Gateway Team Leader - Stirley Community Farm. (Maternity Cover)

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1 Gateway Team Leader - Stirley Community Farm Context The Trust operates throughout the traditional county of Yorkshire (i.e. all of the Yorkshire and Humber region except North Lincolnshire) from the Humber to the Pennines and from the Dales and Moors to the urban conurbations of the south. It is the second oldest of the 47 Wildlife Trusts which work in partnership together covering the whole of the UK. Our purpose is to lead the way in achieving our vision of a Yorkshire rich in wildlife for everyone through pursuing our mission of creating Living Landscapes and securing Living Seas in Yorkshire. We will do this by being passionate leaders and natural partners whose objectives are to: demonstrate how nature works inspire people and communities to value and take action for wildlife champion wildlife and our work The 130 strong staff work through four directorates, with Stirley Community Farm sitting within the South and West Yorkshire operational directorate and the West Yorkshire regional team. Gateways and Hubs are the places we are creating across Yorkshire where we can combine the great on the ground wildlife work we do with the facilities that support being able to inspire people in that work and why it is important. We need everyone to care about wildlife to help spread the word. Stirley Community Farm, our first Gateway in West Yorkshire is an exciting and innovative project that works alongside the local communities, to restore this Living Landscape to a place where wildlife and people thrive. Through consultation we have designed the programme here to meet local people s needs, enabling them to become more connected to and gain a better understanding of their local environment, and improve their health and wellbeing. Since we took on this project five years ago, we have been following a programme of extensive restoration and rebuilding of some the key infrastructure of the site. We are gradually working towards returning traditional grassland management across the whole farm - hay cutting and grazing with beef shorthorn cattle, restoring nearly 100ha of meadows to their former wildlife rich glory. We also run festivals, events and education sessions allowing people to find out more about their local wildlife and inspire them to take action to look after it. All this is made possible through the support of a fantastic team of volunteers. They make a huge contribution by giving time, skills, knowledge, enthusiasm and local ownership to our vision.

2 We are looking for an experienced and innovative Team Leader to join our team - help us really start to open our doors wider to people, and build upon our efforts of restoring the natural heritage of the farmscape. The role would suit someone with a real flare for bringing people together, who enjoys developing exciting and engaging activities, and who understands visitor services, and wants to put their own stamp on and be part of an amazing and inspiring project. Team structure: Team Leader (1 FTE) Farmer (Stocksperson) (0.8 FTE) Farmer (Operations) (0.8 FTE) Inspring People Officer (0.5 FTE)

3 Job Description Outline Gateway Team Leader - Stirley Community Farm Responsible to: Regional Manager Responsible for: Farmer (Stockperson), Farmer (Operations), Inspiring People Officer, volunteers, trainees and contractors Based at: Stirley Community Farm, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire (HD4 6TU) Brief The Team Leader takes complete ownership of the Gateway Programme at Stirley Community Farm. You ll be responsible for making sure the entire operation runs smoothly, leading and inspiring the entire farm team, and designing and managing how all interactions with our customers, visitors, volunteers, and stakeholders happen. You ll lead, supervise and encourage the team to deliver a great service, through consistent and forward looking team leadership. You will oversee and develop our Farmscape restoration plans with the long term aspiration to create a living landscape that is productive, rich in wildlife, and accessible to local communities. Working closely with your team you will be responsible for transitioning the farm centre from its development and construction phase to establishing an exciting gateway programme that attracts and inspires a wide audience. Team Leadership Control the annual delegated budget ( 100,000 to 500,000) Duty manage the gateway staff and volunteer team ensuring supervision (project progress and planning meetings - PPPMs), personal development, mentoring and ensuring good conditions of work Foster the conditions to develop a strong collaborative team environment, ensuring regular and effective communications between the team Have oversight of the farming operation; supporting the Farming Officer to ensure the welfare of the herd, the meadow restoration programme is rolled out, and the beef box scheme runs smoothly Collaborate with the Inspiring People Officer to develop and manage an exciting education and events programme based on our Engagement Ladder and built for schools and families

4 Development Collaborate with the Volunteer Development Team to develop a well-trained, robust, and dynamic volunteer force that are at the heart of the gateway operation Develop and build upon the site master plan to design how the farm works, how visitors interact with the site, how the site looks and feels (visual style, natural elements), and to focus task setting on this strategy Develop the Gateway s signage, interpretation, infrastructure and visitor facilities to increase and widen the audience of visitors to the farm and develop the daily reason to visit Develop projects and secure external funding to drive forward the Stirley Vision Champion and promote the programme to the public and stakeholders at events, meetings, in the press and online Service Delivery Ensure the Gateway is a welcoming, safe and clean, pleasant and inspiring place to visit Promote excellent customer service from everyone our visitors interact with Promote, sell and support delivery of our activities (events, education programme, and products) ensuring our ambitions stay on track and our commercial targets are met Ensure external (legal) and internal policy compliance including HR, health and safety, environmental, and safeguarding policy and procedure Other Promote the Trust and partner organisations whenever possible Attend all necessary external and internal meetings Abide by all Trust policies Participate in task force team working when required to work outside your usual operational functions Undertake other duties as requested by your line manager and in line with the post.

5 Gateway Team Leader - Stirley Community Farm Person Specification Experience Leading people: a high level of skill and significant experience of leading and managing staff Putting on great events: experience of planning, managing, and promoting inspiring and profitable events and activities Experience of working in a visitor services or community engagement type environment Desirable Knowledge and Understanding Upstream thinking to health and wellbeing: understand the crucial role a project like this can play in helping people feel well and maintain a healthy life Value and inspire our volunteers: understand the important role they play and know how to help them grow Green fingered: knowledge of vegetable growing and crop rotation Desirable Understanding the visitor experience: you ll have some knowledge about how publicly accessible spaces work and how they can be developed for wildlife and people Desirable Skills and Qualifications Prioritisation and multi-tasking: know where to spend your valuable time and where to delegate responsibilities while ensuring continued control and high standards A passion for selling: you ll know how to put together a basic marketing plan and get on with getting the bookings Analytical: ability to manipulate and analyse data in our systems and excel to turn data into insight Desirable

6 Personal Qualities Effective communicator: personable and engaging, ability to build great relationships with everyone you work with, record of strong communications skills Willingness to get your wellies on: helping with the cows, wrangling kids on a school visit, or moving things from here to there A love for wildlife: truly passionate about bringing about a Yorkshire rich in wildlife for everyone!

7 Gateway Team Leader - Stirley Community Farm Details Terms and Conditions Salary: Hours: p.a 35 working hours per week, Monday to Friday. The nature of the post s duties will from time-to-time require evening and weekend work. Paid overtime is not available, but time off in lieu will be given. Contract: This is a maternity cover contract and will end on 31 March Holidays: Flexibility: Childcare Vouchers: Employee Assistance Programme: Equal Opportunities: Notice Period: Place of Work: 25 working days per annum in addition to normal public holidays. Subject to ensuring that the needs of the business and the role are met, the Trust, where possible, endeavours to meet the flexible working needs of its employees. The Trust operates a Childcare Voucher Scheme. Details of which are available on request. The Trust provides paid staff with access to an Employee Assistance Programme. This is a confidential service which aims to provide staff with support for a range of issues. Further details are available from the HR and Training Manager. Yorkshire Wildlife Trust is committed to equal opportunities and appoints on merit. We welcome applicants from all sections of society regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, disability, marital status, age and religion, perceived community background or political beliefs. 8 weeks following satisfactory completion of a probationary period. The post will be based at Stirley Community Farm, Huddersfield (HD4 6TU) Travel: Public transport is encouraged although pool vehicles are available. In exceptional circumstances the use of the officer s own vehicle may be necessary for business use for which a mileage rate of 27.5p per mile will be paid. Training: The Trust is fully committed to personal development and training. Closing date: 9am on Monday 8 January 2018 Interview dates: Friday 19 January 2018