Grounds Maintenance Assistant

Valence School, Westerham, Kent, TN16 1QN

16 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  As soon as possible

• Closing date

  27 September 2026 at 11:59pm

• Date listed

  11 September 2026

Job details

• Job role:
  • Catering, cleaning and site management
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Full time equivalent salary: £12.97 Hourly £12.97 per hour : £27,057 actual gross p.a. : Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 16.30pm : All year round

Grounds Maintenance Assistant job summary

Are you someone who enjoys working outdoors, takes pride in maintaining high standards, and likes seeing the results of your work every day? We are seeking a reliable and enthusiastic Grounds Maintenance Assistant to join our Facilities Team and help maintain our extensive school grounds and outdoor facilities.

This is a varied and rewarding role where you will play an important part in ensuring our grounds remain safe, attractive, and welcoming for students, staff, visitors, and the wider school community.

What you will do:

• Carry out routine grounds maintenance including mowing, strimming, pruning, weeding, planting, watering, and seasonal horticultural tasks.
• Maintain woodland, hedgerow, and lakeside areas, ensuring they remain safe and well-presented.
• Operate, maintain, and carry out basic servicing of grounds maintenance equipment and machinery.
• Assist with repairs to fencing, gates, pathways, and outdoor furniture.
• Support the preparation of outdoor spaces for school events and activities.
• Assist with site safety, including snow clearance, gritting, and general upkeep of the grounds.
• Work in accordance with Health & Safety procedures and safeguarding requirements.

Who We're Looking For:

• Practical, hands-on, and able to work independently as well as part of a team.
• Reliable, self-motivated, and able to manage a varied workload.
• Committed to maintaining high standards of presentation and safety.
• Physically fit and capable of carrying out outdoor manual tasks in all weather conditions.
• Flexible and willing to assist with occasional evening and weekend work when required.
• Strong communication skills and a positive approach to supporting colleagues and the wider school community.

What We Offer:

• A varied outdoor role where no two days are the same.
• Opportunities for training and professional development.
• Generous pension scheme and life cover.
• Staff wellbeing initiatives and support services.
• Access to employee discounts and subsidised meals.
• Free on-site parking.
• The opportunity to work within a supportive and welcoming school community.

Why work with us?

This is an excellent opportunity to join a dedicated team and make a visible contribution to a unique school environment. If you enjoy working outdoors, take pride in your work, and want to be part of a community-focused organisation, we would love to hear from you.

Valence School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of every student, and we expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We value diversity and promote equality for all. References will be sought prior to interview for shortlisted candidates, and online checks will be undertaken. The successful applicant will be required to undertake an enhanced DBS check (this post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act).

Further information about the job

The candidate will be required to undergo a full enhanced DBS check and must be eligible to work in the UK.

Visas cannot be sponsored.

If you're interested in teaching or training to teach in England as an international citizen, we can help you understand your next steps.

Commitment to safeguarding

Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment.

Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance.

Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant):
childcare disqualification
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
medical
online and social media
prohibition from teaching
right to work
satisfactory references
suitability to work with children

You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.

Applying for the job

This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.

CVs will not be accepted for this application.

About Valence School

• Organisation type: Special school, ages 4 to 19
• Size: 129 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 4 to 19
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• Website: Valence School website
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/valence-school

We are proud to share with you the excellent work we do with children and young people who have physical disabilities and complex medical needs. Our school is unique within the maintained sector in the whole of southern England. We cater for students aged 4 to 19 and have both day and boarding places. We have a large site with high quality teaching, social care and health care facilities. A staff team of over 200 people provides specialist teaching, social care, therapies and nursing care to an exceptionally high standard.

Our overall aim is to enable every child and young person to achieve meaningful independence. Students flourish in a supportive but challenging environment, making good educational progress and achieving a range of accreditation as they get older. There is excellent support to enable students to achieve functional communication, mobility and skills for daily living.

We are a Foundation Special School and are part of the Kent SEN Trust, a cooperative trust of ten schools working together to improve outcomes for all the children and young people attending the schools. In 2008 Valence became a specialist Sports College and this status plays a significant role in raising students’ achievements and their participation in high quality physical education and sport.

The School works proactively with parents and external professionals to provide holistic support for every child and young person. It is also developing high quality outreach support services to local schools and more widely for children and young people in Kent who have physical disabilities who are attending mainstream schools.

The School always places children and young people at the centre of all decisions it takes and it has a relentless focus on achieving the best possible outcomes for every student.

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