Ips typographus Support Officer

Job summary

Join the Plant Health Operations Team within Forest Services, part of the Forestry Commission, as an Ips typographus Support Officer. You will help protect England's trees and woodlands, while supporting wider plant health work across Great Britain, by assisting with surveillance, fieldwork and outbreak response activities.

These roles offer varied environmental fieldwork and opportunities to develop expertise in outbreak detection, pest surveillance and biosecurity practice. You will work with knowledgeable colleagues and contribute to coordinated ground-level operations, combining regular fieldwork and site visits with office-based activities.

Job description

About Forest Services and the Plant Health Forestry Team

Forest Services are the Government's forestry experts. We support the forestry sector and landowners to protect, improve, and expand England's woodlands through regulation, incentives, and expert advice.

Within Forest Services, the Plant Health Forestry (PHF) Team delivers technical policy advice, operational activities (border and inland), and the Forest Reproductive Materials (FRM) programme. Our work ensures that GB's treescape is protected from pests and diseases, and that we are prepared to respond to emerging threats.

The PHF Team operates with both England and GB-wide responsibilities:

• England: Inland surveillance, outbreak management, biosecurity promotion, and regulatory implementation, working with Defra and the Devolved Governments as part of the GB Plant Health Service.
• GB-wide: Statutory functions (including border inspections) and technical advice and support on plant health.

About the Ips typographus Project Team

The Ips typographus Project Team works with landowners, the forestry industry and partner agencies to prevent, detect and eradicate Ips typographus in England. Our work ranges from surveying vulnerable spruce and responding to outbreaks to arranging felling and control work with contractors. We also help landowners manage spruce in high-risk areas and authorise felling, timber movement and processing in line with biosecurity requirements.

Working alongside Forest Research and government partners, we use survey data and pheromone trapping to guide our response and explore new approaches, including remote sensing, debarking and canine detection. Sharing knowledge is an important part of the programme. Through training, practical guidance and conversations with landowners and forestry workers, we help others play their part in protecting woodlands.

About the roles

We are seeking one Ips typographus Support Officer to assist in detecting, containing and eradicating Ips typographus outbreaks across south-east England. Working under the direction of the Ips typographus Project Officer, you will play a vital hands-on role in fieldwork, data collection and surveillance operations.

Key work areas

The purpose of the Ips typographus Support Officer is to:

• Support the Ips typographus Project Officer in delivering England's eradication response to Ips typographus.
• Carry out ground-level surveillance of vulnerable spruce stands, with intensified fieldwork activities during spring and summer seasons.
• Assist with the deployment and checking of pheromone traps and carry out targeted ground-inspection following trap catches, in collaboration with Forest Research.
• Collect, record and validate field data on surveillance findings, pest distributions and outbreak status, maintaining accurate and audit-ready records.
• Support the administration of inspections for spruce felling, movement and processing authorisations, helping to maintain up-to-date records and ensuring documentation is complete.
• Assist with the coordination of Statutory Plant Health Notices (SPHNs) by supporting communications with landowners, agents and contractors regarding legal requirements and biosecurity obligations.
• Support contractors delivering surveillance, sanitation and control measures on site, reporting progress and issues to Project Officers.
• Engage with local landowners and forestry sector contacts to support the proactive spruce removal objective in high-risk areas, promoting good biosecurity practice at site visits.
• Input field data into reporting systems and assist in preparing timely reports on surveillance, eradication outcomes and operational activity to support Project Officer decision-making.
• Assist with the delivery of training sessions and preparation of guidance materials for forestry workers, contractors and partner agencies.
• Support FC and government R&D initiatives including remote sensing, debarking-equipment trials and canine detection studies.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• A qualification, training or practical background in forestry, arboriculture, ecology, land management or a related field, or demonstrable relevant experience in a similar operational or field-based role.
• Good communication skills with the ability to engage constructively with landowners, contractors and colleagues, and to exchange information clearly in fieldwork and office settings.
• Ability to manage your own time and tasks, prioritising workload to meet operational demands including seasonal peaks in fieldwork activity.
• Experience of carrying out fieldwork or site-based activities, with awareness of seasonal conditions and practical health and safety considerations in outdoor environments.
• Practical understanding of biosecurity, health and safety requirements in field operations.
• Ability to collect, record and input operational data accurately, supporting reporting and record-keeping requirements.
• Competent working knowledge of Microsoft 365 applications for communication, data entry and record management.
• Willingness and ability to undertake frequent travel and regular fieldwork in woodland environments and varying weather conditions, with reasonable adjustments where appropriate.
• High attention to detail and a commitment to maintaining accurate, audit-ready records.
• Ability to identify common UK tree species.

Desirable criteria

• Experience of assisting or working alongside contractors delivering forestry operations, surveillance surveys or related field activities.
• Familiarity with UK forestry practices and basic plant health concepts.
• Experience of plant health surveillance, pest or disease monitoring, or ecological survey work.
• Basic understanding of plant health regulatory processes or the ability to follow operational instructions and regulatory guidance consistently.
• Experience of supporting the administration of statutory notices, licences, permissions or similar documentation.
• Experience of using geographic information systems (GIS) or mobile mapping and data collection tools such as ArcGIS, Field Maps or Survey123.
• Experience of assisting with training sessions or stakeholder engagement events.
• Experience of supporting research, operational trials or the introduction of new survey or detection methods.