JOB DESCRIPTION FOR APPRENTICE GARDENER

  1. Post Details:

JOB TITLE: Apprentice Gardener (one year contract)

REPORTING TO: Head Gardener

Hours of work: Monday to Friday 7.30am to 3.30pm (including one hour unpaid lunch break) all year round. Due to seasonal variations, start and finish times may vary throughout the year.

A paid holiday allowance of 25 days per year plus 8 bank holidays will be given.

Full Terms and Conditions will be defined in the Contract of Employment.

  1. Purpose of Job:

In consultation with the Head Gardener, to be responsible for matters relating to the daily upkeep of the College grounds. To work as an active member of the College support team, carrying out duties as required dependent on the programme of works.

  1. Key Tasks and Responsibilities:
  • Propagation
  • Weeding
  • Hedge cutting
  • Topiary work
  • Some soft landscaping
  • Some hard landscaping
  • Vegetable production
  • General garden maintenance
  • Maintenance of the glasshouse
  • Lawn work - seeding, and turfing
  • Mowing both hand and ride-on
  • Water feature maintenance
  • Edging
  • Planting
  • Pruning
  • Sports field maintenance including pitch marking
  • Any other duties as required

This is an apprentice position and as such you will be expected to enrol on an approved course. A mentor will be assigned to you from the course to oversee your training and progress. You should gain Level 2 in Horticulture through completion of the course and successfully completing the apprentice contract with Abbey Gate College.

You will be trained to use machines such as;

  • Mowers
  • Strimmers
  • Blowers
  • Hedge cutters
  • Line marking machine
  1. Support for the College

In addition to the day to day responsibilities of the role, you will also be expected;

  1. To support the College’s commitment to safeguarding children and promoting their welfare at a level appropriate to this role.
  2. Be aware of and comply with policies and procedures relating to health and safety, security, confidentiality and data protection, reporting all concerns to the appropriate person
  3. Contribute to the overall ethos/work/aims of Abbey Gate College;
  4. Participate in training, meetings, and performance development activities as required.
  1. Competencies, Skills and experience
  • Prior experience in horticulture is not a requirement however a keen interest in horticulture is essential.
  • Must have a positive and enthusiastic approach
  • Punctuality and reliability are essential
  • Willingness to learn
  • Ability to plan work under own initiative
  • Excellent inter-personal, communication and organisational skills
  • Ability to work constructively as part of the team of staff at Abbey Gate College
  1. Qualifications:

-Full clean driving licence

-Minimum GCSE English and Maths grade A-C (or equivalent)

Safe Guarding

Abbey Gate College regards as paramount the welfare and safety of children. Whilst criminal convictions are not necessarily a bar, this safety consideration will be key to all decisions regarding the employment of staff, approval of volunteers and standards of external contractors. Any offer of employment is made subject to satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Barred List checks.

Equal Opportunities

We are committed to treating all employees with dignity and respect regardless of race, ethnic background, nationality, colour, gender, transgender status, pregnancy, disability, age, sexual orientation, marital status, religion or belief.

Applications

Candidates selected for the long-list will be contacted, and asked to fill in the Abbey Gate College Application Form, which is a requirement of the Safer Recruitment policy. After review of the application forms, candidates will be selected for first round interviews. Applications should be completed and returned to Rebecca Upton (Human Resources) at .

For any questions please call Rebecca Upton on 01244 564 213.

Please note, we do not accept applications from recruitment agencies.