Island Station Leader

UKRI; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 60,000 - GBP 80,000; Full time

Job description

Island Station Leader

British Antarctic Survey

BAS 26/26

Contract type: AEP – Fixed-term appointment (length of contract depending on location, see below job description for details)

Location: Antarctica

Salary: AEPC7B - £42,151

Closing date: 01/03/2026

Interview date: w/c 16/03/2026

Contract duration:

• King Edward Point station (August 2026 to December 2027)

• Bird Island station (August 2026 to March 2027)

• Signy Island (August 2026 to March 2027)

Background/Overview:

British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is seeking to appoint station leaders to lead highly motivated groups of operational and scientific staff at each of the island research stations for a duration of 6-12 months. British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is seeking to appoint station leaders to lead highly motivated groups of operational and scientific staff at each of the island research stations for a duration of 6-12 months.

Namely, these station leader roles are based at the following research stations at King Edward Point (12 months), Bird Island (6 months) and Signy Island (6 months).
The ideal candidate should have excellent leadership and management skills and be comfortable interacting with staff and stakeholders at all levels of the organisation.

The station leader will be required to uphold BAS core values and ensure that activities undertaken comply with strategies and safety protocols. The station leader will be responsible for a wide range of activities including stakeholder engagement, operational matters on station, staff management and training, incident response, health & safety, field safety and environmental protection. This role has oversight of all aspects of life on station and will endeavour to ensure that daily routines are managed to ensure harmony on station.

On starting with BAS, there will be a month-long period aimed at specific station leader training, followed by another month of general pre-deployment and field training.

Purpose:

Station leaders provide leadership, management, coordination and administration of all research station activities and its staff.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• The station leader’s primary role is to lead and manage daily and upcoming station activities through effective leadership, management of staff and visitors, stakeholder engagement, and a wide range of administration tasks.

• To successfully manage, coordinate and safely implement station and field plans in liaison with BAS polar operations, external stakeholders and science managers.

• Maintain effective communication between all stakeholders on and off station. Keep staff informed of upcoming issues on a regular basis. The role will take the chair on weekly station coordination meetings and health & safety.

• Act as the lead point of contact for stakeholder and media visits to station.

• The station leader has a duty to always act in a professional manner. The 24/7 nature of the role can be challenging but rewarding to committed individuals.

• The role will work to support and deliver BAS strategies. This role is supported by BAS Cambridge management.

• Manage safe working practices for all station and field activities. Documentation to manage these activities will be supported by standard operating procedures (SOP), risk assessments (RA), accident reporting, health & safety legislation, and ongoing support from the BAS health and safety advisor and BAS Cambridge Operations staff.

• Adhere to best environmental protection under the relevant policies.

• Coordination the station’s recycling process, waste management, safe packing of cargo, and documentation of all waste shipment off station. Liaison with the BAS environmental team and supply chain logistics team on any queries relating to the recycling and waste management processes.

• Take a lead role in the management of major incidents, emergencies, operational difficulties, and staff conflict as they arise.

• Ensure appropriate emergency plans are exercised regularly on station to maintain staff familiarity and response capability. On station, this will include leading on regular incident response exercises for: search and rescue, fire, major incident, oil spill and tsunami. Post event, write up reports are required to summarise aims and any learning points from staff.

• Manage the planning and implementation of annual ship cargo movements on and off station. This will include, safety briefing of personnel, management of resources and staff, and coordination with ship’s officers to ensure efficient and safe movement of cargo. Once cargo has been delivered onto station, the station leader will ensure that supplies are tallied and properly stored.

• Before the onset of winter, the station leader shall ensure that the station supplies, are checked, and indented using the Maximo database system. The station leader will also ensure that the ensuing procurement process implemented by BAS Cambridge is fully supported by timely response to queries on station supplies.

• Provide comprehensive monthly station reports, monthly health & safety reports, annual station leader report and bi-annual station staff appraisals. There is also a requirement to produce brief shipping reports summarising pax and cargo movements.

• Maintain various spreadsheets to ensure that various administrative and planning processes are being managed in an organised and accurate manner. These spreadsheets are used for planning and managing station staff movements, accommodation, training, fire muster, field trip records, cash held on station, bar bills, etc. Note that there now a requirement for many of these documents to be used for audit purposes.

• Provide BAS Finance with monthly station staff accounts. Maintain accurate records in the event of a query or audit.

Skills, Qualifications and Experience

Essential:

• Proven leadership and management experience living and working with professional teams and people in remote polar environments.
• Experience of managing remote logistics in a polar environment, such as personnel movements, limited food supplies and equipment parts, etc.
• Demonstrate experience of making conservative safety judgement calls and rational decisions in an operational capacity
• Experience of implementing safety management systems in a place of work.
• Proficient in written and spoken English language. Must have ability to communicate effectively through verbal and written medium.
• Hold a proficient level of writing skills for clear and concise communication and reporting through email, MS Wordand MS Excel.
• Experience in communicating effectively with multiple stakeholders.
• Proven experience in dealing with difficult staff situations and conflict resolution.
• Demonstrate a competent level of field skills, knowledge, and experience in a mountain setting, or similar. This should include navigation, weather forecast assessment, safe passage in the hills, ice axe and crampon use, field cooking skills, thorough knowledge of field clothing use/theory, and general camping skills.
• Search and rescue knowledge and experience in a montane or maritime environment.
• Boating experience in a polar environment.
• You will need to pass a medical to demonstrate that you are medically fit to work in Antarctic conditions.
• The post holder must have the ability to attend, and pass, a variety of training courses appropriate to the skills required.
• The successful applicant would be expected to assist with delivery of the new BAS staff deployment training process which will involve coordination activities and the field training course.

Desirable:

• Demonstrate leadership experience in staff instruction and training.
• Experience in chairing meetings and recording minutes.
• Avalanche awareness experience and tuition.
• Experience of operating/troubleshooting VHF radio and iridium communications systems.
• General IT user proficiency: IT fault finding and maintenance, hardware and software repairs, setting up user accounts.
• Proficiency in the use of IT stock control systems, such as Maximo.

The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.