Location: Sheffield – Centre in the Park (Norfolk Park) and various sites around the city 

We are excited to be recruiting to this important role, which will join the award-winning Parks and Countryside service within Sheffield City Council! We are looking for someone who loves working within the environmental sector with applied experience in woodland and countryside management. Equally important is someone who will bring their energy, passion and drive to this varied and valuable role for Sheffield.

Sheffield is an amazing city with a proud heritage and a prosperous future. We’re a city on the up, alive with activity and energy and bursting with talent. We want to create the right environment for everyone to thrive with great neighbourhoods where communities have healthier lives in our Outdoor City. We’re passionate about responding to the nature and climate emergencies and are committed to ensuring our green spaces support nature recovery.

As part of our wider green space network the Parks and Countryside Service are responsible for the management of over 181 woodlands, three of which are Green Flag and all of which are managed to the UK Woodland Assurance Standard. Our service’s wider green space network includes 95 parks, recreation grounds and gardens, three Visitor and Education Centres, more than 150 children’s playgrounds, 15 bike tracks, 81 allotment sites and 262 Nature Conservation sites.

We’re deeply proud and passionate about our woodlands and the wider countryside estate as we know how important these spaces are to our communities – they bring ecological, social and economic benefits to the whole city. Our woodlands (particularly ancient woodlands) provide some of the most valuable wildlife habitats in the city and receive hundreds of thousands of visits each year. Our productive conifer woodlands fall largely within the Peak District National Park and also form a key part of the estate.

As the Woodland and Countryside Manager you will be responsible for managing sites in a third of the city alongside supporting your colleagues managing the other two. You will line manage a team of staff who directly work on these sites alongside volunteers, contractors, partners and stakeholders to ensure they meet key standards and management plan objectives.

You must be experienced in the Woodland/Forestry and Countryside sector and a confident and organised leader. You will have the ability to multitask day to day operational duties alongside delivering strategic ambitions and the varying needs of a range of partners and stakeholders.

Details about the Parks and Countryside Service are available on the Council’s internet pages: Parks, sport and recreation | Sheffield City Council

You can find Sheffield’s Tree and Woodland Strategy here and Green and Open Space Strategy here

Visit our website to download the application form by following the link below and searching ‘Woodland and Countryside Manager’. Should you wish to talk to anyone about the role please contact our Parks and Public Realm Service Manager, Simon Ross on simon.ross@sheffield.gov.uk

We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.

It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.

Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we’ll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.

Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.

If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.

Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Read about the new job evaluation process to be introduced at Sheffield City Council.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.