Ruth Baker

My current role at Derbyshire County Council involves;

Leading a team of tree inspectors and project officers

Organising/prioritising projects.

Liaising regularly with members of the public, councillors and council colleagues.

Responding to all tree-related enquiries by phone, email or our customer relationship management system.

Site visits in all weathers.

Accurate recording and monitoring of data using GIS, Excel, Microsoft suit.

Preparing project plans and reports.

Advising land owners on appropriate tree/woodland management and grant funding.

Working directly with volunteers on practical tasks.

Although this is a volunteer role my commitment to the work is the same as a paid position and where I spend much of my spare time at weekends with regular walking shifts. Many of our dogs come to us with various health or behavioural issues.

Working with staff I help to maintain a calm environment for the dogs to relax in.

Complete walks is all weathers.

Provide enrichment activities in the training rooms/exercise areas.

Note any abnormal behaviours and injuries with staff.

Build trust with the dogs.

Ensure the safety of dogs during exercise periods.

Reinforce good behaviour with rewards.

Follow all instructions provided by kennel staff and pet behaviourists.

Working as part of a small team based out of Ashbourne my role includes;

Observing/implementing biosecurity measures.

Collecting and transporting hens from commercial farms.

Unloading hens from crates at the re-homing centre.

Health checking all birds on arrival and throughout the re-homing process.

Administering first aid to sick or injured birds.

Catching/handling birds for packing into boxes/pet carriers.

Providing advice on general hen health and care to new owners.

Cleaning down and sterilising soiled equipment at the end of the day.

Sick and injured birds come home with me for rehabilitation/treatment.

Take sick birds to a specialist avian vet for advice/treatment. Over the years I have built up a very good working relationship with this vet and have learnt at lot though this.

In this role I was the main point of contact for all tree-related enquiries to the County Council. The skills required include;

Good at organising workload.

Working to tight deadlines.

Building good relationships with customers and colleagues.

Problem solving.

Accurate record keeping.

Good written and oral communication.

Research.

Negotiation.

Managing conflict situations.

In this role I provided technical and clerical support to two teams within the council. Including site inspections, report preparation, mapping and data analysis.