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Volunteer Administration Officer

Forestry Commission

Westonbirt

On-site

GBP 26,000 - 31,000

Full time

3 days ago
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Job summary

The Forestry Commission seeks a Volunteer Administration Officer at Westonbirt Arboretum to support day-to-day volunteer activities. This role involves ensuring efficient administrative processes, managing recruitment and training, and enhancing volunteers' overall experience. Candidates should have strong communication skills and experience in an administrative role.

Benefits

25 days holiday a year plus bank holidays
Employee benefits scheme
Free parking at sites
Entry to National Arboretums
Commitment to lifelong learning

Qualifications

  • Experience working with volunteers in multiple roles.
  • Demonstratable administrative experience required.

Responsibilities

  • Support recruitment, induction, and ongoing training of volunteers.
  • Process volunteer hours, expenses, and uniform requests.
  • Coordinate meetings, prepare refreshments, and manage communications.

Skills

Interpersonal communication
Customer service
Administrative tasks
Record keeping

Education

Experience in office administration

Tools

Microsoft Office
MS Teams
Zoom

Job description

2 days ago Be among the first 25 applicants

Predominantly based at Westonbirt, with the possibility for occasional working from home. This role is on a seven-day contract and flexibility will be required to support occasional volunteer activities at weekends, etc

Job Summary

What you’ll do…

We’re looking for a Volunteer Administration Officer to help support the smooth running of our day-to-day volunteering activities at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum. As our new Volunteer Administration Officer, you will play a pivotal role by undertaking key administrative tasks as well as providing a friendly first-point-of-call for our volunteers. Working with the Volunteer Coordinator you will support individual team supervisors to ensure they deliver volunteer activities that meet business needs and provide the highest quality experience for our volunteers.

Please see the job description below for more information and details about what we need from you.

Where you’ll work…

Westonbirt is one of Britain’s finest botanical tree collections and is internationally renowned both for its extraordinary tree collection and historic landscape, which is entered on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens as Grade 1. It was founded in the early 19th Century by Robert Holford, a plant collector and visionary. In 1956, the arboretum came into the care of the Forestry Commission to conserve and continue the legacy for future generations.

The arboretum is one of the largest pay-to-enter visitor attractions in the Southwest, welcoming over 550,000 visitors per year and over 35,000 members. Our mission is to connect people with trees to improve quality of life and this role will support the 300+ passionate volunteers that support all aspects of our work.

Your primary place of work will be Westonbirt Arboretum, though there is the occasional opportunity to work from home, as agreed with the line manager. This role is on a seven-day contract and flexibility will be required to support occasional volunteer activities at weekends, public and privilege holidays and evenings.

Job Description

The post holder will ensure essential administrative tasks are delivered on time and to the highest standard for all volunteer activities:

  • process volunteer hours / mileage expenses / uniform requests in line with agreed policy, including liaison with volunteers to chase up forms and ensure accurate submissions
  • support accurate record keeping through the volunteer database (including training) in compliance with data protection legislation; run queries as necessary to support decision making
  • support recruitment, induction and ongoing training of volunteers
  • arrange/coordinate meetings; make venue bookings, prepare refreshments, write agendas and minutes
  • oversee radio banks and use of volunteer computers
  • support safety of volunteer activities through completion and implementation of risk assessments

The post holder will also play a vital role in supporting the day-to-day volunteer experience by:

  • support the running of our volunteer hub
  • monitor implementation of policies including measures put in place to ensure safe working
  • responding to volunteer queries and prepare volunteer communications including the volunteer newsletter
  • support other staff involved in supervising volunteer teams
  • support volunteer coffee mornings, celebrations, long service awards and arrange Christmas message
  • ordering volunteer welfare supplies for across site

And any other tasks, reasonably requested by your line manager

The Post Holder Will Ensure Essential Administrative Tasks Are Delivered On Time And To The Highest Standard For All Volunteer Activities

  • process volunteer hours / mileage expenses / uniform requests in line with agreed policy, including liaison with volunteers to chase up forms and ensure accurate submissions
  • support accurate record keeping through the volunteer database (including training) in compliance with data protection legislation; run queries as necessary to support decision making
  • support recruitment, induction and ongoing training of volunteers
  • arrange/coordinate meetings; make venue bookings, prepare refreshments, write agendas and minutes
  • oversee radio banks and use of volunteer computers
  • support safety of volunteer activities through completion and implementation of risk assessments

The post holder will also play a vital role in supporting the day-to-day volunteer experience by:

  • support the running of our volunteer hub
  • monitor implementation of policies including measures put in place to ensure safe working
  • responding to volunteer queries and prepare volunteer communications including the volunteer newsletter
  • support other staff involved in supervising volunteer teams
  • support volunteer coffee mornings, celebrations, long service awards and arrange Christmas message
  • ordering volunteer welfare supplies for across site

And any other tasks, reasonably requested by your line manager

Person specification

Essential Professional And Technical Experience

  • experience of recruiting, supervising and supporting volunteers fulfilling multiple roles
  • demonstrable administrative experience within an office environment
  • evidence of providing responsive customer services to people from a wide spectrum of the community
  • demonstrable evidence of strong interpersonal communication skills (written and verbal)
  • evidence of applying policy framework with respect to equality, health and safety and GDPR preferably in relation to volunteering
  • a sound working knowledge of technology and its use in delivering administrative tasks; in particular MS teams, Zoom and Microsoft Office packages (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook)

Desirable Professional And Technical Experience

  • experience working within environment / heritage setting
  • evidence of strong numeracy skills
  • experience of marketing through different media
  • experience supporting volunteer training
  • experience increasing the diversity of a volunteering cohort

Behaviours

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

  • Communicating and Influencing
  • Working Together
  • Managing a Quality Service
  • Delivering at Pace

Technical skills

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

  • More information provided to those successful at sift.

Alongside your salary of £26,123, Forestry Commission contributes £7,567 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Benefits…

Alongside your salary, Forestry England contributes an average of 28.97% towards your pension. You will become a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension Scheme.

  • 25 days holiday a year, raising by one day every year’s service, up to 30 days (pro-rated for part time employees) plus additional days off such as bank holidays.
  • STaR is our employee benefits scheme offering discounts on everyday supermarket shopping, as well as other things such as hotel stays clothes, mobile phones, other electrical items, medical and car insurance, holidays, gym discounts, household bills, Headspace wellbeing app.
  • free parking at Forestry England sites and free entry to our National Arboretums at Westonbirt and Bedgebury.
  • a commitment to lifelong learning through career development. Forestry England will support your career development in a variety of ways, including continual professional development, support for individual learning plans and sponsored membership of professional bodies.

Read more about the benefits on the Forestry England website.

Selection process details

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

How To Apply…

You will be asked to write a 250 word statement on your relevant experience and career history, along with a personal statement of no more than 500 words. You will be assessed on both during sifting. More details about how to apply are listed on the application form.

You will be assessed on a technical skill during your interview.

The Behaviours being assessed at interview are –

  • Communicating and influencing
  • Working together
  • Managing a quality service
  • Delivering at pace

Successful candidates will undergo an enhanced criminal record check and the government baseline personnel security standard check.

If you require any reasonable adjustments, please email fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk.

Read more about our application process and working with us on the Forestry England 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, Experience and Technical skills.

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 : FC Recruitment Team
  • Email : fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk

Recruitment team

  • Email : fcrecruitmentteam@forestryengland.uk

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 FCE by email: englandhr.services@forestryengland.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.

Seniority level
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    Entry level
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    Administrative
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