Conservation Herd Manager

| City of London

Location: Buffer Lands Estate

Salary: £33,242 – £37,064

Full Time: Permanent

Closing Date: 19/11/2025

Job Description

Covering over 6,000 acres, this ancient Forest grazed wood-pasture, together with 1,700 acres of rural farmed estate (the Buffer Lands Estate), stretches 12 miles from Manor Park in East London to just north of Epping in Essex. Epping Forest is of national and international conservation importance with two thirds of its area designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC). It is also surrounded by a special historic landscape including other protected sites, such as the Grade II* Registered Park and Garden of Copped Hall.

Grazing is an essential element of the management of these designated sites.

Epping Forest, with 13 million visits per year is also London’s 5th most visited free attraction and the largest public open space in the London area.

This is a great opportunity to play a key role in the development of the current large pedigree breeding herd of English Longhorns for projects, including carbon sequestration/storage and biodiversity gain. The herd ensures extensive grazing in one of England’s most prestigious conservation sites with new and expanded areas of grazing planned over the next 5 years under a recently updated and Trustee-approved Grazing Action Plan.

Grazing is carried out in this public open space using fenceless (virtual) grazing technology for which the Forest was the UK pioneer. The most up-to-date GPS system is now employed for all-year round grazing across multiple sites alongside traditional fenced areas and these would be your responsibilities to maintain day-to-day. You will also lead the winter calving operation. In addition, you will ensure other vital infrastructure is in good working order at all times. During your daily work at sites you will liaise with visitors to the Forest and dynamically manage the interactions between the public and the grazing operations to ensure visitor safety and animal welfare, including the ‘Five Freedoms’.

Hard-working and motivated by nature and landscape conservation, as well as enthusiasm for managing cattle, you will bring to the role proven practical knowledge of cattle management and breeding herd development. As part of the Conservation Section Team, you will be responsible for keeping the annual Forest Grazing Programme in the SSSI/SAC sites on track. You will also ensure scheme-compliant and flexible grazing management of all other grasslands covered by agri-environment grants.

This is a full-time and residential appointment. You will be provided with a 3- bed lodge on the Forest for the better performance of your duties. In managing the Longhorn herd and overseeing the day-to-day site management alternate weekend working will be required with 3.5 hours on each second Saturday and Sunday followed by a full week-day off in the following week. The Sat and Sunday working will attract unsocial hours payments as detailed above. As a residential employee you will be part of a team on-call for 1 week every 6 weeks.

Working from the Warren Offices Loughton and in winter, also based at the Great Gregories Yard cattle facility, you will travel around the Forest, Buffer Lands Estate and surrounding areas.

For an informal chat please contact John Phillips on 020 8532 5337.

How To Apply

To apply, please follow the link below. Good luck!