The Welsh Government (WG) Soils Policy and Land Use Team is seeking a social science PhD student for a
placement opportunity. The Soils Policy and Land Use Team is responsible for soil policy, Best and Most Versatile (BMV)1 land protection policy, minerals policy (agricultural after use) and peatland policy.
The Soils Policy and Land Use Team has commissioned over 40 research reports to better understand climatic and soil conditions in Wales, and the challenges facing Welsh soils and agricultural capacity in the context of biodiversity loss and climate change.
WG have contracted an external research agency to run co-design workshops with farmers to gather their
feedback on the draft Soils Policy Statement and to explore their knowledge and understanding of the status, challenges and opportunities for Welsh agricultural soil. The workshops will be recorded and transcribed, and the data coded and analysed in NVIVO. The external research agency will then produce a report of their findings.
The post holder will support the WG work with the external research agency. This will be primarily to offer advice on the analysis and reporting of the evidence from the codesign workshops with farmers and other stakeholders that the external research team are undertaking. They will incorporate the findings from the report on the codesign work into the Soil Policy Statement.
A key part of the role will be to undertake qualitative analysis of the workshop transcripts and the wider Welsh Government policy landscape to produce a roadmap for the SPS. The workshops will provide further insights into how stakeholders view and engage with soil and what the next steps might be for the SPS, e.g. priorities for what should be included in the next revision of the statement. The post holder will develop this roadmap to sit alongside the SPS, setting out the future direction and development of the statement in response to policy developments and insights from stakeholders.
For further information about the post and details of how to apply please download the following: