Wye Coppice is pleased to announce the Wye Coppice 2024-2025 Traineeship, supported by the Wye Valley National Landscape. In 2024, we are recruiting two new trainees to commence training in August, followed by a 10-month paid placement that will offer a grounding in practical woodland management, including chainsaw operation, product processing and woodland species ID. Trainees will also have the opportunity to help with community engagement and find out how homegrown wood products can contribute to getting woodland into management.

Dates

The traineeship will run from 19 August 2024 to June 2025. Chainsaw training must be successfully completed in August, then trainees will be contracted to work three days per week. Work days are usually 8am-4pm, though some flexibility is required. 
 

Place

Wye Coppice undertakes work on a variety of sites around Monmouthshire and surrounding counties (e.g. Gloucestershire). Trainees will chiefly work on sites close to Monmouth and Trellech, but must be willing to travel to other sites as required. It is expected that trainees will have their own transport or means of getting to site. Full clean driving licence preferred.

Salary:  £13,384.80 with 13 days paid holiday (over the contract period)

What you will learn

• Chainsaw use

Successful candidates will be enrolled on NPTC chainsaw training in cross-cutting, maintenance and small tree felling. On successful completion of this qualification, they will go on to gain practical felling experience under the supervision of Wye Coppice. 

• Low impact woodland management

Trainees will gain a grounding in woodland work, in particular coppicing and coppice restoration. They will experience working in different types of woodland, learn safe use of manual equipment, understand how to work efficiently to client briefs, and gain an insight into the seasonal nature of woodland work. Tasks will chiefly involve felling and processing of small diameter wood. Installing deer fencing and planting may also be required. Please note, Wye Coppice works in ecologically sensitive sites where the aim is to enhance habitat for biodiversity, and therefore we do not generally use large machinery, often relying on manual extraction.

• Products

As well as felling, trainees will learn how to identify and select wood for different products, and how to make some value-added products. Wye Coppice’s chief products are polewood, hedgelaying stakes and binders, and ring kiln charcoal.

• First Aid

Trainees will be undertake the Emergency First Aid at Work + Forestry course and learn safe working practices.

• Public engagement

Part of the work of Wye Coppice is public engagement – communicating about our work to non-specialists. This could be in events and courses (e.g. charcoal making, crafts etc) but also in everyday contexts, as passers-by ask us about what we are doing. As a low impact forestry contractor, our message is that woodland management can benefit biodiversity by creating a mosaic of habitats, and also make woodlands safer for humans to enjoy (especially in the context of ash dieback).

Equipment provided: Chainsaws, PPE (chainsaw trousers, helmet, boots) and other tools (e.g. billhooks). 

The work year 

Felling is mostly carried out from autumn to Easter. Then we concentrate on processing products such as charcoal and polewood. Occasional courses/events are held throughout the year and trainees are encouraged to help facilitate these. If these are on weekends then time off in lieu is given.

It is of the utmost importance that candidates appreciate that this work is undertaken outside, whatever the weather, unless deemed too hazardous. Wye Coppice does not have an indoor premises – our work is on-site, in woodlands (flat, hilly and in-between), in whatever the weather throws at us. You must be able to get to sometimes remote sites and be fit and able to work outdoors three days per week.

Our contracts have briefs and deadlines; they must be completed within a timeframe. This calls for team spirit and people who can keep up their morale in whatever the conditions – cold, wet, windy and muddy, or sunny and hot. 

Our main product is charcoal, produced in the summer months, on-site. This involves processing feedstock, loading kilns, lighting and overseeing, shutting down, unloading and bagging up. It can be dusty, dirty and smelly, with occasionally unsocial hours (we usually arrange split-shifts), but a lot of people find it fun!

Before applying, please think about the physical conditions of the workplace (outdoors) and the nature of the work (especially felling and charcoal making). You will get wet, but hopefully have time to dry out in between work days! This is a job rather than a course, so you will be expected to learn while doing and improve in speed and ability. You will, however, get to work in some stunning sites, hear birdsong, create better habitat for dormice and pollinators, learn a heritage skill, identify a range of trees, and not have to sit at a desk all day!

Who should apply

Anyone who is serious about getting into woodland work. College leavers, career changers, entry-level foresters, outdoor workers, conservation workers… anyone passionate about trees and learning woodland management skills who is fit and capable of undertaking outdoor work through all seasons.

The role involves heavy manual work, so you will need to be physically fit. You must be willing to work in all weathers. We also expect workers to be willing to engage with the public at events and in day-to-day situations, to promote and explain what we do. The traineeship is especially suited to people interested in woodland management for biodiversity conservation.

Find out more

Take a look at our website www.wyecoppice.co.uk for more information about us. If you would like to discuss the role, get in touch with Joe Weaver on 07931 695104 or email info@wyecoppice.co.uk.

Apply

Please email CVs and cover letters to info@wyecoppice.co.uk. In the cover letter, please detail:

•    How you heard about the traineeship and why you are interested
•    Any relevant experience (e.g. paid or voluntary outdoor work; environmental studies etc)
•    Evidence of how you keep fit
•    Any teams you have been a part of
•    Why you’re ideal for the traineeship

Deadline: midnight 1 July 2024

Interviews: w/b 8 July by Zoom