PART I: THE ROLE
Winchester College has an exciting opportunity to appoint a Senior Plumber & Heating Engineer starting as soon as possible.
The school has in its care an extraordinary range of buildings from chapels and classrooms to a swimming pool and science laboratories; from the 14th to the 21st centuries. The list embraces 11 Boarding Houses and over 100 staff houses, many listed graded I and II.
This built environment is maintained and improved by the Works Department. Under the direction of the Estate Bursar, who also manages the capital projects, the Works Manager has a staff of about 25 operatives and is supported by a Building Services Manager, Planned Maintenance Manager, a Supervisor and an Office Manager.
Members of staff have a great affection for the school and 18 of its number have worked here in excess of 10 years. Combined with this affection, their skills produce a comprehensive and reliable service to the school community.
The department operates out of a purpose-built facility in Norman Road. The building, completed in 2021 includes a well-equipped joinery workshop and full welfare facilities.
The key role of the Senior Plumber & Heating Engineer is:
Responsible to: Building Services & Energy Manager
The responsibilities of the Senior Plumber & Heating Engineer are as follows:
Essential
Desirable
The ability to work in occupied areas with care and sensitivity is essential. The successful postholder will be responsible for:
PART II: PERSON SPECIFICATION AND KEY QUALITIES
Experience and skills
The successful candidate will have/be:
Key Qualities
The successful candidate will be/have:
PART III: BENEFITS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND APPLICATION
Start date
This position will commence as soon as possible.
Hours of Work
This position is full-time, 40 hours per week, 52 weeks of the year, Monday-Friday, 08.00 – 16.30 with 30 minutes for lunch and 10 minutes morning break, with the addition of some evening and weekend requirements as part of an emergency call-out rota.
Salary
The salary for this position is £36,000-£37,000 (gross) per annum, depending on qualifications and experience. In addition to salary, the school allocates a Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) for the emergency call out rota, which will be negotiated at the appropriate level. Salary is paid monthly, in arrears, to a nominated back account in 12 equal payments. Salary levels are reviewed annually, and this appointment will be next reviewed in September 2026.
Probation and Notice Periods
The first six months of employment will be a probationary period. During this time, conduct and performance will be reviewed. The College may extend the probationary period if it is deemed to be required. During the probationary period the notice required to terminate employment will be one week (by either the employee or employer). Once employment is confirmed, the notice period will increase to one month.
Uniform
Certain items of uniform will be provided, including polo shirts and sweatshirts. All items must be kept clean and in good repair; laundering will be the responsibility of the individual.
Holidays
The College leave year runs from 1 September to 31 August. This position will be entitled to the statutory holiday requirements. These are presently 5.6 weeks, including Bank Holidays. Any Public Bank Holiday occurring during term time is deemed to be a normal working day. All leave must be taken by prior arrangement with the Works Manager and for which four weeks’ notice is required. Generally, staff are discouraged from taking holidays during school holidays as the major workload is when the College properties are empty, although some exceptions will be made.
Subject to the discretion of the school’s Bursar, a gift may also be given of extra time off during the Christmas period.
Induction and Continuous Training and Development
The school is fully committed to the induction, training and development of all our staff, with staff supported to grow and reach their full potential.
We deliver a range of training, run by both our own staff and external providers, varying from highly practical First Aid courses to seminars and learning lunches, as well as offering access to Udemy, an online learning platform.
There is an annual cycle of performance reviews offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
The school also offers a wide range of apprenticeships supporting staff development and progression.
Pension and Life Cover
On employment, employees will be auto-enrolled into the College’s pension scheme according to legislative thresholds. Those who are not eligible for auto-enrolment may still elect to join the College’s pension scheme.
Initially, when joining the College’s pension scheme, employees will become a member of the College’s Group Personal Pension Plan (GPP). For this Plan, known as Tier 1, the employee contributes 4% and the employer 3%.
After 9 month’s membership of the Tier 1 plan, employees may opt to join Tier 2, which is also a GPP, where the employee contributes 5% and the employer 9%.
Employees in Tier 1 automatically qualify for a Life Cover of 2 times salary. On entry to Tier 2, Life Cover changes to 4 times salary.
Wider Benefits
Enhanced Disclosure Check
As Winchester College is an educational establishment, a condition of employment will be that the successful candidate must consent to the school obtaining an Enhanced Level Disclosure Check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This will reveal all spent and unspent convictions, warnings, cautions and bind-overs. A policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders is available on the school’s website.
Safeguarding is one of the primary responsibilities of this role. The jobholder is responsible for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children and young persons for whom they are responsible, or with whom they come into contact with, and will need to adhere to and ensure compliance with the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy at all times. The postholder should be conversant with the responsibilities and procedures detailed in this policy and with the Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education. If, in the course of carrying out the duties of the post, the postholder becomes aware of any actual or potential risks to the safety or welfare of children in the school, they must report any concerns to the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead, or in their absence, the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads.
References and Other Pre-employment Checks
The appointment will be dependent upon the receipt of a successful medical check and satisfactory references. The College will usually seek references from shortlisted candidates before interview and may approach previous employers for information to verify particular experience or qualifications. At least one referee must be the current or most recent employer. Where applicants are not currently working with children but have done so in the past, one referee must be the person by whom they were most recently employed when working with children.
How to Apply
Only applications completed on the school website will be accepted.
Closing date for applications: Midnight on Thursday 28th August 2025
Please note that applications will be dealt with as they arrive. Winchester College reserves the right to appoint prior to the closing date.
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to contact Paul Legg, Works Manager, pl@wincoll.ac.uk.
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Data Protection
Winchester College collects and processes relevant personal data as part of its everyday operations and is obliged to process it in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Act 2018. The school is the Data Controller of this data under the Act and is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office. Its registration number is Z5751669.
If you have any queries or comments about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school, please contact the Bursar and his team by emailing: dataprotection@wincoll.ac.uk or by writing to: Data Protection, The Bursary, Winchester College, College Street, Winchester, SO23 9NA.