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We are outstanding, you can be too.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and experienced Estates Groundskeeper to join our Estates team and help maintain and enhance the grounds across our estate. This role is based at our main campus in Mansfield, but travel across our multiple sites is required.

Working closely with the Area Estates & Project Manager, you will play a key role in developing and delivering a five-year vision for our grounds, creating attractive, welcoming, and sustainable outdoor spaces for our learners, citizens, staff, visitors, and wider community.

The role combines hands-on grounds and landscape maintenance with creative development, including planting and lawn creation, seasonal floral displays, woodland and sports pitch management, biodiversity areas, and the upkeep of external features and infrastructure. You will also lead and coordinate volunteers, community groups, and external partners, ensuring projects deliver meaningful improvements.

We are looking for someone with professional experience in horticulture, landscaping, greenkeeping, or commercial grounds maintenance, supported by a relevant qualification such as NVQ Level 3, RHS or equivalent. You will need a full UK driving licence; experience operating grounds maintenance machinery; and the physical ability to undertake outdoor manual work, such as using tools and equipment; gutter cleaning, heavy lifting, hanging baskets, running drip feed systems etc.

You will be creative, organised, self-motivated, and confident working independently, with the leadership skills to engage volunteers and community partners. Experience in hardscapes, sports pitch maintenance, Biodiversity Net Gain, pesticides, chainsaw operations, and working within an estate, campus, or public park environment would be advantageous.

This is an opportunity to do more than maintain our grounds; you will help shape the future of our estate and create outdoor spaces that make a genuine difference to the people who use them.

As part of our pre-employment checks, we will be required to carry out an Enhanced without Barred Lists DBS check – this role doesn’t involve regulated activity.

*We will not accept applications submitted after the campaign has been closed. We may close campaigns early if we have a high volume of applications.

You can see more about what we do at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ by looking at the Who We Are and Choose Your Future pages on our website /

Working at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­

At Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­, our learners, citizens and staff are at the heart of what we do. We are passionate about our vision that all people with disabilities will have a lifetime of opportunity, and you could help us to achieve that. Our priority for staff is to create an outstanding place to work where the rewards of a job well done can be seen in the faces of our learners and citizens.

There are lots of great benefits to working at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­

• A rewarding career and working towards positive outcomes for our learners and citizens
• Enhanced holidays of 33 days per year when you join us (pro rata) and you are able to buy up to 10 additional days of holiday
• Eligible for a Blue Light Card with access to lots of great discounts
• Free and confidential access to an Employee Assistance Programme
• Free parking on site and access to a subsidised canteen with a variety of meal options (main campus only)
• Opportunities to develop your knowledge and skills on the job through training, mentoring and qualifications.
• Free life assurance – your family will benefit from a payment of 4x your annual salary if the unthinkable should happen

We are committed to promoting equality, challenging discrimination and developing community cohesion. We welcome applications from all sections the community.

Qualifications needed

Essential

• Horticulture, Greenkeeping or Landscaping qualification (e.g. NVQ 2/3, RHS or equivalent)
• Full UK Driving Licence

Desirable

• Safe use of pesticides/herbicides certifications (e.g. PA1 / PA6)
• Chainsaw maintenance & cross-cutting qualification (e.g. NPTC/LANTRA)
• Formal health and safety training (e.g. IOSH Working Safely)

Working Hours

5 days a week including at least one weekend day, covering core hours: 8:00am – 5:00pm – days and hours flexible; can be discussed at interview.

Applying to work at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­

There are some important things you need to know before you apply to work with us at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­.

Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­ is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of its learners, citizens, customers, volunteers and staff. We expect all staff to be aware of their responsibilities to protect learners, citizens, customers, volunteers and staff from abuse or harm and to promote Fundamental British Values.

It is an offence to apply for this role if you are included in the child and or adult barred list. This role does not involve regulated activity.

Successful applicants will be required to undertake an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and to provide proof of right to work in the UK.

Please note – We need you to complete an application form to fulfil our Safer Recruitment responsibilities; you can submit a CV, and we will consider it alongside your application form.

In order to apply for this role, you will need to apply using our online recruitment portal, Sam People Recruit.

Many of our staff have a disability, and we’re proud to hold Disability Confident and Mindful Employer status which recognises our positive approach to physical and mental health and wellbeing at work. If you would like to speak with us before completing an application or if you need any help, you can contact our recruitment team on 01623 499 111 or via email at work@portland.ac.uk who will be happy to support you with your application or answer any questions.

Below are links to all the documents you will need, including the online application form.