This is a rare opportunity to lead the development and delivery of our digital learning and natural history publishing at our national environmental education charity.
You will oversee a talented team and collaborate with authors, designers, and creators in the natural history community to deliver innovative training and resources that set the standard for environmental learning.
- Permanent full-time contract
- Starting salary circa £36,973 per annum + excellent benefits
- Flexible base location with remote / home working welcomed
- Make a visible, lasting contribution to environmental education across the UK
Love where you work!
At the Field Studies Council, our mission is to create outstanding opportunities that inspire everyone to engage with and care for the environment.
Your team will be responsible for creating high-quality training courses, publications, and resources that inspire learners of all ages. You’ll work together to extend our charity’s impact across the UK.
We value the contribution each team member makes and provide excellent benefits to reward and support you in your role.
What you’ll be doing
In this key leadership role, you will guide the Digital Learning & Publishing unit, ensuring our courses and publications are impactful, financially sustainable and aligned with our charitable mission. Your work will include:
- Overseeing the production and management of biodiversity training courses and natural history publications
- Leading a team to deliver both in person and digital learning experiences
- Managing budgets, business planning, and the operational performance of the unit
- Working with Marketing to grow ecommerce revenue and promote the portfolio
- Building and maintaining strong relationships with partners, authors, tutors, designers, and the wider natural history community
- Identifying new opportunities, markets, and partnerships to expand our reach
- Leading editorial workflows, rights management, licensing, and version control
- Commissioning new titles and resources that support environmental understanding
- Ensuring compliance with GDPR, safeguarding, and copyright requirements
Where you’ll be based
The base location for this position is negotiable, with remote working / home working welcomed. If you prefer working in an office environment, you can work from one of our Field Studies Centres across the UK. Hybrid working options can also be considered.
This role includes travel to Field Studies Council locations and other venues throughout the UK and will involve some overnight stays.
You’ll thrive in this role if you are:
- An experienced senior manager with a strategic mindset
- Skilled at leading teams, freelancers, and creative contributors
- Confident working with authors, artists, designers, and content creators
- Experienced in delivering training materials at regional or national scale
- Commercially aware, with strong budget management experience
- A clear and engaging communicator with excellent written and verbal skills
- Highly organised, detail focused, and able to deliver at pace
- Comfortable using digital tools, databases, and online learning platforms
- Motivated by our mission and values
If you are looking for a role where your leadership can make a genuine difference to environmental learning, we would be delighted to receive your application.
* Your benefits whilst working with us will include:
- 28 days annual leave + bank holidays
- 2 extra loyalty days dependent on length of service
- Life assurance 5 x your annual basic salary
- Health and Wellbeing Support App for you and eligible family members to access remote GP appointments, mental health consultations, physiotherapy sessions and financial & legal support
- 24-hour Counselling Helpline Service
- Cycle to work and EV schemes
- Discounts and cashback opportunities
- Flexible working options where roles permit
- Quality learning and development opportunities
The closing date for receipt of your completed application is 27th April 2026.
We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we’re in receipt of sufficient applications. Please apply early to avoid disappointment.
Interviews are scheduled to take place at Field Studies Council online in the week commencing 11th May 2026.
Shortlisted applicants will be contacted by email.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and we expect all team members to share this commitment. Any offer of employment will only be confirmed following the successful completion of rigorous pre-employment checks, including appropriate Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks / PVG Scheme check with Disclosure Scotland.
Registered Charity 
101 - 500
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
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Do you want to join an organisation committed to addressing low literacy and numeracy levels amongst people in the criminal justice system?
We’ve made substantial progress in recent years, with improvements and expansions to our delivery model and significant growth in our staff team. In Spring 2026, we will launch our refreshed organisational strategy, which will shape our work over the next three years and beyond. To support this growth, we are recruiting for a full time National Director of Operations to lead our delivery across England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and emerging community settings, with an ambition to reach Scotland. This is an exciting opportunity to play a central role in scaling our impact and strengthening our presence across the criminal justice system and beyond.
As National Director of Operations, you will provide strategic and operational leadership for our learning programmes in prisons and community settings. You will ensure high‑quality, consistent and accessible delivery, overseeing a team of six Regional Managers and a wider workforce of around 65 staff, volunteers and over 2,000 peer mentors trained each year.
Working closely with senior colleagues, partner organisations and national bodies such as HMPPS, you will drive programme excellence, innovation and partnership working. You will also play a key role in new business development, operational strategy, contractual delivery and ensuring we can reliably demonstrate the impact of our work.
The role requires an experienced operational leader with a deep commitment to improving outcomes for people facing disadvantage. You will bring:
- Senior leadership experience in a complex, multi‑site environment.
- A track record of delivering large-scale programmes and leading distributed teams.
- Strong strategic thinking, problem‑solving and relationship‑building skills.
- Experience working with statutory bodies or large public-sector partners (e.g. HMPPS).
- Excellent judgement, communication skills and the ability to influence at all levels.
- Understanding of the criminal justice system, safeguarding, or alternative education environments (desirable).
- A collaborative, inclusive leadership style aligned with Shannon Trust’s values.
We want to hear from applicants who are as committed to the cause as we are.
This is a home-based role but will require travel around the UK including overnight stays. This role is 5 days per week (35 hours) with working days/hours to be mutually agreed in line with business needs.
Employee benefits include a company contribution to pension scheme of up to 5%, 30 days holiday plus bank holidays, life insurance, paid volunteering days, discounts via Reward Gateway and an Employee Assistance Programme. The biggest benefit though is our culture – our people really want to work for the organisation.
We welcome job applications from people with lived experience of the criminal justice system and do not routinely ask for details of any criminal convictions. This role does require prison security clearance, so we will need to ask for details of any relevant criminal convictions before an offer of employment is finalised.
Interviews, which will be held online, are planned for the w/c 18th May.
All applications must include a CV and covering letter of no more than 2 pages which outlines your suitability for the role and how you meet the person specification.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.