Brock and Calder Landscape Recovery Senior Agriculture Advisor

The role will be based at the Wyre RT Offices at Myerscough College, Lancashire. The candidate will be expected to work across the entire catchment and a large amount of time within any given week will be spent outside. The officer will report to the Brock and Calder Landscape Recovery Project Manager & Wyre Rivers Trust General Manager., The Senior Agriculture Advisor (SAA) will be directly responsible for liaison with all land managers within the project. The role will focus on the development of an effective and unique relationship with each land manager, collaborating closely with them to co-design implementation plans for each farm. When coalesced with implementation plans from each other participant, these implementation plans will form the backbone of the land management plan. The SAA will also be responsible for ensuring that the needs of their farm business are assessed against any proposed actions within the implementation phase. This will help to guarantee the sustainability and resilience of each farm business within the project, securing the outcomes of the project throughout the implementation phase and beyond., The successful candidate will be a graduate and an exceptional self-starter with the motivation, vision and passion to make the river Wyre a cleaner and healthier environment. They must be a good communicator with a passion for conservation and knowledge of catchment science, freshwater and estuarine environments. The candidate should have a good working knowledge of:

• How to work with the agriculture sector to deliver environmental, social and economic benefits at catchment or wider scale.


• The ability to engage with farmers in a manner which is beneficial to them, their families and their businesses.


• The importance of confidentiality and diligence when dealing with farmers, landowners and land managers.


• The UK Agricultural Sector, specifically upland beef, sheep, and dairy farming, farm business planning and of Environmental Land Management Schemes from 2010 onwards (including Landscape Recovery).


• Working in partnership with owner occupiers, tenants, and landowners to deliver environmental change within the agriculture sector.


• Knowledge of UK food production, carbon sequestration and ecosystem service assessments.


• Catchment and landscape management, with an understanding of key processes affecting aquatic, terrestrial and subterranean habitats and how these habitats can be restored to drive landscape scale environmental, economic, and social change.


• Partnership working and relevant legislation. The candidate will also be required to review, revise, and deliver detailed reports in a diligent manner.


• Data recording, storage (in accordance with relevant legislation) and its use to develop projects for funding bids.
  
  The Wyre Rivers Trust is a registered charity with a remit to improve the ecological status of the River Wyre and its catchment.


Founded by three angling clubs and supported by many community groups, the Trust started small with localised projects to improve habitat, especially spawning conditions, for all fish species and completed with contractors and volunteers. However, since 2013 the Trust has grown, became host of the Wyre Waters Catchment Partnership and is now delivering works at the catchment scale with a host of far-reaching benefits.

Projects address a range of issues impacting upon biodiversity, water quality, and water quantity, and tackle these with solutions such as natural flood management, habitat creation and habitat connectivity. The Trust has recently created an Integrated Catchment Plan containing a comprehensive list of priorities within the Wyre catchment, reviewed, and agreed by our partners. Following this process, the trust was successful in securing funding to support the Brock and Calder Landscape Recovery Project, one of a number of national projects working to deliver the highest tier of the Environmental Land Management Schemes. Within this project, there are five posts which WRT will recruit for within the first 6 months of the project development phase.

To lead on engagement with the ~25 land managers involved in the project, we require a Senior Agriculture Advisor. The post holder will be expected to work closely with a range of groups including farmers (both owner occupiers and tenants), landowners and land managers (including local authorities). Within this role, the SAA will be expected to provide detailed advice and guidance on land management, sustainability, emerging markets (I.E Carbon), farm resilience and farm business planning. It is expected that this advice will lead to successful co-design of implementation plans for each farm involved within the project, which can be taken forward and synthesised to form the backbone of the land management plan for the BCLR Delivery Phase. It is paramount that the SAA ensures the needs of farmers, farming, and farm businesses as part of their role - resilient and sustainable food production and farm businesses are one of the key foundations of this project.