Head Housekeeper

Friends of the Elderly; Reading; On-site; GBP 34,440,000 - 39,950,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Group Pension Plan

Generous annual leave

Wellbeing support

Development opportunities

Discounts

Cycle to work scheme

Uniforms provided

Free DBS checks

Job summary

Friends of the Elderly operates Friends Place in Calcot, Reading, seeking a Head Housekeeper to lead the housekeeping and laundry teams within the care home environment.

You will uphold high cleanliness standards, supervise staff, and manage daily scheduling while ensuring the home remains clean and well maintained. Experience in domestic roles, ideally in care, is preferred.

Qualifications

• Previous experience in a domestic role, ideally in a care setting, supervising staff.
• Knowledge of COSHH and Health & Safety would be beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Supervise housekeeping/laundry staff and allocate daily work schedules.
• Maintain high hygiene standards and follow infection control policies.
• Train the team and manage cleaning materials ordering.
• Coordinate laundry service and ensure smooth operations.

Skills

Leadership

Team management

Attention to detail

Flexibility

COSHH awareness

Job description

£14.02 per hour (£15.42 weekends)

Calcot, Reading

Contract type: Permanent, Full Time (35 hours per week)

Working Pattern: Days, Weekends (3 days on; 3 days off)

About Us

Friends of the Elderly (FotE) is a not-for-profit charity dedicated to providing excellent care with a family feel, we have been supporting older people for over 120 years. The charity provides care home and day care services for older people, as well as grants for older people in financial difficulty.

About Friends Place, Calcot

Friends Place, Calcot is more than just a care home - It's a vibrant, welcoming community designed to provide exceptional residential, dementia, and respite care.

Run by Friends of the Elderly, where we pride ourselves on delivering personalised, compassionate care in a state-of-the-art facility.

Located in the heart of Calcot, Reading, our home features a cinema, a salon, a tea room and a vibrant bar designed to create a warm and homely environment where residents feel safe, valued, and supported.

As our home grows we have an opportunity for a Head Housekeeper to join us.

Joining us as a Head Housekeeper, you will keep high standards of hygiene in all areas and follow our cleanliness and infection control policies as well as supervise the team to ensure they are also compliant. You will coordinate and supervise a team of housekeeping/laundry staff and allocate their daily work schedules, to ensure that the home is cleaned and maintained to a high standard and the laundry service runs smoothly. You will be responsible for training the team and also managing and ordering cleaning materials.

Self-motivated and resilient, a team player who is willing to go the extra mile, you will take pride in your work ensuring residents are at the heart of our service.

Knowledge of COSHH and Health & Safety would be beneficial. You will be a champion of our values and be able to supervise your peers and use your initiative.

You will have worked in a domestic role previously and have experience in a care setting, ideally in a senior position supervising staff.

Why Join Friends of the Elderly?

This is a unique opportunity to shape the culture and success of our newest care home, leaving a lasting impact on residents' lives and the community.

Benefits

• Group Pension Plan, with a 6% contribution from us.
• Generous annual leave.
• Wellbeing support through various initiatives, including an assistance programme offering coaching and counselling support.
• Learning, development, and progression opportunities.
• Retail discounts to make your salary go further.
• Access to loans at affordable rates, saving directly from salary and advance pay already earned.
• Health cash plans for you and your family.
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Long service awards that increase with length of service.
• Refer a friend to work for us and receive a £200 bonus.
• Evening, weekend, and bank holiday enhancements to pay.
• Uniforms are provided
• Free DBS checks.

Safeguarding

Keeping everyone safe is one of the charity's core values, and is central to everything we do at Friends of the Elderly. All staff follow our Safeguarding Policy & Procedures and, if they see or suspect abuse, we expect staff to report it straight away.

Criminal Record Checks

As this role involves a regulated activity, successful applicants will undertake an enhanced DBS check, with barred lists check, and any offer of employment will be dependent on a satisfactory outcome.

Having a criminal record will not necessarily bar a person from working for us, this will depend on the circumstances and background of any record.

Equality, Diversity, And Inclusion

Friends of the Elderly strives to treat all staff equally and be a diverse and inclusive workplace, where everyone can be themselves and everyone accepts each other's differences. A charity where everyone is equal but definitely not the same.

Our ambition is to ensure equality and celebrate diversity, all working together to create an inclusive workplace, which attracts and retains the best people. People that care and can make a difference.

We currently do not provide sponsorship but we welcome applications from those who have a right work in the UK.