Park Superintendent Grade II-Tree Officer

Benefits

Some of the benefits of working as a Park Superintendent Grade II - Tree Officer in the OPW are:

Salary with yearly increments for satisfactory performance

Dynamic work environment with multidisciplinary teams delivering bespoke projects to international standards

25 days of annual leave per year, rising to 30 days after a number of years in the grade

Flexible working, with a commitment to work-life balance and a family-friendly workplace

Access to Shorter Working Year Scheme

Learning and development opportunities, including relevant training and attendance at industry conferences and workshops, as well as access to a refund of course fees scheme, paid study leave and paid examination leave

Payment of professional membership

Facility to apply for career breaks

Free access to all OPW-managed heritage sites

Access to Public Service Credit Union

Cycle to work scheme

Tax saver public transport pass

Regular opportunities for promotion through internal, inter-departmental and open competitions

Public Sector pension

The Role

The Park Superintendent - Tree Officer Grade II will be part of the professional team within National Historic Properties.

Reporting to the Chief Park Superintendent, the Park Superintendent - Tree Officer Grade II will be responsible for the efficient implementation of the OPW Tree Safety Management System in National Historic Properties, in addition to co-ordinating tree management services for heritage services.

They will be expected to work closely with colleagues across heritage services and will contribute to the development and implementation of strategies, policies, standards and technological advances around the provision and management of trees and their ecological services within the portfolio. The Park Superintendent - Tree Officer Grade II will have specific assigned responsibility for tree health and safety.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities of the Role

The duties of the Park Superintendent Grade II - Tree Officer include but are not limited to:

Collaborative engagement with the relevant managers across heritage services in the delivery of the commitments contained within the Tree Safety Management Policy and to provide such advice and appropriate professional support as they require from time to time.

Providing leadership in driving a tree safety culture within heritage services while engaging collaboratively with operational, administrative and professional staff, the public, representative groups and public bodies within the state.

Further developing the OPW Tree Safety Management System and providing arboricultural & related scientific input into OPW policy documents and initiatives including GIS & technology advances, while advising on Industry Standards, Legislative Requirements including Health & Safety and environmental requirements including their implications and applications for OPW, its employees and visitors.

Co-ordinating the management of the OPW tree resource in a sustainable and cost-efficient manner including co-ordinating the arboricultural training and upskilling of the operational staff.

Co-ordinating and carrying out tree surveys, risk assessments, data input for use with tree management software, and analysis of survey information to inform tree management approaches and arboricultural work schedules. Preparing Tree Constraints Plans and Veteran Tree Policies as required.

Providing a specialist advisory service on arboriculture to other sections of OPW and other Government Departments as required.

Promoting public awareness of the benefits of trees and engaging with the public on tree initiatives.

Co-ordinating tree research projects with the purpose of advancing tree management in OPW.

Advising on biosecurity & legislative requirements as they pertain to trees and their sensitive environments including protected species.

Managing tree-related projects including budgets, deadlines, procurement, contractors, professional consultants etc.

Ongoing personal commitment to Continuing Professional Development.

Directing and supporting individuals and teams of outdoor staff in support of excellent service delivery and communicating effectively with key stakeholders.

Drafting answers to press queries and other information requirements that relate to trees.

Participate in the Performance Management and Development System (PMDS).

Please note:

The above is a general guide to the key duties and responsibilities of the role and is not an exhaustive description. Other duties and responsibilities appropriate to the role may be assigned from time to time.

Vacancies and Location

There is currently one Park Superintendent - Tree Officer Grade II vacancy. The successful candidate will be based in one of the OPW offices (see NHP Irish locations in Appendix 1). The specific office location will be determined by the Director of National Historic Properties in consultation with the successful candidate.

Applicants who are successful in this competition will be placed on a panel, in an order of merit, to fill any future vacancies which may arise. It is not expected that appointments will be made from this panel after September 2026.

Working Environment

The work is divided between field and office, with travelling to various sites envisaged with occasional overnight stays required. Travel expenses and subsistence allowances will be paid where applicable, subject to the normal Civil Service regulations.

The OPW’s Blended Working Policy is developed and implemented in accordance with the Civil Service Blended Working Policy in line with business needs.

Training and Development

The OPW is committed to ensuring that all staff members are given the support and assistance required to realise their full potential within the organisation. OPW staff have access to a wide range of Civil Service-wide learning and development opportunities to support and develop core civil service competencies.

Mentoring and specialist training will be provided along with facilitated attendance at Industry Conferences and workshops. Professional membership of the relevant institute/association will be supported.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Essential

Candidates must have on or before Thursday, 14th August 2025:

A qualification at Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications (minimum 2nd Class Honours) or a NARIC Ireland Foreign Qualifications equivalent in Horticulture, Landscape Architecture, Arboriculture or a related discipline such as Forestry, Environmental Sciences, Woodland Ecology, Land Management.

and

After attaining the qualification in paragraph 1 above, a minimum of five years’ experience in Horticultural, Landscape Management and/or Arboriculture including experience in the management of parks and/or trees.

In addition, candidates must also have:

3. A strong understanding and good working knowledge of modern arboricultural management systems and their ecological services.

4. Excellent technical knowledge and the capacity to use such knowledge to optimum effect.

5. Strong understanding of the legislative, environmental and safety requirements as they pertain to this role.

6. Experience in the management of staff, work programmes and services including allocating/delegating and/or overseeing tasks.

7. Experience in the planning and delivery of projects to include budget oversight, timelines, and the management of stakeholders.

8. The capacity to manage procurement processes.

9. Demonstrate a career record that shows a high level of competence in the management of staff, projects, work programmes and services.

10. Strong organisational skills with the ability to deal with multiple demands and competing priorities to tight deadlines.

11. The ability to deal with issues of a technical and/or management nature with a practical approach.

12. A commitment to achieving quality results and ensuring all tasks are completed to a very high standard.

13. Strong interpersonal skills including the ability to build effective working relationships within a multidisciplinary team, and with a diverse range of stakeholders both internally and externally.

14. Excellent oral and written communication skills including the ability to present information in a clear and concise manner.

15. The ability to actively share information, knowledge and expertise.

16. Good IT skills with proficiency in Microsoft Office applications.

17. Commitment to Continuing Professional Development.

18. A current full driving licence (Category B), valid in Ireland and/or access to a car.

In addition to the above, candidates must also be able to demonstrate the Key Competencies identified for effective performance at this level.

Desirable

Experience in veteran trees, historical research, conservation management plans, tree collections, biosecurity and biodiversity

Experience in the planning and managing of urban woodlands, botanical and/or historic tree collections

Experience in the application of Health & Safety legislation, regulations and industry standards as they apply to the workplace

Experience in project management

Procurement experience including tender documentation, supplier selection, and contract preparation

Experience in the use of GIS & IT packages such as i-Tree

Experience in lecturing/public speaking and/or publications

Please note:

Qualifications/eligibility may not be confirmed until the final stage of the process. Therefore, those candidates who do not possess the essential requirements, on or by the dates as specified, and proceed with their application are putting themselves to unnecessary effort/expense and will not be offered a position from this competition.

The onus is on the candidate to ensure they fulfil the eligibility requirements as set out. publicjobs reserves the right to deem an applicant ineligible at any stage if it is apparent that the candidate does not hold the required eligibility/qualifications (e.g., from the submitted application form).

Candidates who are unable to demonstrate that they hold/will hold the required qualification(s) by the deadline specified may be withdrawn from the competition at any stage. An invitation to tests, interview or any element of the selection process is not acceptance of eligibility.

Candidates who are placed on a panel and come under consideration for a position will be required to provide documentary evidence of their eligibility, including qualifications. Please be aware a transcript of results may be required; therefore, the onus is on candidates to have this information available if requested by publicjobs.

Shortlisting

The number of applications received for a position generally exceeds that required to fill existing and future vacancies. While a candidate may meet the eligibility requirements of the competition, if the numbers applying are such that it would not be practical to interview everyone, publicjobs may decide that a smaller number will be invited to the next stage of the selection process.

publicjobs provides for the employment of a shortlisting process to select a group who, based on an examination of the application forms, appear to be the most suitable for the position. This is not to suggest that other candidates are necessarily unsuitable or incapable of undertaking the job, rather that there are some candidates who, based on their application, appear to be better qualified and/or have more relevant experience.

During shortlisting, an expert board will examine the application forms against agreed shortlisting criteria which are based on the requirements of the position. The standard of content of each application submitted may also be assessed during this process.

Where a competition attracts a large number of eligible candidates, the shortlisting process will apply a scored assessment of the information provided on the application form. A rank order of candidates will then be created, and based on that ranking, candidates will be invited to the next stage of the process in groups/batches, with those candidates ranked highest invited initially.

Subsequent groups/batches may be invited to the next stage of the selection process over the lifetime of the competition on a demand-led basis, if required.

The shortlisting criteria may include both essential and desirable criteria specified for the position, and it is therefore in your own interest to provide a detailed and accurate account of your qualifications/experience in your application. The onus is on candidates to complete the application form fully and accurately.

For certain competitions, candidates may be required to undertake online assessment tests and will be shortlisted in accordance with their ranking in these tests. Applicants must successfully compete and be placed highest on the order of merit to be considered for advancement to the next stage of a multistage selection process, which may include a shortlisting exercise as described above. The number to be invited forward at each stage will be determined from time to time by publicjobs.