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Natural England; Reading; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Natural England is seeking a Senior Manager for the Thames Basin Heaths Partnership (TBHP) based in the Thames Solent Team. The role leads the wardens and partners to protect the Special Protection Area from housing pressures while engaging local communities.

You will collaborate with SPA landowners, local authorities, Wildlife Trusts, the RSPB and MoD to deliver on the TBHP objectives, ensuring wildlife and habitats are safeguarded for future generations.

Responsibilities

• Line manage the wardens team (permanent and seasonal) to protect the SPA from recreational pressures arising from new housing developments.
• Oversee the TBHP project delivery within the Thames Solent Area Team.
• Engage with SPA landowners, managers and partners to raise awareness of the site's sensitivity and importance.
• Work with the TBHP Joint Strategic Partnership Board to align activities and deliver on partnership objectives.

Job description

Join us in shaping a future where nature and people thrive. Whether you're drawn to hands‑on conservation or playing a vital part behind the scenes, your work at Natural England will support lasting benefits for the environment and society.

Our Role

Natural England is the Government’s adviser for the natural environment and the Nature regulator with a wide range of statutory duties and powers. We provide the evidence, expertise and advice to recover Nature and shape better places for people to live. We do this working through and with others.

Strategic Outcomes for Nature

Our strategy is framed through four strategic outcomes. Each of these outcomes reinforces and amplifies the others, and together they address environmental, social and economic actions critical to thriving nature.

Recovering Nature – Increased scale and quality of places where nature thrives.

Building Better Places – Greener homes and infrastructure create healthier, more investable places, recognising we live better where nature thrives around us.

Improving Health and Wellbeing – Build nature into everyday life so people can support, access and benefit from nature, wherever they live.

Delivering Security through Nature – Nature helps us adapt to the threats of a changing climate and improves our national security, supporting more resilient food production, healthy soils, clean and plentiful water and clean air.

Find out more about the work of Natural England at:

Natural England’s Strategy: Recovering Nature for Growth, Health and Security - GOV.UK

The Role

This role is based at Heather Farm, Woking, GU21 4XY and requires regular attendance at the site office and on the heathland sites in the Thames Basin Heath’s area.

Based in the Thames Solent Area Team, you will be working as the Senior Manager for the Thames Basin Heaths Partnership (TBHP) project.

The team provides an on-the-ground warden service on the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area (TBH SPA). Working closely with the Special Protection Area (SPA) landowners and managers and other key partners (including local authorities, Wildlife Trusts, the RSPB, Ministry of Defence, Forestry Commission, and The Crown Estate), the team engages directly with the public to raise awareness amongst visitors of the importance and sensitivity of this internationally important heathland site.

The Thames Basin Heaths Partnership (TBHP), hosted by Natural England’s Thames Solent Team, is fully funded from developer contributions, and is overseen by the Thames Basin Heaths (TBH) Joint Strategic Partnership Board (JSPB), a body comprising eleven local authorities, and Hampshire and Surrey County Councils.

Working in partnership with Natural England (NE) colleagues, the TBH local authorities, SPA landowners and managers, and other stakeholders, you will line manage the warden team, consisting of both permanent and seasonal wardens and enable the project to achieve its objective of helping to protect the SPA from recreational pressures arising from new housing development.