Consultant ecologist: mid-grade pay and licences
Consultant Ecologist (mid-grade) sits between Assistant and Senior. The role is independent on PEAs and most protected-species survey work but typically not yet leading EIA chapters. Protected-species licences are the single biggest pay variable at this grade.
Day-to-day duties
- PEA (Preliminary Ecological Appraisal) authorship and project leadership.
- Protected-species surveys (bat emergence/re-entry, GCN HSI and eDNA, dormouse tube checks, badger sett surveys, reptile mat surveys).
- BNG metric calculation and reporting under Defra statutory metric.
- Junior staff mentoring and report QA support for the Senior tier.
Licence value
Natural England Class licences for bat (1, 2, 3, 4), GCN (Class 1) and dormouse (Class 1 / individual) extend the work a Consultant can lead independently and materially affect billable rate. Most consultancies pay a licence-bonus or set a higher band cell for chartered licence-holders.
BNG impact at this grade
BNG metric calculation has shifted from specialist to standard for Consultant grade since 2024. Familiarity with the Defra statutory metric, UKHab and BNG record-keeping is effectively expected on all advertised Consultant posts in 2026.