The Trust will reimburse the cost of one annual membership subscription to a professional body that is relevant to your job role. Training budgets are allocated to each team and department so that staff can get the essential training they need to succeed in their roles. The Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts also provides a range of training opportunities at relatively low cost, and staff are encouraged to take these up.
The Trust provides 27 days of annual leave in addition to 3 closure days over the Christmas period and all bank/public holidays. All leave entitlement is pro rata entitlement for part-time staff.
In our staff survey, 80% of staff said they are happy with the flexibility to mix home and office working and with the flexibility they have in their work schedules. The Trust is committed to providing a flexible and hybrid working model, wherever the job role allows. For roles with a substantial element of computer-based work, staff are provided with laptops and mobiles phones and can agree a mixture of home and office working with their line manager. We also operate a range of flexible working patterns, relevant to the specific role, and seeks to respond positively to request for flexible working wherever practical to do so.
The Trust operates a Cycle to Work scheme and a salary exchange-based Pension Scheme with Standard Life. This ensures that you don’t pay income tax on these items that are deducted from your monthly salary. We also provide an excellent level of pension contribution options as follows:
| Employee % | Employer % |
| 6 | 9 |
| 5 | 8 |
| 4 | 7 |
| 3 | 6 |
| 2 | 6 |
All staff have access to a benefits hub, provided by the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, which delivers a multitude of discounted offers for online and high-street shops. Staff of all wildlife trusts get 20% discount from Cotswold outdoor clothing. Free and discounted tickets to a range of music, comedy and other live events, provided by Tickets for Good.
Because our staff team is widely dispersed across the whole of Yorkshire, we organise two annual staff conferences - one in Spring and one towards Christmas – always including some time afterwards for staff to socialise over drinks. Teams across the Trust also organise a range of other socials throughout the year, including team drinks, lunch and learns and even wild swimming!
There are also lots of ways in which staff can get involved in events that we run for the public and for our members and volunteers of the Trust.
The Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (RSWT) have five Staff Networks with a dedicated intranet page to access these groups. The networks provide a space for people with a shared heritage, experience or characteristic to come together to support each other and help to make sure that RSWT’s organisational goals and EDI work recognises people’s real lived experiences. The staff networks are:
· Out For Nature (LGBTQ staff network)
· Next Gen Nature (Young staff network)
· Nature in Mind (Mental Health staff network)
· Nature for All (Disability staff network)
· Minority Ethnic Staff Network (Name TBC)
The Trust provides an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) which offers access to independent advice, support and guidance on a wide range of topics including health and wellbeing, financial, legal etc, including access to a confidential counselling service. We also have access to an occupational health service so that we obtain professional advice and guidance on how to support staff with their health and wellbeing when they’re dealing with a challenging medical condition. We have a staff team of trained Mental Health First Aiders based throughout the Trust who can provide instant support and signpost employees to further support when struggling with mental health.
The Trust provides an enhanced sick pay scheme (i.e. well above statutory sick pay) and we are currently reviewing our family leave provisions for maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave and pay.
