Premises Manager in London

The school Premises Manager is responsible for a wide range of duties and responsibilities connected with the buildings, fabric and grounds of the school, and reports directly to the Head. Normal working hours are 7.15 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, all year round. Flexibility with working hours will be needed for evening and other school functions throughout the year.

The principal responsibilities are detailed below.

• Management: Liaising regularly with the Head and School Business Manager, managing the work of the maintenance team including allocating jobs, and monitoring standards of work, monitoring maintenance requests, prioritising tasks and liaising with other staff as necessary, engaging, liaising with and supervising contractors.
• Security and Associated Duties: Carrying out security procedures for school buildings and grounds, opening and closing of school premises, including gates, doors, windows, fire exits, etc., for the purpose of school use, out of school hours functions, maintenance and emergency services, regularly checking the proper operation and function of alarms and fire equipment and keeping records of checks, ensuring emergency exits are not obstructed, liaising with the emergency services including calling out as required, reporting acts of theft or vandalism to Head and/or police as necessary.
• Heating: Checking and controlling system functions, regularly checking and maintaining all parts of the heating system as required with due regard to appropriate safety requirements, reporting all defects to the Head and contract engineers as instructed.
• Deliveries/Post: Taking delivery of post, stores, material and other goods, assisting in unpacking or storing supplies, stock and resources, undertaking courier duties as required by the Head.
• Manual Handling Duties and Furniture Moving: Moving such items of school furniture as required in connection with the school and other users of the school premises with due regard to current Health & Safety and Lifting & Handling regulations.
• Internal Maintenance: Reporting all defects which require specialist repair, inspecting electrical fittings and reporting defects as required, conducting annual Portable Appliance Testing, replacing lamps and domestic fuses as required, regularly inspecting plumbing and reporting/repairing defects as appropriate, synchronising clocks, time switches, etc., as required, undertaking minor repairs to equipment, fixtures and fittings including desks, tables and chairs, ordering and taking delivery of materials to deal with repairs mentioned above subject to safety regulations, redecoration of any area, agreed as reasonable on instruction from the Head, removing graffiti etc., as required by Head, carrying out minor works in order to improve the site as required by the Head.
• External Maintenance: Ensuring that all jobs that have been recorded on the maintenance log are dealt with in a timely manner, maintaining cleanliness and general tidiness of all external hard areas, cleaning and clearing all drains and gullies to ensure effective and healthy operation, inspecting outside fabric of school, reporting/repairing defects as appropriate, inspecting all fences, gates, walls, steps, lights, etc. and reporting/repairing defects as appropriate, removing/obscuring all graffiti, undertaking designated gardening duties e.g. lawns, shrub beds and borders, keeping entrances to the school, inside and outside, clean and clear of obstructions at all times, clearing leaves, snow, ice, moss and detritus as appropriate, including treatment of surfaces with salt, etc., inspecting all outside areas for dangerous materials and removing - including external emergency clean of spillages, pruning and clearance to ensure unrestricted access and use of premises including perimeter fencing, carrying out internal/external window cleaning where required, carrying out minor works in order to improve the site as required by the Head.
• Energy Conservation: In conjunction with the Head, implementing all agreed policies, reading, recording and reporting all meter readings as required by the Head.
• Emergencies: Cleaning sickness and spillages as required, dealing with, or arranging to be dealt with, all bursts, leaks, blockages, floods, fires and breakages as appropriate as soon as the problem is discovered, dealing with, or arranging to be dealt with, all electrical and gas emergencies, making safe initially by turning off supply, ensuring access for emergency services, assisting as necessary, and securing premises as required.
• Health and Safety: Being aware of the regulatory requirements for compliance with regards to health and safety aspects for the Independent Schools Inspectorate and keeping all records up to date, ensuring the safety of self, staff, pupils and public on and around school premises, keeping the workshop and storage sheds tidy, clean, locked and in good order, maintaining tools and equipment in good order, storing tools, equipment and materials safely and securely, conducting and publishing annual risk assessments in work-related areas and adjusting procedures accordingly, maintaining safe practices at all times, maintaining vigilance when working in the vicinity of pupils, and ensuring that all work is conducted safely, undertaking legionella and other monitoring checks as necessary, being observant of all school and HSE policies and regulations concerning Health & Safety.
• Other Duties: Hiring and driving vans for the transport of school equipment, as directed by the Head, assisting with the construction of drama sets and staging, as directed by the Head, attending appropriate training courses as required by the Head, performing other duties as might reasonably be required by the Head.

The school is committed to safeguarding pupils and an Enhanced DBS check will take place prior to appointment. Online searches will be conducted on shortlisted candidates as part of our pre-recruitment checks.

DIY/practical skills are essential. Ability to offer trade skills (electrical, plumbing or building) or previous caretaking experience. Experience in managing a team is desirable. Current, clean driving licence essential. Good record keeping. Physically fit to cope with the demands of the role.