The Woodland Trust is looking for a Head of Estate and Programmes - North to join our North England Team. The Head of Estate and Programmes will lead the Trust’s estate team and related programmes of work in North England. They will take a strategic overview, identifying and shaping new initiatives to ensure that the estate and associated programmes are developed and managed to the highest professional standards and in accordance with the Woodland Trust’s management approach, policies and standards.
The Role:
- Lead the strategic management of the Trust’s woodland estate across the North, ensuring the highest professional standards, regulatory compliance, and delivery of landscape-scale conservation outcomes.
- Shape and deliver major estate-based programmes and projects, working collaboratively across teams and with external partners to achieve the Trust’s strategic objectives.
- Provide inspiring leadership to a multidisciplinary team of site managers, project managers, and programme staff, fostering a high-performance, values-led culture.
- Oversee the effective planning, management, and governance of a multi-million-pound estate budget, ensuring excellent value for money and efficient use of resources.
- Take overall responsibility for health, safety, risk management, and operational excellence across the Trust’s northern estate activities.
- Develop and implement the North’s long-term estate plans, aligning woodland, forestry, conservation, and land management priorities with the Trust’s UK strategy.
- Act as a senior ambassador for the Trust, building and strengthening relationships with partners, funders, stakeholders, land managers, and public bodies to maximise impact.
- Champion innovation, knowledge sharing, and partnership working, representing the North at a senior level and contributing to UK-wide initiatives that advance the Trust’s vision and influence.
- This is a homeworking position with regular travel around the North of England. Occasional travel to other offices, remote locations and overnight stays may also be required.
The Candidate:
- Experienced leader with a proven track record of managing complex estates, large-scale programmes, projects and multidisciplinary teams to deliver ambitious strategic outcomes.
- Strong understanding of woodland, forestry, conservation, land management and the operation of large estates, with knowledge of ancient woodland management highly desirable.
- Commercially and financially astute, with experience managing significant budgets and balancing strategic priorities, operational performance and value for money.
- Confident in leading health, safety, risk management and governance activities within geographically dispersed operational environments.
- Skilled at building influential relationships and strategic partnerships, with the credibility to engage effectively with funders, land managers, public bodies, conservation organisations and other key stakeholders.
- Good understanding of England’s land-use, environmental and forestry policy landscape, particularly across the North, and the ability to translate this into practical outcomes.
- Highly organised and adaptable, with strong project management skills, confidence using MS Office and GIS systems.
- Professionally qualified to HND, degree level or equivalent in forestry, land management or a related discipline, with membership (or working towards membership) of the Institute of Chartered Foresters. Additionally, hold a full valid driving licence.
Benefits and Wellbeing:
Joining our team means you’ll be part of our fight for a greener, healthier planet for people and wildlife. We take good care of our staff, offering support and training opportunities. We also offer:
- Enhanced Employer Pension
- Life Assurance
- Flexible and hybrid working options (7am - 7pm)
- Generous annual leave - 25 Days plus Bank Holidays (pro rata for part-time)
- Buy and sell holiday scheme
- Enhanced parental pay
- Employee assistance programme
To support inclusivity and remove barriers for candidates, we publish all salaries upfront and proudly follow the We Show the Salary pledge. The salary listed is the set salary for this role, and we don’t ask applicants to state their current pay or expectations. If you choose to apply, we’ll take that as confirmation that the advertised salary meets your expectations.
About Us:
The Woodland Trust is the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity. We want to see a world where woods and trees thrive for people and nature. The Trust engages and inspires people to make a difference by protecting, restoring and creating woodland and getting more trees in the ground.
Our commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:
To achieve our mission, we need to better reflect society and the communities we work in. People of colour and disabled people are currently under-represented across the environment and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we particularly encourage you to apply.
Application information and advice:
For fairness we keep our candidates’ personal details hidden from the hiring managers, and we do not ask for your CV at application.
Make sure that your personal statement clearly shows how your skills and knowledge link to the specifications in the job description and you share with us your passion for the role.
Completed applications will be reviewed by a hiring manager and/or a member of the recruitment team, and you will receive an update on the outcome of your application via email.
Acceptable Use - Artificial Intelligence (AI):
We understand that candidates may choose to use AI tools to support their job applications. However, we ask that any information submitted reflects your own experience, skills and understanding. During interviews, candidates are expected to respond independently without the use of AI tools.
Apply now:
If you're ready to make a difference and grow with us, apply today. We might close advertising early if we get a lot of applications, so it's a good idea to apply soon. If we do close the advert early, and you have an application in progress, we will email you prior to closing to give you time to complete.
Interviews will take place via teams on 18th and 21st of September 2026.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Location: Globally remote with the possibility of working out of a National or Regional office.
Location type: Remote
Reporting to: International Fundraising Director
Manages: Global Capital Campaign Director, Global Philanthropy Manager (x2), contractors.
Annual salary:Grade 18 with salary based on home country.
Contract type: 2-year initial contract with the possibility of further extension.
Working hours: Full-time
Candidate level: Manager
Closing date: Monday 14th September 2026, 9:00 am CET
Background
Greenpeace International is an independent global campaigning network, which uses peaceful, creative confrontation to expose global environmental problems and develop solutions for a green and peaceful future.
Our vision is for a greener, fairer, safer planet, one that can sustain life for generations to come. We cannot build this future alone, but we can build it together. If you are passionate about defending our natural world and creating positive change, then we want to hear from you.
The heart of Greenpeace has always been its people. Whether you are working in Campaigns, Communications, Engagement, Logistics, Fundraising, Legal, IT/Data, Finance, People & Culture, or Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Safety (JEDIS), we all have an important role to play.
Greenpeace exists because this fragile earth deserves a voice. It needs solutions. It needs change. It needs action. It needs you.
Purpose of the Fundraising Department
The International Fundraising Department within Greenpeace International (GPI) ensures a clear focus on global income opportunities and challenges in partnership with National and Regional Offices (NROs). The department manages global fundraising sources, contributes to and coordinates global fundraising work, provides strategic focus for GPI fundraising specialists, and provides senior strategic guidance and leadership across the Greenpeace Network.
Purpose of role
The International Philanthropy Manager is accountable for designing and implementing the Global Fundraising Strategy as it relates to major giving, including strategic partnerships, institutional funders, individual major donors, legacies, and capital campaigns. This role leads the teams behind major global initiatives, including a €100 million capital campaign for a new ship and the Priority Global Funders strategy—while providing strategic leadership, support, and advice to both Greenpeace International and independent National and Regional Organisations (NROs).
Primary responsibilities
Global fundraising strategy
● Lead and manage the design and implementation of the Global Fundraising Strategy as it relates to major giving, including strategic partnerships with institutional funders and individual major donors, legacy, and capital campaigns.
● Accountable for the design and implementation of the Key Relationships area of the Global Fundraising Strategy, including tracking and monitoring the success of its implementation.
● Lead, advise, and support the work done by GPI fundraising staff and NRO leaders in the key relationships area.
● Collaborate across GPI functions and departments to ensure alignment and integration of the Key Relationships Strategy with other organisational objectives, strategies, and plans.
People management
● Lead, manage and develop a multidisciplinary team of fundraising managers and coordinators across various areas of high value fundraising.
● Provide task management and direction to staff from other areas of International Fundraising and across GPI departments who contribute to fundraising deliverables.
● Drive team performance through objective setting, performance reviews, coaching and development to ensure fundraising objectives are met.
National and Regional Organisation (NROs) support
● Oversee strategic and operational support provided to NROs to build the fundraising capacity and expertise required to deliver ambitious fundraising strategies and goals based on the respective market potential.
● Provide strategic advice and support to NROs for the development of the philanthropy and legacy elements of their 3-Year Strategic Plans and their annual organisational development plans.
● Support NROs in recruiting and onboarding experienced fundraising directors and strategic fundraising roles.
Communities and stakeholders
● Strengthen the fundraising director’s community of practice alongside fellow Strategic Fundraising Managers and the International Fundraising Director to foster a collaborative space for addressing global fundraising challenges and opportunities.
● Facilitate regular exchanges with other key leadership communities (such as Engagement and Programme Leaders) in areas of joint interest.
● Build strong working relationships with colleagues and internal and external stakeholders to represent Greenpeace’s interests and enable effective cooperation and knowledge-sharing across fundraising areas.
● Foster collaboration with cross-functional departments (such as Development, Technology, Finance and Programme) to co-design and implement highly engaging campaigns with strong fundraising potential and deliver robust proposals for key funders.
Financial, policy, and systems management
● Ensure the effective budgeting, management, and expenditure of internal resources.
● Oversee the budgeting and reconciliation of income from Priority Global Funders, individual major donors, and legacy gifts to GPI.
● Serve as the product owner for the key relationships CRM.
● Hold responsibility for the development and implementation of global policies related to key relationships fundraising.
Profile
Skills and qualifications
● Significant (7 years +) experience in a senior fundraising management role with a focus on philanthropy, of which at least four years leading international teams.
● Experience leading a capital campaign.
● Strong leadership abilities with experience building and developing exceptional teams to achieve fundraising goals.
● Strong track record of developing successful global proposals for large funders.
● Track record of leading the design and implementation of impactful global fundraising strategies.
● Track record of developing and delivering cross-functional fundraising strategies with multiple fundraising techniques.
● Track record of contributing to successful change management processes.
● Significant experience in systemic and strategic thinking.
● Significant experience of working with Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Safety principles.
● Substantial experience working in multicultural global environments, ideally with personal experience of working in multiple national contexts.
● Exceptional strategic, influencing, negotiation, communication, and facilitation skills.
● Strong analytical skills and a clear understanding of organisational development.
● Strong financial management skills, and extensive experience managing budgets.
● Experience with co-leadership and collaborative management.
● Experience bringing together people with a wide diversity of views.
● Experience in operating strategically in fast-changing environments.
Personal traits desired
Competencies (as per the 5 E’s Leadership Framework)
Identification with Greenpeace goals and supports its values: Understanding of and commitment to Greenpeace’s core values and a passion for delivering Greenpeace’s mission.
Energy
● Demonstrate a positive mindset and solutions-oriented attitude: Where others see problems, pitfalls, and potential for disaster, you might see opportunity and new possibilities to make a difference. You are basing your ideas on the assumption: There are solutions out there, and we just have to work on them. But if it is not worth solving, let us not waste time on it.
● Demonstrate stamina and resilience: You are dependable under pressure and strong despite adversity. You can deal with complex or difficult situations with a cool head. You do not give up when the going gets tough. You accept when mistakes are made, learn from them, and move on. You can recover quickly after failures, disappointments, or dead ends.
Energise
● Empowering and inspiring others: An understanding of how to inspire action in others, empowering people and striving to bring out the best in them. Enables employees to translate vision into action and creates an environment in which people feel valued, motivated and challenged.
● Collaborative approach: Helps others to achieve their best and contributes to joint objectives. Develops cooperation and teamwork while participating in a group of people, working toward solutions that generally benefit all involved parties
Edge
● Ability to encourage and support risk-taking: Appreciation of risk-taking in the context of an action-oriented organisation
● Appreciation of the impact and importance of people-powered campaigning: with a commitment to drive engagement at all levels
Expertise
● Demonstrate the ability to see a situation accurately with a broad set of perspectives: You are able to make the “right” judgement calls and decisions. You have a broad set of perspectives on familiar and unfamiliar issues: You have solid expertise in core Greenpeace subject matters as well as concepts about individuals and teams, and organisational issues such as structures and processes. You know how the organisation is structured, how decisions are made, and how information flows. Furthermore, you have a high level of understanding of the changing external context in which Greenpeace operates and the ability to make a judgement about how to respond. This is why you can “read” factual evidence as well as the environment in a meaningful manner and thus help devise a plan of action. Sometimes you “see” what others do not see.
Execute
● Being a role model for accountability and straightforwardness: High sense of personal accountability and the ability to hold others accountable.
● Knowledge sharing: Uses formal, informal and systematic methods to share information with others to increase organisational effectiveness.