ABOUT THE WORKS DEPARTMENT
Winchester College has an exciting opportunity to appoint a Skilled Labourer 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 fourteenth century to the twenty-first. The list embraces 11 Boarding Houses and over 100 staff houses.
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 around 30 operatives and is supported by various office staff.
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 exemplary skills produce a comprehensive and reliable service to the school community.
The department operates out of a new purpose-built facility in Norman Road.
ROLE AND RESPONSIBLITIES OF THE SKILLED LABOURER
Key Responsibilities
The following summary of duties is not an exhaustive list, but is intended to help the successful applicant in their understanding of the breadth of responsibilities expected. These include:
PERSON SPECIFICATION AND KEY QUALITIES
Start date
As soon as possible.
Hours of Work
This position is full-time, 40 hours per week, 52 weeks of the year. Monday-Friday with the addition of some evening and weekend requirements.
Salary
The salary for this position is £24-27,000 per annum, depending on qualifications and experience. Salary is paid monthly, in arrears, to a nominated back account in 12 equal payments. Salary levels are reviewed on 1 September annually and this appointment will be next reviewed in September 2023.
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 postholder’s line-manager and must be taken outside of the school’s term times.
Probation and Notice Periods
The first six working 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 month (by either the employee or employer). Once employment is confirmed, the notice period will increase to three months.
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.
There is an annual cycle of appraisal 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 5% 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.
Sports Facilities
The school offers staff free access to its excellent sports facilities, including gym membership, tennis courts and in late 2023, a new 25m swimming pool. Exercise classes, including spinning and circuits are also available.
Wider Benefits
Winchester College is located in the surrounds of England’s Anglo-Saxon capital. Its medieval architecture is well preserved within the original grounds, which overlook the South Downs National Park and the River Itchen. Staff are offered a free tour of the College, with discounted rates available for booking venues within the school’s grounds for hospitality events. There is also free access to an ongoing cycle of cultural, musical, theatrical and sporting talks and events. On-site car-parking and a cycle to work scheme is available, and free staff lunches are offered daily during term time.
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
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Only applications completed on the school website will be accepted.
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, Contracts Manager, pl@wincoll.ac.uk .
Further information about the school can be found at www.winchestercollege.org.
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.