Department: Communications and Engagement
Reporting to: VisitWoods Communications Manager
Salary: £19,000 - £24,000 per annum
Based: Grantham
Position: Fixed Term Contract (December 2013)
Closing Date: Sunday 14 August 2011
Intertview Date: w/c 29 August 2011
Introduction
The Woodland Trust (the Trust, WT) is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity dedicated to preventing no further loss of ancient woodland, restoring and improving biodiversity, increasing native woodland cover, as well as enhancing people’s awareness and enjoyment of woods. The WT owns and manages 1,264 sites that cover over 20,000 hectares.
The VisitWoods project
VisitWoods is a 5-year funded project which aims to inspire new audiences to discover and enjoy woodlands. VisitWoods is particularly keen to encourage children and young people, older people and disabled people to take advantage of the many benefits health and leisure benefits woods have to offer. At the heart of the VisitWoods project is the website, visitwoods.org.uk which is the first searchable comprehensive database of woods open to the public in the UK.
We want more people to visit woods, regularly! Here's why:
- There are 288,000 hectares of woodland in England that can be accessed by the public. 10 percent of the population has a two hectare accessible wood within 500 metres of where they live and 55 percent of the population has a 20 hectare wood within four kilometres of where they live (Woods for People 2004)
- Nearly one million children in England having access to a woodland within walking distance
- The vast majority of this woodland is free of charge to visit; enjoying woodland requires no equipment, training or facilitation
- Woodland can accommodate a wide-range of interests and activities for a diverse range of visitors
- Woodland is one of the richest wildlife habitats in the UK, offering great potential for people to develop an appreciation and understanding of nature and the biodiversity of our wooded landscape (as outlined as a priority in the UK BAP)
- A wide range of research demonstrates that access and enjoyment of woodland and green space offer significant health benefits (see Natural Thinking, a report by Dr William Bird, investigating the links between the natural environment, biodiversity and mental health, amongst others).
VisitWoods is funded through Natural England's Access to Nature programme, part of the Big Lottery Fund Changing Spaces Programme. A Woodland Trust led partnership project, with the Forestry Commission and other partners.
Aims of the VisitWoods project
- Overcome the key barriers that prevent more people visiting woodland regularly: lack of information and inspiration. This particularly includes families with children, older people and people with disabilities
- Facilitate an ongoing sustainable communications campaign, with a number of key partners to raise the profile of the wealth of UK woodland where visitors are welcome, highlighting its potential as a great place to visit
- Give people the information they need, in one place, to enable them to exercise, enjoy nature, spend time with friends and family, relax, learn, heal, and play in woods
- Champion the VisitWoods website as the gateway to a woodland experience
- Involve volunteers in gathering and presenting information on woods to visit and in engaging new visitors, led by a large, well-trained and supported volunteer force of Woodland Web Guides
- Facilitate a targeted communications campaign in East Durham, an area of the country where pockets of social and economic deprivation exist, and the amount of accessible woodland is high, in order to try and create a sustainable communications model, resulting in increased use of woodland locally, by tailoring our communications, content and resources
- Target specific priority audiences through engaging directly with representative organisations, looking to leave a sustainable legacy of increased awareness, confidence, inspiration and use of woodland
- Maintain and develop new key partnerships to enable meaningful involvement of those representing parts of society who traditionally have limited access to nature in the shaping of our communications and the creation of shared information resources
- Facilitate dynamic, interactive user-generated content (UGC) as a means of creating a relevant, credible, living resource.
Partnerships
The Woodland Trust is working with a range of partners, including those outside the conservation sector including the National Trust, Wildlife Trusts, RSPB and Action for Children, Walking for Health, AgeUK, Mind, The Scout Association, DisabledGo etc.
Purpose of this role
To champion the VisitWoods website, and be responsible for developing web content, directly drawing from the VisitWoods Communications Strategy, that will inspire and inform new audiences, particularly children, older people and people with disabilities.
Job tasks and responsibilities
- Work with the VisitWoods Communications manager to plan inspiring web content for the VisitWoods website, drawing from the existing communication plan and identifying opportunities from other Woodland Trust projects and campaigns, ensuring integration between all channels of communication (on and offline) to maximise effectiveness;
- Keep the VisitWoods website fresh and up-to-date by creating new web content, editing existing content, and identifying existing resources both internally and externally to share on the site
- Work with people from the VisitWoods key target audiences and partner organisation to test content and develop new ideas
- Work with the VisitWoods Volunteering Officer to manage and mediate user-generated content, including reviewing and updating existing moderation procedures where necessary
- Keep abreast of current trends in digital communication technologies and champion the continued development of the website, ensuring new developments are delivered within specification, deadline and budget, working with the Woodland Trust's digital and IT teams
- Regularly evaluate and monitor the impact of the site and its content and the website's effectiveness in delivering VisitWoods and Woodland Trust targets using web statistics
- Lead the regular VisitWoods web meetings both internally and virtually with key project partners
- Liaise with other internal project teams (specifically Nature’s Calendar and Nature Detectives), to build a bank of exemplary woodland resources to support inspiration and discovery
- Work with the Digital Engagement Officer to identify and develop relationships with relevant online communities of interest, in line with the communications plan and digital social media strategy
- Work with the Supporter Journey Development Leader to encourage VisitWoods' target audiences to further engage with the Trust's work
- Work with the Digital Engagement Manager and the VisitWoods Project Manager to develop a method of disseminating relevant project information and share best practice with woodland owners and project partners;
- In liaison with their line manager, to draw up a programme of personal development which addresses targets and performance measures.
Skills/Experience
- High quality web writing and editing skills
- Knowledge of SEO techniques
- Experience of using Content Management Systems (experience of MOSS an advantage)
- Experience of using web analytics
- Understanding of web accessibility and usability
- Excellent communication skills and ability to develop strong working relationships at all levels with internal and external stakeholders
- Proven organisation and planning skills
- Experience of managing own workload and working to set deadlines
- Ability to work under pressure and manage a demanding workload with tight deadlines
- Experience of working with people from VisitWoods key target audiences of children and young people, older people and people with disabilities
- Interest in education, preferably with experience in developing quality resources/activities to suit older children and adults
- A passion for the natural world - particularly woodland;
- Experience of Adobe Photoshop;
- Experience of managing and facilitating user-generated content
- Previous delivery of social media strategy;
- Experience of working with and managing external consultants
- Ability to readily identify limits of own expertise and knowledge, seeking advice, support and information from others as appropriate
- Willingness to travel and working unsociable hours occasionally
The Person
Graduate calibre with proven track record of managing content for a significant online project and demonstrable creative flair for sourcing and creating inspiring online content.
The list of tasks shown above is not exclusive not does their order indicate the priority attached to them. The job holder may, therefore, be required to perform other duties which may reasonably be assigned to them by their manager or supervisor.
We all have a duty to ensure that our acts or omissions at work do not impact on the health and safety of others and ourselves and that we abide by any safety measures as directed and in accordance with the Woodland Trust Health & Safety Policy.
The Woodland Trust aims to ensure that no job applicant or worker receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of race, colour, gender orientation, nationality, religion or belief (or lack of belief), ethnic or national origin, age, gender, gender reassignment or marital status, sexual orientation or disability.
Selection criteria and procedures are regularly reviewed to ensure that individuals are treated on the basis of their relevant merits and abilities. A copy of our Equal Opportunities Policy is available on request.
How to apply:
If you feel you have the necessary skills and experience and an affinity with the Trust's aims, we would like to hear from you. Please submit a letter of application including current salary details together with a CV, stating clearly which position you are interested in to:
recruitment@woodlandtrust.org.uk
To demonstrate good practice we would appreciate your support in removing unnecessary information from your CV and letter of application. This includes date of birth, education dates, religion and ethnicity.
Please ensure you state where you orignally saw the position advertised.
Note to Agencies:
Agencies are advised that the Woodland Trust will not accept any CVs but company details may be supplied by email to: recruitment@woodlandtrust.org.uk
