Statistical Data Analyst

Job summary

Part of the Forestry Commission family, Forest Research is a world leader in applied forest science, providing evidence and practical solutions to policy makers, forestry practitioners, land managers and anyone with green space, UK-wide. With climate and biodiversity in crisis, and an increasing number of pests and diseases, our research is more vital than ever before. We advise on how woodlands can help combat climate change. We’re identifying tree species that will thrive in the future and ways of safeguarding those species at risk. Our research supports UK timber production because fewer imports reduce carbon emissions. We provide data on forests in Scotland, Wales and England, and provide evidence of the societal benefits of woodland. We do all this working collaboratively with academia, partners and industry, nationally and internationally.

The Forest Information and Statistics team is a multi-disciplinary team including statisticians, spatial analysts, data scientists and others. There are 3 teams within Forest Information and Statistics, covering National Forest Inventory scheduling and mapping, National Forest Inventory analysis and outputs, and Statistics. Together, they are responsible for overseeing data collection and providing analysis and support to a range of internal and external customers and for producing a range of analytical outputs, including official statistics and the National Forest Inventory.

Job description

The purpose of the job is to contribute to policy development, monitoring and evaluation of sustainable forest management by supporting analysis and provision of advice on economic aspects of forestry. The postholder will also support Forest Research’s Official Statistics team in ensuring compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics.

Key Work Areas:

• Working with the project lead on the development of statistics on timber utilisation to support the timber in construction roadmap, by consulting on requirements, identifying data sources and developing a methodology to produce statistics on the use of wood fibre.
• Using R and/or SAS to process data and test methodology for statistics produced as part of the Official Statistics outputs and timber utilisation.
• Supporting the economic lead with the collection and management of data on economic aspects of forestry (annual surveys of the UK timber industry and other data sources) by carrying out data cleaning and compiling reports using their outputs.
• Working with other members of the team to carry out quality assurance of Official Statistics and the methods used to produce them to ensure compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics.
• Attending cross-departmental groups with the economic lead, such as the Expert Group on Timber & Trade Statistics, to stay up to date on discussions that have an impact on the statistics produced in the team.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

• Undergraduate degree in a subject containing formal statistical training (e.g. Statistics, Mathematics, Economics, Sciences, Business Studies, Psychology, Geography, Data Science or similar) or equivalent experience
• Experience in data collection, statistical analysis and dissemination
• Some experience of statistical analysis software (e.g. SAS, SPSS, R)
• Proven ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, clearly explaining technical issues and presenting information to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Desirable Criteria:

The below criteria are desirable only. These will not be assessed throughout the recruitment process, but will be used in the event of tied scores between candidates.

• Knowledge of economic aspects of forestry related to the timber industry
• Experience with the Code of Practice for Statistics

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving
• Working Together

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £33,854, Forestry Commission - Forest Research contributes £9,807 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

Your career

Excellent professional development opportunities which are tailored to your role, with paid professional membership subscriptions, mentoring, and Civil Service Learning available to all
access to world class laboratory facilities, as well as state of the art buildings within forest or science park settings

Your work/life balance

flexible working options such as: up to two days flexi leave per month, blended working, part-time working, paid special leave, career breaks, and unpaid leave. Parents and carers will be supported to enable you to manage work and family responsibilities
A generous annual leave allowance of 25 days on entry increasing by 1 day each year to a maximum of 30 days (pro-rata for part-timers). Plus 2.5 days of additional leave and 8 days’ paid bank/public holidays

Your wellbeing

A culture which promotes a diverse and inclusive work environment
A range of wellbeing benefits including Employee Assistance Programme 24/7
We want you to feel part of something bigger and we encourage a community feel in our workplaces, with everything from cookery competitions to Pilates and fell running, plus topical talks at Wellbeing Wednesdays and Feelgood Fridays
Paid volunteering leave of 3 days per year so you can give back to your community and charitable causes by sharing your skills and time

Your benefits

a highly competitive Civil Service Pension of 28.97% your salary
an employee benefits scheme offering discounts on groceries, gym memberships, holidays, days out, online retailers and high street shops
Cycle to Work scheme and Interest free loans
Free parking is offered on-site, alongside electric car charging ports
With maternity, adoption, and/or shared parental leave there’s the flexibility to have up to 26 weeks full pay, followed by 13 weeks statutory pay and a further 13 weeks unpaid leave. Paternity leave of up to two weeks is available with full pay.

Any move to Forest Research from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

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