1012-325 Peatland Action Data and Evidence Training Placement - B Grade - October 2025

1012-325 - Peatland ACTION Data & Evidence Training Placement | Grade: B | Vacancy type: 6 months Fixed Term Appointment | Hours: 35 | Salary: £27,940| Location: Any NatureScot office considered (Home and hybrid working will also be considered) | Closing date: Midnight 26 October 2025 | Internal interviews: 6 November 2025 | External Interviews: 20 November 2025.

Context

NatureScot’s Peatland programme delivers actions to care for Scotland’s peatlands. It is integral to the government’s determination for peatland protection, restoration and management to reduce carbon emissions and contribute wider benefits for biodiversity, water management and green growth.  The Peatland Programme covers the requirements under the Scottish Government ring-fenced Peatland ACTION support for restoration and the wider NatureScot work on valuing, protecting and managing peatlands.

NatureScot has dual role on Peatland ACTION:

• providing leadership on shared services/business solutions across all five Peatland ACTION delivery partners (NatureScot, the two National Parks, Forestry & Land Scotland and Scottish Water); and,
• increasing the pace/scale of peatland restoration projects on the ground.

The NatureScot Peatland ACTION role is expanding in support of the government’s 10 year, £250m, commitment for restoration. It has an annual budget of ~ £20m and comprises over 60 posts employed/supported by NatureScot.

Job Purpose Summary:

The main purpose of this post is to assist in the provision of data and evidence support to the Peatland ACTION Programme.  This is a desk-based post although there is the potential for occasional field visits and/or travel to events which may involve overnight stays. 

The post sits within the Peatland ACTION Data and Evidence Team.  It requires working with others in the Team to deliver an efficient data support and development service across Peatland ACTION.  The post will also work to address monitoring priorities outlined in the Partnership Monitoring Strategy. 

There are a range of potential tasks that could be undertaken by the post holder depending on their knowledge, expertise and the time available.  Tasks include digital imagery management, collating evidence for the range of benefits from peatland restoration activity, monitoring data formatting for statistical analysis and preparing species data for uploading onto the National Biodiversity Network Atlas. 

Areas Of Responsibility:

1. Manage the upload of ad hoc Peatland ACTION digital imagery to NatureScot’s corporate Digital Asset Management System, in line with guidance.
2. Assist in reviewing the evidence for one of the benefits associated with peatland restoration (e.g. biodiversity improvement, flood resilience, water quality) and performing some analysis using open-source data.
3. Supporting potential statistical analysis work by manipulating monitoring data into an appropriate format in preparation for the analysis.  
4. Developing a photographic portfolio of pre- and post-restoration imagery for communications work.
5. Assisting with the upload of protected species data into the Peatland ACTION database.

Role Requirements (please refer to these in your supporting statement): 

1. Understanding of peatland ecology and restoration techniques
2. Experience in the use of GIS and spatial tools in an ecological/environmental context
3. Experience of conducting and managing data from a range of species surveys across upland and peatland habitats
4. Understanding of spatial data management principles and processes
5. Good organisational and time management skills and ability to prioritise workload
6. Strong written and verbal communications with the ability to convey complex information clearly to a non-technical audience
7. Strong interpersonal skills, to support collaborative working with remotely based colleagues with various GIS competencies 
8. Knowledge or previous experience of basic SQL

Prerequisites Required

• Candidates must be eligible to live and work in the UK and resident in Scotland for the duration of the job contract
• To undertake a Disclosure Scotland application.
• Although Gaelic language is not a prerequisite it is a desirable skill in support of our commitment to our Gaelic Language Plan

Working for NatureScot – what we offer you

• NatureScot offers some great benefits to reward and support you whilst you are working for us. Our benefits package includes the civil service pension scheme, a generous holiday leave allowance plus flexi time, and employee discount scheme.  Visit the NatureScot website for further details including below:
• An environment with flexible working options 
• A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97% (7.35% employee contributions) https://www.civilservicepensionscheme.org.uk/joining-the-pension-scheme/benefits-of-the-pension-scheme/
• 41.5 days of annual leave, including 5 fixed public holidays on St Andrews Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and 2nd January
• Equivalent of 2 days paid volunteering leave 
• A focus on wellbeing with access to an employee assistance programme 
• Job satisfaction from contributing proactively to the twinned nature and climate crisis 
• Death in service benefits 
• Cycle to work and electric vehicle salary sacrifice schemes 
• Access to an employee discounts scheme 
• Learning and development tailored to your role 
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity .

Application Process

Application is by CV and Supporting Statement. Please ensure you have attached these documents when submitting your application.

Before applying for this post;

• Internal applicants should read the Self Service Guide (eRDMS A3155575)
• External applicants should read the Online Job Application Guide 

If you have previously applied for a vacancy with NatureScot you must remove the supporting statement from your profile, before uploading a new version.

Interviews

External candidates will be invited to interview if we are unable to recruit internally.

NatureScot’s Net Zero commitment

Whether working at home or in an office, or travelling to meetings and site visits, as a NatureScot you will contribute to our Net Zero plan, for example through positive carbon travel choices. 

• For information regarding the vacancy please contact 
• Sally Blyth, Peatland ACTION Data & Evidence Team Manager 
• Email: sally.blyth@nature.scot Tel: 01463 725013
• For information regarding the recruitment process please contact:

Recruitment@Nature.Scot

Nature is vital to all of us, so it is vital that we are an organisation for all of Scotland. The more diverse NatureScot is, the better we will be in connecting everyone with nature. We particularly encourage applications from people from Minority Ethnic (ME) backgrounds and people with a disability.