Overview

We are seeking an Intelligence Research Officer to join National Environmental Crime Unit NECU in a dynamic part of the business. The Environment Agency’s ambition is to be an intelligence-led organisation, so managing intelligence professionally and in line with current guidance is essential to ensuring threat, risk and harm is appropriately assessed and managed. Environmental crime is a strategic priority, attracting high profile attention from the public, media, national and international stakeholders. This role provides an exciting opportunity to support investigations and help prioritise and drive forward interventions to remove unlawful operators from the waste regimes. You will help deliver our response by proactively developing and accessing intelligence from a range of sources to inform decision making and provide actionable intelligence products for our customers.

We are fully committed to having an inclusive workforce to reflect the communities we serve. We welcome flexible working patterns for our vacancies, including job share; please clearly include any information regarding your preferred working arrangements on your application. Responding to incidents is a central part of our work. You will be required to have an incident role and make yourself available to respond to incidents or provide business continuity support during an incident. This may attract an additional payment and full training and alternative working arrangements will be available to support you with your incident role.

Location is flexible with a mix of home and office working; travel to our Birmingham and Sheffield offices – where most staff are based – will be required on occasions. Interviews will be conducted via Microsoft Teams and are expected to be in September 2025. We are committed to a diverse and inclusive workforce and welcome applications from groups that are under-represented across our workforce. We also have a Guaranteed Interview Policy to support those with a disability who are seeking employment.

The Environment Agency, as a Non-Departmental Public Body, is committed to providing value for money and utilises Central Government frameworks and contracts for all external recruitment needs. For more information on becoming a Crown Commercial Service supplier, please visit the official government page.

Note: Security vetting checks (SC and NPPV3) will be required. For an informal discussion, please contact the vacancy managers at pete.booth@environment-agency.gov.uk or sam.morrison@environment-agency.gov.uk.

Responsibilities

You will:

• Collect and evaluate data and information from a wide variety of sources to produce or inform intelligence products
• Proactively develop intelligence and access information to inform decision making
• Provide actionable intelligence products for customers and support investigations
• Respond to incidents as part of an incident role and provide business continuity support as needed
• Work with the Environment Agency’s enforcement community to tackle offences and protect the environment

Qualifications and Experience

You’ll need to:

• Have experience of interrogating IT systems and databases and the ability to collect and evaluate data from diverse sources
• Demonstrate enthusiasm and curiosity for finding information
• Be able to prepare and deliver research summaries
• Be capable of using standard IT packages to retrieve information accurately
• Communicate effectively and represent the Environment Agency professionally with partners
• Work well in a team and be inclusive in approach
• Be able to flex between tasks and manage administrative activities to support colleagues and customers

Competencies

Competence 1: Achieves Results — Tell us about a time when you undertook work requiring you to alternate between several activities in a short space of time. How did you ensure you delivered everything?

Competence 2: Data and Information Management — Tell us about an occasion when you gathered detailed information from various sources to inform a decision. How did you approach it?

Competence 3: Builds and Sustains Relationships — Tell us about a time you established rapport with an important customer or partner. What did you do to develop the relationship?

From Civil Service status notes: The Environment Agency is not part of HM Civil Service and you would not be a Crown Servant if appointed. You may be eligible for continuous service under certain Local Government conditions. If unsure, contact your HR team. We value diversity and inclusion and welcome flexible working patterns, including job share. We also guarantee an interview to applicants with a disability whose application meets minimum criteria.

Seniority level

• Associate

Employment type

• Full-time

Job function

• Research, Analyst, and Information Technology

Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at Environment Agency. Get notified about new Research Officer jobs in Barnsley, England, United Kingdom. Locations listed include Barnsley, Chippenham, Tewkesbury, Cambridge, Gloucester, and others. We are enabling a more connected and informed public through responsible use of AI.