Operational and Technical Support Team Member

Team / Directorate: Evidence, Policy and Permitting / Analytical Services

Starting salary:  £28,932 rising to £30,955 per annum through annual increments being paid each year (pro rata for part time applicants)

Contract type: Permanent

Work pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week (Part time, annualised hours, compressed hours or term time working considered - discussions at interview stage welcome)

Post number: 203822 & 203823

The role

We are seeking a proactive and detail-oriented Operational and Technical Support Team Member to join our dynamic team and play a vital role in delivering Natural Resources Wales (NRW)’s monitoring programmes and incident response services. This is an exciting opportunity to make a meaningful impact on environmental protection and ensure the highest standards in compliance and reporting.

In this role, you will provide essential technical, logistical, and operational support to NRW Analytical Services and the wider sampling teams, ensuring adherence to Quality Management Systems, legal Chain of Custody protocols, and Health & Safety regulations. You will be an integral part of our mission to safeguard the environment by ensuring accurate environmental data collection, reporting, and enforcement.

Key responsibilities will include managing sample registration, coordinating the shipment of samples to third-party laboratories, processing returned results, handling data entry, and overseeing bottle dispatch, which involves preparing samples in a controlled washroom environment. Your efforts will directly contribute to robust enforcement activities that assess, minimise, and prevent pollution and environmental damage.

Additionally, you will support the ongoing maintenance and development of the Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), working to enhance its capabilities and streamline the collection of routine and non-routine sample data for NRW.

Please note, this role does not support hybrid working, and you will be required to be on-site to ensure the smooth and effective delivery of services.

To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Lloyd Herbert.

lloyd.herbert@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk

Interviews will be conducted via Microsoft Teams.

Successful external applicants will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) check. We aim to make offers of appointment within 4 to 8 weeks of the closing date.

 

What you will do

• Conduct the daily sample registration, accurately registering samples, collating and inputting monitoring data from various sources utilising the Laboratory Information Management System.
• Support data administration within the Analytical Service and provide associated support services to laboratory staff and other NRW staff that routinely use LIMS.
• General housekeeping, including reception duty, monitoring and management of mailboxes and entering of analytical results from third party laboratories accurately.
• Support reporting of results and data transfers within agreed SLA standards of service utilising several different systems.  
• Maintain due diligence of the correct processes to maintain legal chain of custody for enforcement samples and to uphold the laboratory’s ISO17025 Accreditation from UKAS.
• Manage document storage requirements to ensure compliance with the laboratory’s QMS and current legislation.
• Organise and dispatch samples collected from the Monitoring Programme to be outsourced to third-party laboratories for analysis.
• Manage container and consumable order requests for all sampling teams, processing and delivering orders within agreed timescales as well as preparing sample containers for re-use, ensuring they are free from contamination using specialised equipment.
• Perform physically demanding, and repetitive lifting and carrying duties.
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post
• Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy, together with an understanding of how it operates within the responsibilities of the post
• Be committed to your own development *and that of your staff through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
• Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.

Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills

In your application and interview you will be asked to demonstrate the following skills and experience using the STAR method.

1. Achieved A Level qualifications, or you will have the equivalent level of knowledge.
2. Previous experience in an administration, technical or logistical support of a local area network, ideally in a high throughput environment with delivery to tight deadlines.
3. Strong and effective self-management and organisational skills and the ability to use your initiative to solve complex, non-routine issues.
4. The ability to work either in isolation or as part of a team
5. Good written and verbal communication skills with the ability to write very clearly and the ability to communicate confidently at all levels with a commitment to excellent customer service.
6. A high level of computer literacy including proficiency with Microsoft Office including Word, Excel, Outlook, One Drive for business. An understanding of document management systems, cloud-based storage and data entry and record management in bespoke systems such as LIMS. Prior experience of maintaining records in Business ICT systems plus a demonstrable aptitude for learning new software at pace.
7. A good understanding of the laboratory’s quality system and how that affects every aspect of the analytical process.
8. Excellent awareness of not only the laboratory specific but general Health & Safety requirements of self and others by being aware of the laboratory and NRW health and safety policies.

Welsh language level requirements

• Essential: A1 - Entry level (able to use and understand simple, basic phrases and greetings, no conversational Welsh)

Please note if you do not meet the A1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Benefits 

This role will offer a range of benefits, including:

• Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97%
• 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days
• generous leave entitlements for all your life needs
• commitment to professional development
• health and wellbeing benefits and support
• weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose

See full details for all the employee benefits you will receive.

Please keep reading

If you think you have what it takes to do this role, but don’t necessarily meet every single point on the job description, please still get in touch and we will be happy to discuss the role with you in more detail.

We’re passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of disability, neurodivergence, ethnic origin, colour, nationality, gender expression and gender identity, marital status, sexual orientation, culture, or religion.   We put the principles of human rights, equality, fairness, dignity and respect at the heart of our values.

We are committed to equal opportunities and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we make sure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale and annual increments are paid each year.

We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on variety of topics, stay current in their field and continue to learn as their career progresses.  

We are a Bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards.  Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills. 

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