Senior Executive Scientist - Meath County Council

Meath County Council; Trim; On-site; EUR 65,000 - 78,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

Job summary

Meath County Council is seeking a Senior Executive Scientist to lead the Environmental and Natural Waters functions and oversee a team of scientists, technicians and administrative staff. The role emphasizes effective management within the Council’s environmental priorities and performance framework.

The position reports to the Senior Engineer in the Environment Directorate and involves contributing to strategic environmental initiatives, including regulation, enforcement, and climate-related

Responsibilities

• Management and delivery of the Council’s Environmental and Natural Waters functions.
• Strategic planning and development of Environmental Water Services Regulation and Enforcement.
• Leading change initiatives within the service.

Job description

Senior Executive Scientist - Meath County Council

The closing date for this vacancy is 26/11/2026, 15:00

The successful applicant will report to the Senior Engineer in the Environment Directorate or a nominee. The role will include responsibility for overall management of a team of staff including scientists, environmental technicians and administrative staff.

The main focus of the role is on water related matters; however, the appointed candidate may also be required to work in other areas of environmental activity including waste, air, noise and climate action.

The Senior Executive Scientist will be responsible for the efficient management of their prescribed work area. Managers at this level work within defined parameters relevant to the position, in accordance with the Local Authority's vision and objectives.

In recent years, Meath County Council has achieved excellent or strong scores across virtually all National Enforcement Priorities (NEPs) in the EPA’s annual Local Authority Performance Framework. The successful candidate will be required to perform a central and integral role in maintaining and building upon this high performance.

A full Job Summary/Description is available in the Information Booklet.

Main Duties of the Job

Management and delivery of the Council’s Environmental and Natural Waters functions including.

Management of the strategic planning, design and development of the Environmental Water Services Regulation and Enforcement service.

Taking a lead management role in developing, implementing, and managing change.

A full list of main duties is available in the Information Booklet.

Information about the organisation

Meath County Council is the authority responsible for Local Government in County Meath with its corporate headquarters located at Buvinda House, Navan.

The Council is seeking applications from suitably qualified persons who wish to be considered for inclusion on a panel for the position of Senior Executive Scientist.

Meath County Council is the primary unit of Local Government in County Meath. The Council is responsible for the delivery of a wide range of public services in Meath, with an overarching vision to “Make Meath Even Better”. This is through a focus on making it the lead county for economic prosperity, social development and environmental protection, with efficient and good value services and a Council representing the people and communities of County Meath in an effective and accountable manner.

The Council is one of the county’s major employers, currently employing approximately 1,060 staff. The Council’s Revenue Budget for 2026 is €258m and its 3-year rolling Capital Programme 2026-2028 has an estimated spend of €1.24b.

Meath County Council’s mission is to drive the economic, social, cultural and environmental improvement of the county to enhance the quality of life of the people of Meath.

An opportunity now exists in Meath County Council for the position of Senior Executive Scientist.

Salary and Working Hours

Salary Scale effective from 1st June 2026:

Hours of attendance will be fixed from time to time but will amount to not less than 35 hours gross per week.

• The annual leave allowance for the position of Senior Executive Scientist is 30 days.

Selection Process Details

A ranking and or shortlisting exercise may be carried out on the basis of information supplied in your application form. The criteria for ranking and or shortlisting are based on the requirements of the post as outlined in the eligibility criteria and skills, competencies and/or knowledge section of this job specification. Therefore it is very important that you think about your experience in light of those requirements.

Failure to include information regarding these requirements may result in you not being called forward to the next stage of the selection process.

Local authorities are committed equal opportunities employers.