Senior Advisor - Future Agriculture - Environmental Land Management - 31666

The Environment Agency is committed to maintaining an inclusive workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We seek diversity and strive to live it for the benefit of staff, communities and the environment.

England is reforming agricultural policy and spending by moving from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes. ELM schemes support farmers to deliver public goods in return for public money, incentivising water, soil and biodiversity outcomes alongside food production. Working with Defra and delivery partner colleagues, you will aim to improve services to farmers. These reforms support a resilient, productive agriculture sector and align with the EA2030 strategy and government targets for water, environment and climate. The role includes influencing the design and delivery of incentives within the broader context of organisational responses to government reviews, which aim to achieve clean and plentiful water, greater economic growth and nature recovery through regulation.

The Environment Agency ELM team seeks dynamic, strategic thinkers to shape the future of ELM, particularly the delivery of Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier (CSHT). You will contribute to the delivery of CSHT products for the Farming and Countryside Programme and support continuous improvement of the scheme through its design and delivery.

You will provide advice in meetings, manage commissions, oversee Programme milestones, and identify future risks and resource requirements. You will work across a variety of teams and organisations, including senior leaders, to articulate a scheme that supports and delivers outcomes.

The team sits within the Nature & Place Directorate, part of the National Agriculture and Land Team, collaborating with government, statutory bodies and industry. We work in an agile, fast-paced, flexible and collaborative environment, managing uncertainty to deliver clarity. We are committed to our people and foster a welcoming, safe, supportive environment where everyone feels valued. We are a dispersed team and use smart tools to stay connected and reduce travel.

Experience/skills Required

The role represents our expertise to Defra, delivery bodies and the agriculture sector to achieve consistency and improve cross-organisation collaboration. Essential experience includes working with Defra and other statutory bodies in Agriculture, political awareness with excellent communication and networking skills, understanding of environmental sensitivities related to major agriculture sector reform, and experience interpreting/evaluating evidence to propose risk-based solutions for challenging problems. You should be able to prioritise and deliver complex work and be a self-starter who develops ideas and takes them forward.

Ideal candidates will demonstrate:

• get stuff done, including through others
• embody our culture
• ensure information is trusted
• cascade key information
• build relationships quickly
• soothe troubled waters

Relevant capabilities: Shapes Organisational Approach & Delivery, Achieves Results, Seeing the Bigger Picture (Business of the Environment Agency), Focuses on Customers and Partners, Delivers Results Through Others

Contact and additional information

You’ll have an incident management objective in your development plan. Appropriate training will be given. Your EA Office base location is flexible/hybrid in England.

We use smart tools to stay connected and reduce travel; some travel/overnights will be required. Please read the Candidate/Additional Information Pack for information. For more information please contact:

• Kate Bayley: kate.bayley@environment-agency.gov.uk
• D-J Gent: dj.gent@environment-agency.gov.uk

Applications are “blind” assessed using your answers to the competency questions. Interviews are expected to be held via MS Teams two weeks after the closing date. If you consent to being held on a reserve list, we’ll hold your details for 6 months and may offer you an alternative post.

Competency-based sections

Competence 1 – Shapes organisational approach & delivery

Description: Informing and influencing Government policy and agricultural scheme design and implementation is a key part of this role. Provide examples of strategic work and alignment of organisational priorities, targets and resources.

Competence 2 – Achieves Results

Description: Prioritise and organise tasks and resources while working with uncertainty. Describe a time you prioritised work to ensure timely delivery of results and how you managed uncertainty.

Competence 3 – Focuses on Customers and Partners

Description: Address internal and external customer needs. Provide an example of a rapid and effective response to a group of customers and how you managed expectations.

Competence 4 – Delivers Results Through Others

Description: Harness a team to deliver on time and to required standards. Describe a time you led a group to deliver results and what contributed to success.

Competence 5 – Seeing the Big Picture

Description: Understand and react to changing direction, goals and business of the Environment Agency. Explain implications of recent government reviews on the water sector and regulatory reform.

Note: If applying from Civil Service, the Environment Agency is not part of HM Civil Service. We welcome flexible working patterns and encourage applicants to state their preferred working arrangements. We guarantee an interview to disabled applicants whose application meets minimum criteria. See policy details in the Candidate/Additional Information Pack.

The Environment Agency, as a Non-Departmental Public Body, uses Central Government frameworks and contracts for external recruitment. We are unable to engage with the market directly via post, email, or phone for recruitment. If you wish to become a supplier through Crown Commercial Service, visit the official GOV.UK page for information.

Seniority level

• Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Full-time

Job function

• Management and Manufacturing

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