ASSISTANT GROUNDSPERSON

Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools are currently seeking two motivated and meticulous Assistant Groundsperson to join our dedicated Grounds Teams in the Estates Department on a temporary basis, from April 2026 (subject to satisfactory pre‑employment checks) to 25 September 2026. The role is full time, working 39 hours per week, from 7am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 7am to 3pm on Fridays. Remuneration will be dependent on skills and experience, ranging from £25,318 to £26,090.

Both positions will be based across all three sites, including the Queensferry Road site, Ravelston site and Inverleith. Our schools are renowned for their high‑quality sporting facilities and beautifully landscaped campuses. The post holder will play a vital role in ensuring the School’s Rugby, Hockey, Football, Athletics and cricket natural grass surfaces are maintained to a high standard, provide care and maintenance for our extensive horticulture collections and carry out general maintenance to ensure tidiness of the Schools, including litter, playgrounds and footpaths and roads during harsh weather.

The successful candidate must have experience using pedestrian, petrol engine rotary and cylinder mowers; and petrol engine hedge trimmers and strimmer’s. Additionally, experience of using amenity range diesel tractors with various mounted implements, such as trailed gang mowers, rotary mowers, turf aerators, sand spreaders, trailers, and drag brushes, is required. Qualifications in NC Horticulture, City and Guilds Horticulture Level 2-3, NVQ/SVC level 2-3 in Greenkeeping/Sports turf maintenance or equivalent experience is desirable, but not essential and on the job training will be provided.

ESMS is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. International applicants will therefore be unable to apply for and secure a Skilled Worker visa. The successful candidate will only be able to take up this role if they can demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

Staff are offered a range of benefits including:

• a generous holiday allowance
• enhanced sick pay
• family friendly policies
• use of the Schools’ swimming pool and fitness room outside school hours
• membership of the ESMS Discount and Benefits Scheme, including a range of discounts at 130,000 retail and entertainment locations

We are looking for individuals who can embody and promote ESMS values of Kindness, Confidence, Resilience, Integrity, and Curiosity while role modelling behaviours in line with our school pillars of Ambition, Innovation, and Community.

ESMS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. Applicants must undergo child protection screening, including checks with past employers and Disclosure Scotland.

All staff working at ESMS have direct access to young people therefore all posts within the school are considered exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Any enquiries about this position should be directed to the Recruitment Team at recruitment@esms.org.uk. The closing date for these roles will be 12pm, Tuesday 17 March 2026. It is anticipated interviews will take place the week commencing 23 March 2026.

Welcome to the ESMS, a vibrant family of independent schools, set in beautiful grounds in the heart of Edinburgh. We offer a co‑educational nursery and junior school, single‑sex but closely twinned secondary education, and a co‑educational sixth form. We are a consistently award‑winning School, with an educational legacy that stretches back more than 300 years. Our Schools have always been pioneers of rounded education. Children’s education is underpinned by our values: kindness, confidence, resilience, integrity and curiosity. From virtual reality headsets in the classroom to developing one of the first outdoor learning programmes in Scotland, we are always searching for new ways to develop the whole child. The people that work for us are passionate, pioneering and strive for excellence in everything they do. We value the incredible contributions they make to school life, we invest in their careers and we support their ambitions so that they flourish professionally and personally.

Benefits (extended):

• Fee remission from Nursery to S6
• Free school lunches
• Free Sports’ Club membership, including access to pool and fitness suites
• Generous holiday allowance
• Generous pension
• Death in service benefit
• Family friendly policies, including enhanced maternity leave
• Membership of the ESMS Discount and Benefits Scheme, including a range of discounts at 130,000 retail and entertainment locations
• Employee Assistance Service
• Cycle to work scheme
• Car leasing salary sacrifice scheme
• Annual professional review process
• Regular salary reviews
• Funding towards professional qualifications