Vacancies - Gardener

Location: Highgrove Gardens, Doughton, Gloucestershire, GL8 8TQ
Department: Gardening
Reports to: Senior Gardener
Salary: £24,500+, dependent on experience
Contract: Permanent, full-time

Job Summary

To work as an integral and effective part of the Garden Team at Highgrove, ensuring that high horticultural and presentation standards are maintained at all times.

Main Areas of Responsibility

  • Carry out practical horticultural tasks such as mowing, hedge cutting, weeding, mulching, planting, and leaf clearing to high horticultural and presentation standards.
  • To undertake and assist with the seasonal maintenance such as shrub and specimen tree planting and maintenance, willow coppicing, grass cutting, compost management, etc.
  • Maintenance of extensive herbaceous plantings to include deadheading, staking, tying-in, division, feeding, and watering.
  • Topiary trimming, maintenance, and development.
  • High-access work to maintain high-level features.
  • Ensure organic and sustainability standards are met.
  • Ensure that all tools and machinery are correctly used, maintained and stored
  • Assist the Senior Gardeners with the planning of maintenance routines and day-to-day tasks and report on progress.
  • Supervise volunteers, work experience staff and trainees, and at times other gardeners.
  • Comply with all Health and Safety rules and regulations, including taking responsibility for your own health and safety and reasonable care for others’ health and safety, to include the safe and compliant use of all garden machinery.
  • Partake in CPD opportunities to enhance your role.

    Essential Criteria

    • Previous practical experience in a high-quality garden open to the public (3+ years)
    • NVQ Level 2 or higher or equivalent level of vocational experience/training in amenity horticulture
    • Full, manual driving licence
    • Excellent plant identification and maintenance knowledge
    • Experience working in a range of horticultural settings such as ornamental borders, meadow, arboretum and vegetable garden
    • Understand current health and safety legislation
    • Good oral and written communication skills
    • Good organisational skills and the proven ability to prioritise own work
    • Ability to maintain confidentiality at all times and exercise discretion 

    Desirable Criteria

    • Competent in the use and care for a wide range of machinery and equipment
    • Range of machinery certificates
    • Experience of working to organic principles

    Hours of Work

    40 hours per week plus extra weekend watering and operational duties that are required on a rota / seasonal basis.

    Additional Information

    • You must have the legal right to work in the UK
    • This job involves strenuous physical activity, including soil cultivation, plant establishment, maintenance and the use of a range of powered machinery
    • The starting salary is £24,500 per annum, depending on experience
    • Lunch provided daily
    • Certified training and development provided

    Applications

    Please submit a cover letter and CV, to the following email address: hr.recruitment@kings-foundation.org.

    View and download job description

    Closing date for applications: Monday, 10th February 2025

    Highgrove Gardens

    Highgrove Gardens is a highly renowned garden, described as one of the most inspiring and innovative gardens in the UK. Since 1980, the gardens have been managed organically and include a variety of garden features and areas, including a walled kitchen garden, a thyme walk, topiary and hedging, a terrace garden, a cottage garden, wildflower meadows, island beds, an arboretum, a woodland garden, and various water features.

    The King's Foundation

    The King’s Foundation is a charity founded by King Charles III and was first formed in 1990. Inspired by the vision and values of His Majesty, the Foundation focuses on creating better communities where people, places and the planet can coexist in harmony.

    The charity offers education courses for over 15,000 students annually, health and wellbeing programmes for nearly 2,000 people every year, and spearheads placemaking and regeneration projects in the UK and overseas to revitalise communities and historic buildings.

    The King’s Foundation is headquartered at its flagship regeneration project, Dumfries House in Ayrshire, Scotland, and acts as custodian of other historic Royal sites including the Castle of Mey in Caithness, Scotland, and Highgrove Gardens in Gloucestershire, which are open to visitors. The Foundation also carries out its work at educational and cultural hubs in London, based at The King’s Foundation School for Traditional Arts in Shoreditch, Trinity Buoy Wharf on the River Thames and the Garrison Chapel in Chelsea.

    The work of The King’s Foundation is underpinned by our Founder His Majesty The King’s philosophy of harmony: that by understanding the balance, the order and the relationships between ourselves and the natural world we can create a more sustainable future. We have a diverse and inclusive workplace, creating a welcoming, safe space for everyone. This means that every member of our team can bring their whole self to work. We encourage qualified applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply to and join The King’s Foundation and bring their valuable skills and experiences.

    The Foundation is committed to the equal treatment of all current and prospective employees, including the provision of workplace adjustments. We do not tolerate discrimination based on protected characteristics (age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership) or other differences such as socio-economic background or social origin.