Senior Ecologist

AECOM; Saffron Walden; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Career development opportunities

Flexible hybrid working model

AECOM University

Volunteering days

Job summary

AECOM is seeking an Senior Ecologist to join our Nature team across multiple UK locations. The role offers hybrid working and opportunities to work on high-impact ecological projects with national and international partners.

You will contribute to energy, infrastructure and environment sectors, collaborating with landscape, GIS, engineering and sustainability specialists. Join a diverse team of around 230 ecology professionals, working on solar farms, habitat assessments and complex

Qualifications

• Experience delivering ecological services on UK/Ireland projects.
• Strong understanding of wildlife conservation principles.
• Membership of a professional body and evidence of pursuing Chartership (e.g., CIEEM).
• Excellent field skills in protected species licences.
• Proactive Health and Safety approach.
• Mentoring and supporting ecology team members.

Responsibilities

• Support preparation of bids and tenders for ecological services across energy, transport and water sectors.
• Plan and organise all phases of ecological project work within budget and schedule.
• Deliver high-quality ecological consultancy and advisory services and support check/review processes.
• Develop robust, pragmatic solutions to complex ecological issues.
• Communicate effectively with ecology team, clients and stakeholders.
• Produce ecology chapters for environmental statements and licence applications.
• Author or technically check project deliverables to ensure quality.

Skills

Chartered ecology

Field skills

Health and Safety

Mentoring

Wildlife conservation

Chartership pursuit

Education

CIEEM membership & Chartership toward

Job description

Key Skills

• Demonstratable experience in planning and delivery of ecological services on projects in the UK or Ireland;
• Well-developed understanding of relevant wildlife conservation;
• Membership of an appropriate professional institution and evidence of working towards Chartership (such as CIEEM or related.)
• Excellent field skills in at least one specialist area including any protected species licences;
• A proactive approach to Health and Safety;
• Mentoring and supporting ecology team members.

At AECOM, we're delivering a better world. Whether improving your commute, keeping the lights on, providing access to clean water, or transforming skylines, our work helps people and communities thrive. We are the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, partnering with clients to solve the world's most complex challenges and build legacies for future generations.

Job Description

Are you ready to join a team of talented ecologist's and shape the future of the environment?

Join our dynamic Nature team as an Senior Ecologist in our growing Cambridge, Basingstoke, Croydon, Leeds, Nottingham, Newcastle, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Bristol, Dublin, and Cork (though other locations may be considered), and benefit through our flexible hybrid working model. At AECOM, we're at the forefront of innovation, delivering an exceptional portfolio of Ecology programs and projects through long-term partnerships with key clients.

Presently, we are working on a wide range of projects, notably in the power and renewables, infrastructure, environment and transport sectors, as well as collaborating with other technical disciplines such as landscape, GIS, engineering, sustainability and drainage. Our recent projects have included several of the largest solar farms to have gained consent in the UK; a cable tunnel below the River Thames; electricity network upgrades in Kent and Suffolk; habitats regulations assessments of various plans and projects for local authorities; and masterplanning of new residential developments for local authorities.

Here’s what you’ll do:

• Support the preparation of high quality and commercially astute bids and tenders for ecological services, notably in the energy, transport and water sectors;
• Plan, schedule and organise all phases of ecological project work, ensuring necessary resources, budgets and controls are in place to meet both programme and budget requirements;
• Support delivery of high-quality ecological consultancy and advisory services to both internal and external clients, including through our check and review processes;
• Support development of technically robust and pragmatic solutions to complex ecological issues;
• Communicate effectively and professionally with other members of the ecology team, within projects and with clients;
• Support production of ecology chapters for environmental statements and protected species licence applications;
• Author or technically check project deliverables to ensure high quality outputs.

If you're passionate about innovation and turning bold ideas into reality, AECOM welcomes you. Join our team, where we don't just construct infrastructure but also uplift communities and enhance lives. Why not give our AECOM page on LinkedIn a follow to stay updated on the impactful projects we're working on and see firsthand the difference we're making in the industry!

Come grow with us.

Become part of our dynamic Nature business, which boasts around 230 professional experts including national and global leaders located across the UK&I, from species licence holders to experts in impact assessment, habitat creation, ecosystem restoration, enhancement, and management. At AECOM, you'll thrive in an inclusive and forward-thinking environment where your contributions are valued.

And let's not forget about the perks at AECOM. You'll enjoy a range of core and personalised benefits designed to support your future and well-being, customised to fit your lifestyle. Take advantage of career development opportunities, our flexible hybrid working model to ensure a work-life balance that suits your lifestyle, technical practice networks, AECOM University, and volunteering days., We celebrate diversity, including neurodiversity, and believe it enriches our team. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and abilities. If you are an applicant with a disability that requires reasonable accommodation to complete the application process, please contact us at At AECOM, we value everyone's unique contributions and perspectives.

At AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulent hiring activity seriously. To support this commitment, all newly hired employees are required to attend an in-person Day 1 onboarding at an AECOM office location as a condition of employment.

About AECOM

AECOM is the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle - from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. On projects spanning transportation, buildings, water, new energy and the environment, our public- and private-sector clients trust us to solve their most complex challenges. Our teams are driven by a common purpose to deliver a better world through our unrivaled technical and digital expertise, a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion, and a commitment to environmental, social and governance priorities. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm and its Professional Services business had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025.

Freedom to Grow in a World of Opportunity

You will have the flexibility you need to do your best work with hybrid work options. Whether you're working from an AECOM office, remote location or at a client site, you will be working in a dynamic environment where your integrity, entrepreneurial spirit and pioneering mindset are championed.

You will help us foster a safe and respectful workplace, where we invite everyone to bring their whole selves to work using their unique talents, backgrounds and expertise to create transformational outcomes for our clients.

AECOM provides a wide array of compensation, benefits and well-being programs to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families. We're the world's trusted global infrastructure firm, and we're in this together - your growth and success are ours too.

Join us, and you'll get all the benefits of being a part of a global, publicly traded firm - access to industry-leading technology and thinking and transformational work with big impact and work flexibility. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we believe in each person's potential, and we'll help you reach yours.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and will offer an interview to applicants who have a disability or long-term condition, who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role. Please let us know using this email address if you would like to apply through the Disability Confident Interview Scheme.