be committed to NRW Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy and your development via the Sgwrs plan.
• Be prepared to take part in incident response activities.
• Other duties commensurate with the grade of this role.

Skills

Outdoor work

Driving license

IOSH Working Safely

Emergency First Aid at Work +F

Basic IT skills

Physical fitness

Tools

Chainsaws

Woodchippers

Mowers

Aebi/Reform

Tow trailers

Job description

Are you someone who enjoys working outdoors, operating machinery, and making a visible difference to local communities and the environment? If so, this is an exciting opportunity to join a skilled and dedicated team protecting people, property, and nature across South West Wales.

Based at Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands, you will play a hands‑on role in maintaining and improving Natural Resources Wales' flood risk management assets, while also supporting the management of environmental and land management assets across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea and Neath Port Talbot.

This is anoutdoor role, working across a wide variety of sites and environments throughout the year. No two days are the same. As part of a skilled team, you will undertake vegetation management, inspections, maintenance and improvement works, grass cutting, fencing, habitat management, flood asset maintenance, and small construction projects. You will use, where required, a range of plant, machinery and vegetation management equipment, including mowers, tractors, excavators, chainsaws, woodchippers and trailers. Working to technical plans, safe systems of work and industry regulations, you will help ensure NRW's flood risk, environmental and land management assets are maintained safely, efficiently and to a high standard.

Driving is essential, as you will regularly travel between operational sites using NRW vehicles and will be required to tow trailers, plant and equipment. You will also use digital systems to record inspections, maintenance activities and asset information while carrying out your day-to-day fieldwork, helping to ensure NRW assets are managed effectively.

As part of NRW's Category 1 emergency response capability, you will join an out-of-hours standby rota in addition to your normal working duties, responding to flooding, severe weather events and environmental incidents. During these situations, your work will play a vital role in protecting communities, infrastructure and the natural environment when it matters most.

To support emergency response requirements, you must be able to attend Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands, within 30 minutes when required to ensure a timely response to incidents and emergency situations .

We are looking for a motivated, reliable and safety-conscious individual who enjoys working outdoors in all weather conditions, takes pride in delivering high-quality practical work, and works effectively as part of a team. In return, you will be supported by an experienced team and have access to excellent training, development opportunities and industry-recognised qualifications.

You will be contracted to Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands and work a 9-day fortnight, providing an additional day off every two weeks. The current working pattern is:

• Week 1: Monday to Friday (41 hours)
• Week 2: Monday to Thursday (33 hours)

The role

Are you someone who enjoys working outdoors, operating machinery, and making a visible difference to local communities and the environment? If so, this is an exciting opportunity to join a skilled and dedicated team protecting people, property, and nature across South West Wales.

Based at Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands, you will play a hands‑on role in maintaining and improving Natural Resources Wales' flood risk management assets, while also supporting the management of environmental and land management assets across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea and Neath Port Talbot.

This is anoutdoor role, working across a wide variety of sites and environments throughout the year. No two days are the same. As part of a skilled team, you will undertake vegetation management, inspections, maintenance and improvement works, grass cutting, fencing, habitat management, flood asset maintenance, and small construction projects. You will use, where required, a range of plant, machinery and vegetation management equipment, including mowers, tractors, excavators, chainsaws, woodchippers and trailers. Working to technical plans, safe systems of work and industry regulations, you will help ensure NRW's flood risk, environmental and land management assets are maintained safely, efficiently and to a high standard.

Driving is essential, as you will regularly travel between operational sites using NRW vehicles and will be required to tow trailers, plant and equipment. You will also use digital systems to record inspections, maintenance activities and asset information while carrying out your day‑to‑day fieldwork, helping to ensure NRW assets are managed effectively.

As part of NRW's Category 1 emergency response capability, you will join an out-of-hours standby rota in addition to your normal working duties, responding to flooding, severe weather events and environmental incidents. During these situations, your work will play a vital role in protecting communities, infrastructure and the natural environment when it matters most.

To support emergency response requirements, you must be able to attend Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands, within 30 minutes when required to ensure a timely response to incidents and emergency situations .

We are looking for a motivated, reliable and safety-conscious individual who enjoys working outdoors in all weather conditions, takes pride in delivering high-quality practical work, and works effectively as part of a team. In return, you will be supported by an experienced team and have access to excellent training, development opportunities and industry-recognised qualifications.

You will be contracted to Plas Gwendraeth Depot, Cross Hands and work a 9-day fortnight, providing an additional day off every two weeks. The current working pattern is:

• Week 1: Monday to Friday (41 hours)
• Week 2: Monday to Thursday (33 hours)

To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Neil Davies at [e-mail].

Interviews will be face to face week commencing 16 November 2026 (details will be shared in advance)

About us

Join a dedicated and passionate team committed to reducing flood risk and protecting communities across South West Wales. Our work focuses primarily on the maintenance and improvement of flood defence assets, including embankments, flood defence structures, and associated infrastructure. In addition, you will have the opportunity to contribute to projects on the Welsh Government Woodland Estate and National Nature Reserves, supporting both environmental and community outcomes.

What you will do

• You will provide a manual labour service for the maintenance of NRW assets which include flood risk assets and NRW managed land.
• You will have the ability to operate equipment such as hand‑held tools which may include chainsaws .
• You will have the ability to operate as a banksman and slinger/signaller .
• You will have the ability to understand technical and utility plans and operate in compliance with the Construction Design and Management Regulations.
• You will be a user of small plant and machinery i.e. Aebi /Reform, pedestrian mowers, woodchippers etc .
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post
• Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy , together with an understanding of how it operates within the responsibilities of the post
• Be committed to your own development through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
• Required to take part in incident response activities.
• Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.

Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills

In your application and interview you will be asked to demonstrate the following skills and experience using the STAR method.

• Hold relevant operator licences for tools, machinery and plant, or be willing and able to obtain these within an agreed timeframe.
• Hold an IOSH Working Safely qualification, or demonstrate a willingness to achieve this following appointment.
• Demonstrate basic IT skills, including the ability to use digital systems to record and access information.
• Hold an Emergency First Aid at Work +F qualification, or be willing to obtain this through training.
• Experience working in a forestry, construction, agricultural, environmental, or plant operations environment is desirable.
• Able to undertake physically demanding work involving activities such as lifting, carrying, walking over uneven terrain and working outdoors in varying weather conditions.
• Confident and capable of working safely in and around water environments.
• Ability to demonstrate sufficient literacy and numeracy skills.
• Hold a full UK driving licence. Category B+E entitlement (trailer towing) is desirable.

Welsh Language level requirements

• Essential: Level A1 - Entry level

Please note if you do not meet the A1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Additional Information

Successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) check. Appointments are normally made within 4 to 8 weeks of the closing date.

Natural Resources Wales is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this position. Although we hold a Skilled Worker visa sponsorship licence, it applies only to specific roles that meet both the eligibility criteria and salary requirements set out by the UK Government under the Skilled Worker visa route.

Benefits

This role will offer a range of benefits, including:

• Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97% (successful internal staff will remain in their current pension scheme)
• 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days
• generous leave entitlements for all your life needs
• commitment to professional development
• health and wellbeing benefits and support
• weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose

See full details for all the employee benefits you will receive.

Please keep reading

We're passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

We are committed to equal opportunities, and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we make sure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale and annual increments are paid each year.

We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on variety of topics, stay current in their field and continue to learn as their career progresses.

We are a Bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards. Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills.

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