Level 6 - Professional Occupation

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Agriculture, environmental and animal care

Professional forester

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Provide expert advice on the woodlands and forests.

Summary

This occupation is found in governmental, non-governmental, private, public, charitable and local authority organisations in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have an interest in forestry and woodland creation and management. Landowning organisations, e.g. Local Authorities or private estates, may employ their own Professional Foresters, whereas private landowners, e.g. farmers, may bring one in as a consultant.

The broad purpose of the occupation is to provide expert technical advice on the planning, creation, management, harvesting and utilisation of woodlands and forests (known as silviculture). Professional Foresters form the link between landowners, contractors and timber-buyers, providing technical expertise to inform and manage delivery of sustainable multi-purpose forest management outcomes in relation to the UK Government’s Forestry Act. Expertise in forest and woodland carbon accounting and land use change are becoming increasingly important for Professional Foresters who will be responsible for writing Woodland Management Plans (WMPs), Forest Design Plans (FDPs) and Woodland Creation Design Plans (WCDPs), using expert knowledge of legislation, regulation and silvicultural good practice, and will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of those plans.

Professional Foresters will be integral to the achievement of Government targets for delivery of public goods under the 25-Year Plan for the Environment, and Net Zero 2050 targets for carbon reduction. In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with landowners and agents, statutory bodies, local authorities, local & national interest groups, ecologists, engineers and other professional experts, timber buyers, contractors, suppliers, colleagues, volunteers and the public. In many cases Professional Foresters will be required to understand how forestry fits into the wider land-management planning of a given client or organisation and will liaise with other stakeholders to manage conflicting pressures and achieve complementary outcomes. The uniquely long-term nature of forest planning cycles means that many Professional Foresters will have long-term professional relationships with their clients, sometimes spanning decades. In some cases, especially hardwood silviculture, management decisions made by a Professional Forester now may not even come to fruition in their or their clients’ lifetime.

An employee in this occupation will be responsible for:

• Autonomous decision making relating to land use change pertaining to woodland operations
• Appropriate decision making within organisational structures (e.g. Woodland Officer reporting to Field Manager)
• Budget management, including applying for and/or administering grant funding
• Awarding and managing contracts to contractors
• Procurement and sales
• Gathering, analysing, interpreting, implementing and communicating information
• Regulatory compliance.

Typical job titles include

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)

• Knowledge
• Skills
• Behaviours