Animal and Plant Health Agency
Seasonal Bee Inspector
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Job Summary
APHA is a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, because it helps us be more innovative and make better decisions.
We are dedicated to being an inclusive employer, offering equitable opportunities for all individuals. Our goal is to build a diverse workforce, and we hope to attract applications from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups.
Can you help us protect the biosecurity of Great Britain, safeguarding bee health for the benefit of people, the environment and the economy?
We have several exciting opportunities to join our team of Seasonal Bee Inspectors working from April until end of October each year.
Job Description
As a Seasonal Bee Inspector, you will organise and conduct a statutory inspection programme of honeybee colonies, within a geographically defined area, for bee diseases and pests currently the subject of EU or UK statutory regulations, as directed and supervised by the Regional Bee Inspector.
Key tasks are as follows:
- Inspect Bee Colonies and confirm the presence of notifiable bee pests and diseases
- Treat or destroy confirmed diseased or infested bee colonies
- Issue standstill notices or movement licences upon apiary sites from which suspect pests or diseased material has been confirmed
- Engage in the preliminary investigative stages of any subsequent enforcement action brought under UK or EU statutory regulations
- Inspect beekeepers' premises, bee colonies, equipment, and Veterinary Medicines Records to confirm compliance with current EC and UK statutory regulations relating to bee health or wider animal health legislation
- Arrange and carry out a Risk Assessed inspection programme within a specific geographical area as outlined by Regional Bee Inspector; to Inspect beekeepers' premises, bee colonies, equipment, and Veterinary Medicines Records to confirm compliance with current EC and UK statutory regulations relating to bee health or wider animal health legislation
- Engage in Contingency Planning Activities which may take place outside of the geographical area normally covered
- Collect statutory honey samples on behalf of the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) as part of their statutory residue analysis programme
- Conduct preliminary field investigative and associated sampling work regarding suspected poisoning incidents on behalf of the Defra Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS)
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date apiary inspection records and other official records in connection to the legislative inspection framework
- Engage and work with Bee farmers in respect of the Disease Assurance Scheme for Honeybees (DASH) and wider Commercial Beekeeping activities
- Engage with local beekeepers using talks, apiary demonstrations, and the distribution of management-approved advisory material
- Liaise with local beekeepers, beekeepers' associations, research institutes and other organisations associated with the beekeeping sector to further the work of the NBU
- Regularly collect and report information about local beekeeping conditions, problems, and practices to support advisory, research and development and policy advisory work
- Maintain individual Competence Standards and follow Standard Operating Procedures to meet requirements of ISO17020, attending Training and Development Events as required, which may be outside of normal working area, working hours and may require overnight stays.
- Engage in the research and development activities of APHA (e.g., application of experimental disease control treatments, and collection of samples)
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The Seasonal Bee Inspector may also be required to engage in other duties, not directly associated with Bee Health organised by other APHA staff, under the management of the Head of the National Bee Unit (NBU).
Coverage Areas
We are currently seeking nine seasonally employed inspectors in the following areas:
| Region | Coverage Area | Office Location(s) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|
| South West | South Devon, Cornwall & Bristol Area | Bridgwater, Bristol, Exeter and Truro (Polwhele) | 1 x 37 hrs, 1 x 30 hrs |
| South East | Kent, London & Middlesex | Heathrow and Welwyn Garden City | 1 x 37 hrs, 1 x 30 hrs |
| West | West Midlands, Shropshire & Herefordshire | Crewe, Stafford, Kidderminster, Tewkesbury, Bristol and Shrewsbury | 1 x 37 hrs, 1 x 27 hrs |
| North East | Newcastle & Tyne and Wear | Long Benton | 1 x 37 hrs |
| Wales | Cardiff & Monmouthshire | Cardiff | 1 x 30 hrs |
| Central | Leicestershire, Rutland, Northamptonshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire & Dorset | Leicester, Welwyn Garden City, Stroud (Aston Down), Winchester (Itchen Abbas) & Weymouth | 1 x 37 hrs |
Please note that location will be a deciding factor when offering roles to candidates.
Person Specification
All candidates must have demonstrable skills in written and spoken English to enable effective communication about bee health topics with customers, service users and colleagues.
Essential Skills
- Must have substantial beekeeping experience to enable them to competently engage and work with commercial and hobbyist beekeepers.
- Must understand the drivers of honeybee health, the specifics of UK apiculture, and how different local environmental conditions affect bee colonies.
- Must have the experience to advise on wide ranging disease and husbandry related matters with beekeepers of all levels.
- Must be confident, self-motivated, effective communicators with experience of building customer relationships.
Key Skills
- Knowledge and experience of apiculture, pests and diseases, and a high standard of bee handling.
- Awareness of honeybee notifiable disease threats
- Ability to work alone or as part of team
- Ability to communicate at a high standard; explain, listen, persuade, be diplomatic, etc
- Competent user of Microsoft IT packages such as Outlook, SharePoint, Word, and Excel
- Have a full, valid UK driving licence (evidence to be provided at interview) must have independent access to own transport, for which business mileage will be reimbursed.
- Knowledge of basic Health and Safety and an understanding of safe working practices. Ensure APHA Health and Safety policies and procedures are always complied with.
This is predominantly an outdoor role where walking across farmland and standing for prolonged periods may be required. The work can involve physical demands when in the field including lifting heavy boxes and working in hot sun.
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Salary and Benefits
Alongside your salary of £30,681, Animal and Plant Health Agency contributes £8,888 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).
- Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an average employer contribution of 28.97%.
- A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
- An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities tailored to your role
- Access to a range of retail, travel, and lifestyle employee discounts.
- A hybrid office/home based working model.
Please refer to the Candidate Information Pack for more detail around offered benefits.
Selection Process
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Photographic assessment of honeybee pests, diseases, and colony conditions
- Beekeeping
- Pest Knowledge
- Disease Knowledge
- Notifiable Pests & diseases
- Communications Skills through a scenario based question.
Steps
- Sift: Candidates will be asked to complete a CV, personal statement (of no more than 500 words), detailing your beekeeping experience, your experience with Microsoft Office applications and suitability to the role.
- Photographic Assessment: Ability to identify honeybee pests, diseases, and colony conditions. This will take place on Microsoft Teams.
- Interview: If successful in the photographic assessment, you will be invited to attend an interview where you will be assessed on your experience and technical skills relevant to the role. The interview will take place on Microsoft Teams.
- Apiary Assessment: If successful at interview, you will be invited to a face to face apiary assessment in York or other suitable apiary location as specified by the National Bee Unit.
Candidates must pass each stage to be able to proceed to the next. Candidates that have not passed a stage will be advised of the result by the Plant & Bee Health Recruitment Team.
Location
As part of the pre-employment process for this post, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. The agreed contractual workplace is then the substantive and permanent place of work for the successful candidate(s).
Contact Point for Applicants
Job Contact
- Name : PBH Recruitment Team
- Email : phsijobs@apha.gov.uk
Recruitment team
Further information
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: here
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