Land Use Policy Manager

Land Use Policy Manager
Salary: up to £40,000
Location: Hybrid with occasional travel to London, Newark (Nottinghamshire) and rest of UK
Full time (35 hours per week)
Permanent contract
Closing date for applications: 7th September 2025
First interview: 19th September 2025
Second interview: 1st October 2025

About Us

The Wildlife Trusts are a grassroots movement of people from a wide range of backgrounds and all walks of life, who believe that we need nature and nature needs us. We have more than 944,000 members, over 38,000 volunteers, 3,600 staff and 600 trustees. There are 46 individual Wildlife Trusts, each of which is a place-based independent charity with its own legal identity, formed by groups of people getting together and working with others to make a positive difference to wildlife and future generations, starting where they live and work.

Every Wildlife Trust is part of The Wildlife Trusts federation and a corporate member of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, a registered charity in its own right founded in 1912 and one of the founding members of IUCN – the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Taken together this federation of 47 charities is known as The Wildlife Trusts.

The next few years will be critical in determining what kind of world we all live in. We need to urgently reverse the loss of wildlife and put nature into recovery at scale if we are to prevent climate and ecological disaster. We recognise that this will require big, bold changes in the way The Wildlife Trusts work, not least in how we mobilise others and support them to organise within their own communities. 

About You

Are you a strategic communicator with a passion for policy, public affairs and making a real difference? Do you dream of using your skills to make a real difference in conservation and farming? We have an opportunity at the heart of The Wildlife Trusts for someone keen to ensure that natures’ recovery is at the heart of UK farming, food and land use policy? If you have experience in UK farm and land policy, with excellent advocacy and communication skills, and would like to work for one of the UK’s best loved nature charities, then we have an exciting opportunity for you.

Working within our small but highly impactful team, the Land Use Policy Manager will work to influence the development of land use and farm policy, to improve the quality of decisions taken at a project and strategic level to deliver The Wildlife Trusts’ ambitions for natures recovery and nature friendly, climate resilient farming and food systems.

You will develop and manage strategic relationships to position The Wildlife Trusts as key instigators of change, building climate and nature’s recovery into rapidly changing farm, land and policy. You will also be supporting the Federation of Wildlife Trusts’ work on farming and food.

We are looking for an organised and resourceful individual who has proven experience of working with various sectors to influence farm policy and strategy. You will have a commitment to wildlife conservation, enjoy working in a fast-paced environment and be confidence in communicating to diverse audiences.

The Wildlife Trusts value passion, respect, trust, integrity, pragmatic activism and strength in diversity. Whilst we are passionate in promoting our aims, we are not judgmental and are inclusive. We particularly encourage applications from people who are underrepresented within our sector, including people from minority backgrounds and people with disabilities. We are committed to creating a movement that recognises and truly values individual differences and identities.

RSWT take our Safeguarding responsibilities extremely seriously. Please visit our website to read our commitment statement. The Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults at risk. For applicable roles, applicants must be willing to undergo checks with past employers and Disclosure and Barring Service checks at the eligible level.

As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to offering an interview to anyone with a disability that meets all the essential criteria for the post. Please let us know if you require any adjustments to make our recruitment process more accessible. RSWT are committed to increasing the diversity of its staff through its Levelling the Field recruitment pledge and will put any ethnic minority applicants that meet all the essential criteria for the post through to the next stage of recruitment.

Please do not use artificial intelligence tools to assist you to complete the application form. We may not accept applications that have been completed utilising AI tools. If you would usually use tools such as these to assist you in filling in a form, please contact us to discuss this further and understand other options.