Fishery Ranger

FISHERY RANGER

LOCATION Based at Upper Tamar Office - covering Tamar Lakes, Roadford Lake, Lower Slade, Melbury, Wistlandpound, Jennetts and Darracott

DURATION Permanent

HOURS Full Time (40 hours per week)

To include weekends, Bank Holidays and evenings per week

SALARY £27,967 per annum

START DATE 01 December 2026

REPORT Head of Fisheries

Purpose of the role:

As part of the Trust’s Fisheries Team, you will drive the day-to-day operations of our fishery business, driving income and delivering an excellent experience for every angler.

In delivering your role you will:

o Champion and contribute to our vision - healthy lakes, landscapes and lives

o Contribute to meeting our strategic impact:

§ Lives will be enhanced from experiencing the outdoors

o A more diverse range of people and more young people are inspired by and engaged with our places and experiences

o The health and wellbeing of more people is improved

Introduction

· Our Fishery Rangers work at lakes and reservoirs across southwest England, promoting angling whilst conserving and protecting land and property of public interest and/or of statutory designation.

What you will do as our Fishery Ranger:

· Undertake the day-to-day maintenance of our fisheries and fisheries infrastructure - grass cutting, weed cutting, footpath, bank and fishery maintenance as well as assisting with the cleaning of toilets and associated facilities.

· Build and maintain excellent relationships with our anglers, stakeholders and the local community, assisting with enquiries and promoting the fishery and Trust through a positive friendly public facing presence.

· Take the lead in running/assisting with fishing competitions, providing a point of contact for bookings, organising transport for anglers at these events. Focusing on the promotion of current competitions and the creation of new ones.

· Ensure the security of the fishery, discouraging and challenging disturbing, unsafe and antisocial behaviour, including poaching, as required.

· Keep accurate records and make relevant reports related to the above.

· Arrange, take delivery and sample our stocks of Trout and coarse fish from suppliers ensuring we are getting value for money in line with our orders.

· Collate key catch return data and publish/ pass on as appropriate

· Regularly patrol the fisheries and keep a record of permits checked, ensuring poaching and illegal fishing are kept to a minimum.

· Clean and maintain fishery infrastructure, including buildings, information rooms, signage and notice boards.

· Undertake fishery habitat management in line with fishery management plans, working alongside our rangers, volunteer bailiffs, environment team and contractors.

· Build relationships with fishing clubs, attend meetings, organise and run work parties as required.

· Take full responsibility for the management of voluntary fishery bailiffs, ensuring correct volunteering agreements are in place and undertaking all other aspects of the volunteering policy (training inductions, reviews etc.)

· Assist with fish movements between our fisheries, maintaining up to date records in line with our fishery permits

• Ensure safety maintenance records are maintained for fishery equipment and processes across the fisheries in your portfolio.
• Take responsibility for the proper care and maintenance of equipment, vehicles and facilities, carry out routine checks of fishery infrastructure, site furniture, updating online management records and carrying out maintenance as required.

· Carry out such other duties as may reasonably be assigned by the Trust.

About you

· You will share our values:

• Inclusive – we respect others and want to help everyone to enjoy the outdoors.
• Trustworthy – we will keep our word, we are credible, honest and fair.
• Collaborative – we work together in our teams, communities and partnerships.
• Responsible – we act to benefit society and are accountable for our actions.
• Ambitious – we are determined to do more for people and the planet.
• Given the variety of internal and external stakeholders you’ll be engaging with, it is vitally important that you have excellent interpersonal, communication and influencing skills along with proven experience in a commercial fishery environment.
• You will be practically minded with the skillset to deliver operationally effective fisheries
• You are passionate about coarse and trout fishing and will understand the variety of benefits that both bring to people.
• You are self-motivated and set your own goals
• You enjoy negotiation and have skills to get the best results for South West Lakes Trust.

What you will need (knowledge, experience and skills)

Essential Criteria

Skills/ Experience

· Practical outdoor manual labour; including safe use of hand tools and power tools

· Volunteer management

· High quality customer service

· Risk assessment including ability to assess risk dynamically

· Countryside management and estate maintenance

· Computer literate, MS Office

Qualifications

· Driving licence

Education / Experience

· Fishery management

· Customer service

· Volunteer management

Knowledge

· Angling – coarse

· Good knowledge of Health and Safety issues related to working on sites, site visits and lone working

Desirable Criteria

Skills/ Experience

· Enforcement and ensuring compliance with fishery regulations

· Conflict resolution

· Cleaning skills

· Social media and promotional skills

Qualifications

· Tractor operator

· Trailer towing

· Powerboat

· Tree safety checks

· Strimmer

· Chainsaw

· Workshop / hand-tools qualifications

· COSHH awareness

Education / Experience

· Conservation

· Public Access

· Angling

Knowledge

· Knowledge of the water industry

· Knowledge of trees and tree safety

· Outdoor recreation

Behaviours

· Demonstrate an ethical approach including:

o Long term thinking for biodiversity and people;

o Ability to advocate for the Trust and empower others;

o Uphold and promote equality and dignity in all that you do;

o Act in an environmentally responsible way

o Positively engage and consult with customers and stakeholders to achieve more.

· Take responsibility for the safety of yourself, colleagues, volunteers and customers. Comply with the Trust’s Health and Safety Policy and defined standards. Ensure safe use of appropriate equipment; follow Risk Assessments and Method Statements.

· Thinking visitor first you will be proactive and innovate to make sure visitors want to return and do more. A self-starter and team player you will be motivated to achieve more.

· Being aware of your own responsibilities regarding safeguarding and to support our commitment to providing safe environments and working practises that promote and protect the safety and welfare of children, young people and adults at risk at all times.

· Be committed to delivering our strategic outcomes:

o Our managed landscapes will be abundant, diverse, and connected;

Lives will be enhanced from experiencing the outdoors.

About us

· As an independent charity, our purpose is to protect special places for people and wildlife; in doing this we care for over 40 inland waters in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset. Ranging in size from one to nine hundred acres, the lakes provide unrivalled access to water sports, angling, walking and cycling, and are places you can be active or play and explore all day long. We take great pride in protecting and enhancing these locations for the future and for people to value and enjoy. They provide a perfect setting for a great day out, be it for a stroll, to play, nature watch or enjoy adventurous activities such as stand up paddle boarding, kayaking or sailing.

• We offer a stakeholder pension scheme after 3 months of employment, with a 5% contribution matched by the company, 23 days holiday (plus statutory bank holidays) rising to 25 days after 5 years and 28 after 10, a culture of investing in our employees through training and development and the opportunity to work in some of the most beautiful places in the south west.

To apply

• To apply please complete and return our application form or to learn more please contact Ellie Lyons – HR Officer – [email protected]

Pay: £27,976.00 per year

Work Location: In person