Site Manager / Caretaker in Northampton

Location: Overstone Park School LTD, Northampton, Northamptonshire.

Salary: £28,000 per annum.

Holiday: 7 weeks per year to be taken during school holiday periods.

Hours: Full time 7.30 am to 4.30 pm. The position is permanent. Start Date: ASAP.

Job Purpose: Overstone Park School are recruiting an experienced, caring, and flexible team member for the day-to-day operation of the following:

• Security & Safety
• Animal Care
• Cleanliness
• General Grounds Work & Maintenance
• Nursery Pupil’s Minibus Collection & Drop-Off Service

Duties:

• Opening the building for staff and locking all doors and windows when it is not in operation.
• Opening and locking up the school for users of the premises throughout the year.
• Caring for the school’s farm animals during the school week and at the weekends, including keeping their habitats clean and feeding and watering them.
• Performing repairs, maintenance, and decorating tasks on the premises.
• Driving the school minibus for school runs and on trips and for other journeys as required.
• Checking the school minibuses and recording and reporting findings daily.
• Monitoring cleaning materials, tools, and furniture and reordering as required.
• Daily responsibility to check that all doors and windows are locked when the building is not in use.
• Securing the school with its burglar alarm.
• Arranging chairs and tables for meetings or assemblies and clearing away afterward.
• Assisting in the setting up and clearing up of all school events.
• Assisting with the periodical deep cleaning program as required.
• Care of the school’s animals throughout the year including during school holidays and weekends.
• Assisting in the clearance of snow, ice, and other hazards from paths, entrances, and other essential areas as necessary.
• Being a key holder and the main contact should the school alarm be triggered at any time in the year.
• Adhering to contractual requirements and to the school’s health and safety policies to create a safe working environment for everyone.
• Conducting all fire checks and recording findings weekly.
• Being part of the school’s health and safety team.

Grounds & Estate Operative

Location: Estate. Contract Type: Full-Time | Permanent. Salary: Competitive (dependent on experience).

About the Estate: The Estate is a substantial rural estate comprising extensive acres of landscaped grounds, woodland, parkland, formal gardens, open grassland, and agricultural areas. The estate includes historic features, mature trees, green spaces, water features, and maintained public-facing and private areas.

Purpose of the Role: To support the ongoing maintenance, presentation, and environmental stewardship of the estate’s extensive grounds, ensuring they are maintained to a high standard throughout the year.

Key Responsibilities:

• Mowing and maintaining large areas of grassland, lawns, and formal landscaped areas.
• Strimming, edging, hedge cutting, and pruning across extensive acreage.
• Maintenance of woodland paths, driveways, and estate access routes.
• Leaf clearance and seasonal grounds preparation.
• Planting and maintaining trees, shrubs, and flower beds.
• Care of ornamental gardens and green spaces.
• Management of invasive species where required.

Green Space & Environmental Care:

• Supporting biodiversity initiatives and habitat management.
• Assisting with woodland management and conservation tasks.
• Monitoring tree health and reporting hazards.
• Maintaining water features, ponds, and drainage systems.
• Understanding seasonal land management cycles.

General Estate Duties:

• Fence repairs and boundary maintenance.
• Minor landscaping projects and improvements.
• Basic repairs to outdoor structures and fixtures.
• Assisting with estate events preparation (marquees, signage, access routes).
• Snow clearance and gritting during winter months.
• Supporting agricultural or estate operational needs where required.

Machinery & Equipment:

• Operating ride-on mowers, tractors, strimmers, hedge cutters, and other grounds machinery.
• Routine maintenance and care of tools and equipment.
• Adhering strictly to health and safety procedures when operating machinery.

Experience & Skills Required:

Essential:

• Proven experience working on large estates, parks, or extensive grounds.
• Strong knowledge of grounds maintenance practices.
• Experience operating grounds machinery and equipment.
• Physically fit and comfortable working outdoors in all weather conditions.
• Good understanding of health and safety procedures.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Full UK driving licence.

Desirable:

• Horticultural or land-based qualification (NVQ or equivalent).
• Chainsaw certification (e.g., NPTC).
• PA1/PA6 spraying certification.
• Knowledge of conservation and biodiversity practices.
• Experience working on heritage or historic estates.

Personal Qualities:

• Practical and hands-on approach.
• Strong attention to detail in maintaining presentation standards.
• Reliable, punctual, and hardworking.
• Respectful of the rural environment and estate property.
• Takes pride in maintaining green spaces to a high standard.

What We Offer:

• Opportunity to work within a large, scenic rural estate environment.
• Varied and engaging work across multiple landscapes.
• Long-term stability within an established estate team.
• Competitive salary dependent on experience.

Person Specifications:

• Reliable.
• Punctual.
• Honest with a high level of integrity.
• A good team member.
• Flexible.
• Environmental awareness.
• Able to work accurately and safely.
• Able to work with ponies, small farm animals, and small animals housed inside the school.
• Carpentry and general maintenance skills are essential.
• Able to use a hand and ride-on lawnmower and other garden tools.
• Good interpersonal skills.
• Ability to adapt to organizational change.
• Able to work with minimal supervision and on my own initiative, either in a team or alone.
• To be adaptable, conscientious, and to be a good team member.
• To be able to work with passion and enthusiasm with children. Our pupils are our priority.
• To have accountability for all tasks completed.
• To be able to take constructive criticism.
• To embrace continued professional development.
• To be willing to conduct health and safety training.

A uniform is worn. 2 Polo shirts, fleece, and 2 pairs of black work trousers are provided at the start of the position. A clean driver’s license is required. The successful applicant will complete a DBS upon a successful interview and all relevant checks.

Overstone Park School: The school is committed to our responsibilities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people outlined in Working Together to Safeguard Children. We are committed to recruiting candidates who share this commitment to safeguarding, and therefore we apply robust recruitment and selection procedures to ensure that the people selected are right for the job and that all candidates are appropriately screened prior to appointment.

The school is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act as the work brings employees into contact with children who are regarded by the Act as a vulnerable group. Applicants for school-based jobs must, therefore, disclose all spent and unspent convictions.

The following pre-employment checks will be undertaken as applicable: References, Occupational Health pre-employment screening, DBS check, Barred list check, Section 128 check, Overseas criminal records check, Identity check, Right to work in the UK, Evidence of qualifications applicable to the role. All job offers will be conditioned on the satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks.

False Information: Please note that providing false information is an offence and could result in your application being rejected or your dismissal from employment if you are appointed. The matter may also be referred to the police. This job description may be revised by the proprietors by the various changes and developments of the school.

Contact by email and please send in your CV to: Overstone Park School, Overstone Park, Overstone, Northampton, NN6 ODT.