Senior Ecologist - Terrestrial Species Specialist

Binnies is seeking a Senior Ecologist - Terrestrial Species Specialist in Bradford-on-Avon, UK, to support their Environmental team across various projects. The role involves advising on technical improvements, leading survey teams, and authoring ecological reports. Candidates should have expertise in specific species groups and relevant qualifications. While the position allows for remote work, frequent site attendance in the South, South East, and East of England is required.
Binnies are recruiting for a Senior Ecologist to have a key role in our southern/midlands area, supporting our Terrestrial Species Survey Lead. Our Ecologists provide support across our portfolio of work to maximise the sustainability of our projects at all scales and sectors including flood, coastal and maritime, local authorities, water utilities, transport and renewable power.

You would be a key part of our national Environmental team and work with our ecologists, landscape architects and other specialists to drive the quality of our surveys and assessments across diverse projects including new reservoir development, river restoration, catchment management, SSSI assessment and coastal management. We are already working with our GIS and Digital Ecology specialists to optimise the use of technology in collecting data and are looking for someone with an interest in supporting further opportunities.

You will have expertise in one or more species group specialisms with the appropriate statutory licences and experience to carry out survey work for those specialisms and associated assessments.

Our focus for this role is to support our growing and varied project workload in the South, South East and East of England and it is expected that frequent site attendance to support these projects will be required. You would be welcome in one of our local offices as a full time or hybrid worker (Redhill, Bradford on Avon/Bristol, Birmingham), but we are open to candidates from across the region and offer remote working.

Binnies is a registered Ecological (CIEEM) and Landscape Practice (Landscape Institute) and hold the IEMA EIA Quality Mark, which is a benchmark of our high standards in EIA delivery.

About The Role

To support Binnies in our ambitions for our Ecology team, the role would involve:
• Working with the Binnies ecology management team in an advisory role on your specialisms. Advising on technical improvement and supporting the development of more junior team members.
• Providing advice on survey requirements to clients and internal project management teams
• Designing survey protocols and site-specific survey plans for your species specialisms. Include the writing of site and task specific risk assessments
• Leading survey teams for your species specialisms. Including the management and analysis of recorded data.
• Authoring technical reports or report sections for your species specialism.
• Authoring Preliminary Ecological Appraisals and contributing to Ecological Impact Assessments and Habitats Regulations Assessments.
• Working with our GIS and Digital specialists to maximise use of technology to optimise surveys and reporting.
• Supporting tenders for your species specialisms.

We are happy to adapt the role to your preferences for maintaining your technical discipline and experience outside of your species specialisms.

If you would like to discuss the role in advance of making a formal application please contact our Ecology Team Leader Owen Peat peato@binnies.com

Qualifications/Requirements

The role is suitable for an experienced Ecology professional with full membership of CIEEM or equivalent. You should possess and be able to demonstrate the following qualifications, skills and knowledge:
• Have an ecological/environmental related degree.
• At least two species or species group specialisms with the appropriate statutory licences and experience to carry out survey work for those specialisms.
• Proven experience in survey design and implementation for those species specialisms.
• Competence and experience of utilising the standard survey guidance, survey techniques, survey equipment and associated post survey analysis software for your specialisms.
• Competence in the development of risk assessments for the activity to a suitable standard and in accordance with Binnies’ strong commitment to health, safety and wellbeing.
• Experience of habitat survey of non-complex sites, preferably using UKHab.
• Experience of writing Preliminary Ecological Appraisals for non- complex sites.
• Have excellent written and oral communication.
• Enjoy innovation and embracing advances in technology and ecology.
• Hold a full UK driving licence.

Desirable Experience Includes
• Wider environmental impact assessment and consenting.
• Ecological Impact Assessment experience.
• Protected Species Mitigation licencing experience.
• Ecological Clerk of Works experience.
• Previous consultancy experience.