Groundsperson in Thatcham

Bring your grounds expertise to a varied Monday to Friday role, caring for beautiful school grounds and preparing pitches pupils are proud to play on.

Location: Maidenhead, Berkshire

Salary: Competitive, dependent on experience

Hours: 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday, 52 weeks per year

Contract: Permanent, full time

Start: October 2026

Closing date: 8am on Monday 31 August 2026

Are you an experienced groundsperson, greenkeeper or grounds maintenance professional looking for more variety, responsibility and the chance to see the difference your work makes every day? Our client is an established independent school looking for a skilled Groundsperson to join its Estates Team. This is a rewarding outdoor role where you will help create safe, attractive and professionally maintained grounds for pupils, staff, families and visitors.

From preparing sports pitches for fixtures to caring for landscaped areas throughout the seasons, your practical expertise, initiative and attention to detail will be genuinely valued.

As Groundsperson / Estates Grounds Technician, you will help maintain the school’s gardens, grounds and sports facilities across its local sites. Working independently and alongside the wider Estates Team, you will ensure every external area is safe, compliant, ready for use and presented to an excellent standard.

No two weeks will look quite the same. You could be preparing natural turf or synthetic surfaces for an important fixture, completing seasonal horticultural work, maintaining machinery or suggesting an improvement that makes the estate work and look better. This is an opportunity to take real ownership of your work in a stable Monday to Friday position while contributing to an environment used and enjoyed by the whole school community.

• Prepare and maintain natural turf and synthetic sports surfaces
• Complete mowing, scarifying, aerating, fertilising, rolling and accurate line marking
• Maintain gardens, landscaped areas, woodland and external thoroughfares
• Carry out seasonal planting, pruning, hedge cutting and weed control
• Identify and suggest practical improvements to the grounds and landscape
• Safely operate, inspect and maintain mowers, tractors, strimmers, hedge cutters and other equipment
• Support deliveries, school events and winter weather preparations when required
• Complete machinery records, safety checks, risk assessments and COSHH documentation

You will have proven experience in amenity grounds maintenance, commercial gardening or greenkeeping, supported by practical knowledge of sports turf, pitch marking and horticulture. You will also be confident using and maintaining petrol powered and mechanical grounds machinery safely.

A full, clean UK driving licence is essential, as the position involves collecting materials and travelling between local school sites. An NVQ Level 2 or 3 in Sports Turf Management, Amenity Horticulture or a similar subject would be advantageous. PA1 and PA6 pesticide certificates and qualifications for operating tractors, chainsaws or woodchippers would also be useful, but are not essential.

Most importantly, you will be dependable, organised and comfortable completing physical work outdoors throughout the seasons. You will bring a proactive, can do approach, take pride in high standards and work confidently both independently and as part of a supportive team.

• A good pension scheme
• Free parking at each school site
• Uniform and equipment provided
• Meals and refreshments during the school day when the kitchen is operating
• Death in service cover and personal accident insurance
• Cycle to work scheme
• School fee concession, subject to qualifying conditions
• Regular professional development and training opportunities

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.