Culture

• Culture of excellence – our skillset and application of new research and techniques to always be ahead of our competition
• To be at the forefront of emerging issues and actively engaged in designing solutions to new issues both in house and as part of national or regional collaborative developer or other forums
• To hold superior ecological field skills to our competitors so our survey data is more accurate and robust compared to others
• Hold and apply an in depth and superior planning and legal knowledge base than others. Regular collaboration with solicitors and barristers in the application of policy and the law
• This skillset allows us to tackle complex projects and / or those of a high profile

Training

• Botany training
• Full range of faunal surveys
• Botany + fauna = ecologist whereas often engineering consultancies just have a single sps eg GCN or faunal specialisation route for their ‘ecologists’
• Specific training to gain protected species personal survey licences
• In house Graduate training programme
• Dedicated mentor to progress training
• In house CPD programme
• External training programme
• One centralised office with large ecology team (rather than disparate offices with eco small teams) promoting exchange of ideas, learning, knowledge base

Consultancy

• Exposure to project management at an early stage
• Consultancy skills developed from the outset
• Direct client contact from an early stage
• Cradle to grave project experience
• Wide range of project types
• Varied fast paced environment with huge project portfolio (not just a few big ones)
• Work on range of project types from residential to renewables to industrial to health to country estates etc

Result

• Exposure to all of the above (not just some) = rapid career progression assured – those who are the brightest and work hardest at their skill set will be on fast track

Our offices – cycling route from station

A day in the life of an ecologist

Team testimonials – but short like on a post card design at an angle with a photo

• Workplace Pension scheme;
• Group Life Assurance Cover (four times salary);
• 22 days annual leave plus Christmas close;
• Increase in annual leave allowance after 5 and 10 years long service;
• External management training course programme
• Company funded CIEEM Membership at Associate level and above,
• Funded at Ecologist/Assistant Ecologist level after 18 month’s service;
• Business expenses including personal mileage reimbursed at a rate of 38p per mile;
• Use of a hire car for longer journeys (age 25+);
• Subsistence and accommodation for site visits;
• Provision of PPE and branded clothing;
• In-house training and formal internal CPD programme;
• Clear and structured framework for professional development and career progression;
• Complimentary staff functions and team building events;
• Complimentary onsite parking and refreshments.
• TOIL (time off in lieu) policy (role dependent) and flexible approach to working hours to ensure a healthy work-life balance.
• Staff events – Summer party, end of survey season party and Christmas party, ad hoc socials

Aspect Ecology encourages team members to engage with charities and support/volunteer their expertise as and when they can. We also acknowledge how important this is from a capacity building element, with team members learning so much from their voluntary positions.
To this end, we directly support members with their roles in organisations such as CIEEM, the Wildlife Trusts and the IUCN, often giving them time away from work duties to become actively involved.

Aspect as a company regularly donates to local charities and offers charitable sponsorship when requested.
Aspect Ecology is fully committed to inspiring and equipping the next cohort of ecological consultants. As such, we are actively engaged with several universities, offering advice, work experience and designing course material. One of our main contributions is designing and delivering a Masters course at the university of Reading aimed at developing consultants. It is one of only a handful of Masters courses of its type in the UK, and Aspect team members have been involved since its inception 10 years ago. We deliver whole modules on Professional Skills and Vertebrate Survey and Assessment, allowing good biological science graduates to learn the skills required to eventually become great consultants.

We are also committed to an in-house Sustainability Initiative, responsibility for which is shared with more junior members of the team. This includes recycling, monitoring and reducing our paper-use, and using environmentally-friendly products where possible. We also encourage car sharing and using surveyors closer to survey sites, and incorporating sustainability into our reporting and recommendations where feasible. This is an ongoing initiative with further plans to broaden the scope, including tree-planting schemes and a carbon neutral goal for the company.