Head Housekeeper

Oaklands Rest Home; Southampton; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Oaklands Rest Home in the New Forest region is seeking a Head Housekeeper to lead and oversee the housekeeping and laundry function. You will uphold high standards of cleanliness, presentation and resident dignity while managing schedules and stock.

The role is hands-on and requires pride in standards, strong organisation, and the ability to motivate a team, ensuring safe, consistent and resident‑centred care across all areas.

Qualifications

• Previous housekeeping, domestic, cleaning, laundry or environmental services experience.
• Pride in cleanliness, hygiene and presentation.
• Ability to organise work and support a small team.
• Reliability and good timekeeping.
• Attention to detail and willingness to maintain standards consistently.
• Understanding of infection control, health and safety and safe use of cleaning products.
• Ability to work respectfully around residents and visitors.
• Confidence communicating with colleagues, managers and contractors.
• Willingness to use systems such as cleaning records and maintenance reporting.
• Willingness to complete required training.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support the housekeeping and laundry team day to day.
• Organise housekeeping duties, rotas and allocation of work.
• Ensure cleaning schedules are followed and completed to the expected standard.
• Leave clear instructions for the team when you are absent.
• Support new housekeeping and laundry staff during induction.
• Encourage teamwork, good communication and pride in standards.
• Challenge poor practice or missed standards appropriately.
• Escalate staffing, equipment, stock or performance concerns promptly.
• Oversee cleanliness and presentation of residents' rooms, bathrooms, toilets, wet rooms, lounges, corridors and communal areas.
• Support deep cleans, room turnouts and scheduled cleaning tasks.
• Ensure the home feels fresh, clean, safe, welcoming and well cared for.
• Monitor odours, stains, clutter, dust, high-touch areas and general presentation.
• Ensure residents' personal spaces are cleaned respectfully and treated as their home.
• Work as part of the housekeeping team and carry out cleaning duties where required.
• Promote safe ways of working across the housekeeping team.
• Maintain accurate cleaning and housekeeping records.
• Check that housekeeping activity is recorded properly using Oaklands' systems.
• Support scheduled housekeeping, infection control or environmental audits.
• Identify themes, gaps or repeated issues and elevate to management.

Skills

Leadership

Team management

Attention to detail

Organisational skills

Infection control

Communication

Job description

Head Housekeeper - Job Description

Leadership · Standards · Resident Dignity

About Oaklands Rest Home

Oaklands Rest Home is a family-run care home based on the edge of the New Forest. We support residents to feel safe, respected, known and cared for as individuals.

In a care home, housekeeping is not just cleaning. It directly affects dignity, infection prevention, safety, first impressions, resident comfort, family confidence and the overall quality of daily life.

About This Role

The Head Housekeeper leads, organises and supports the housekeeping and laundry function so that Oaklands consistently meets high standards of cleanliness, hygiene, presentation, odour control and resident comfor

This is a hands-on leadership role. You will work alongside the housekeeping team while also setting standards, supporting staff, maintaining records, managing schedules and stock, and ensuring the function runs safely and consistently.

The right person will have pride in standards, attention to detail, strong organisation and a clear understanding that housekeeping is part of resident care — not separate from it.

Role Details

Reports To

Registered Manager / Deputy Manager

Accountable To

Registered Manager and Directors

Location

Oaklands Rest Home, Marchwood, New Forest

DBS Required

Yes — enhanced DBS check required

What This Role Is Really About

Leading through standards, not just tasks

Any housekeeper can follow a schedule. The Head Housekeeper ensures the schedule is right, the team understands why it matters, and that standards hold even when you are not in the room. This is a leadership role with real accountability.

Housekeeping is part of resident dignity

A resident's room is their home. Their clothing belongs to them. Their environment affects how they feel, how families experience Oaklands and how CQC judges us. The Head Housekeeper understands this and makes sure the entire team does too.

You set the standard others follow

If you cut corners, the team cuts corners. If you are organised, the team becomes organised. The Head Housekeeper models the standard — in practice, in attitude and in how concerns are raised and resolved.

Main Responsibilities

1. Leading the Housekeeping Team

• Lead and support the housekeeping and laundry team day to day

• Organise housekeeping duties, rotas and allocation of work

• Ensure cleaning schedules are followed and completed to the expected standard

• Leave clear instructions for the team when you are absent

• Support new housekeeping and laundry staff during induction

• Encourage teamwork, good communication and pride in standards

• Challenge poor practice or missed standards appropriately

• Escalate staffing, equipment, stock or performance concerns promptly

2. Cleaning Standards and Presentation

• Work as part of the housekeeping team and carry out cleaning duties where required

• Oversee the cleanliness and presentation of residents' rooms, bathrooms, toilets, wet rooms, lounges, corridors and communal areas

• Support deep cleans, room turnouts and scheduled cleaning tasks

• Ensure the home feels fresh, clean, safe, welcoming and well cared for

• Monitor odours, stains, clutter, dust, high-touch areas and general presentation

• Ensure residents' personal spaces are cleaned respectfully and treated as their home

3. Infection Prevention and Health and Safety

• Support safe and consistent infection prevention and control practice

• Ensure colour-coded equipment, PPE and chemicals are used and stored correctly

• Help ensure COSHH and health and safety requirements are followed

• Report hazards, defects, spillages, equipment faults and infection control concerns promptly

• Ensure cleaning equipment is clean, safe and well maintained

• Promote safe ways of working across the housekeeping team

4. Laundry and Resident Belongings

• Oversee laundry standards where the laundry function sits within housekeeping

• Ensure residents' clothing, bedding and garments are handled respectfully and carefully

• Support processes for labelling, sorting, washing, drying, ironing and returning items

• Report missing, damaged or wrongly labelled items promptly

• Ensure laundry areas are tidy, safe and organised

5. Audits, Records and Quality

• Maintain accurate cleaning and housekeeping records

• Check that housekeeping activity is recorded properly using Oaklands' systems

• Support scheduled housekeeping, infection control or environmental audits

• Identify themes, gaps or repeated issues and elevate to management

• Use audit findings to improve standards — not just complete paperwork

• Ensure records are ready for management, governance and inspection review

6. Stock, Supplies and Maintenance

• Monitor cleaning products, paper goods, laundry supplies and housekeeping stock

• Reorder stock as agreed and avoid unnecessary waste

• Maintain safe, tidy and organised storage areas

• Liaise with suppliers and contractors where required

• Log maintenance issues using Centrim or agreed systems

• Alert management to supply, equipment or cost concerns

7. Safeguarding and Resident Wellbeing

• Work respectfully around residents, including those living with dementia

• Report any concern about a resident's wellbeing, environment, belongings or safety promptly

• Protect residents' dignity, privacy and personal space

• Understand that changes in a resident's room or environment may indicate a wider concern

• Follow safeguarding and whistleblowing procedures where required

What Good Looks Like

In this role, strong performance means:

• The home consistently feels clean, fresh and welcoming

• Residents' rooms are treated as personal homes

• Bathrooms and high-touch areas are hygienic and well-stocked

• Housekeeping staff understand their duties and standards

• Cleaning schedules and deep cleans are completed reliably

• Audits lead to real improvement, not just paperwork

• Odours, stains and hazards are noticed and acted on early

• Laundry is handled carefully and respectfully

• Managers trust the housekeeping function without constant chasing

• Families experience Oaklands as well cared for and professional

• Stock and defects are managed proactively

• The team understands that housekeeping is part of resident dignity

This Role Is Not Right For Everyone

Please read this honestly. This role is not suitable for someone who:

• Is uncomfortable leading others or giving feedback

• Avoids responsibility for standards, records or follow-up

• Cuts corners when under pressure

• Is careless with infection control, chemicals or cleaning equipment

• Is disorganised with stock, schedules or documentation

• Does not respect residents' rooms and belongings as personal

• Struggles to communicate with care, maintenance and management teams

• Is unreliable with timekeeping or attendance

• Avoids reporting issues, hazards or concerns

• Sees housekeeping as unimportant to resident experience

Person Specification

Essential

• Previous housekeeping, domestic, cleaning, laundry or environmental services experience

• Pride in cleanliness, hygiene and presentation

• Ability to organise work and support a small team

• Reliability and good timekeeping

• Attention to detail and willingness to maintain standards consistently

• Understanding of infection control, health and safety and safe use of cleaning products

• Ability to work respectfully around residents and visitors

• Confidence communicating with colleagues, managers and contractors

• Willingness to use systems such as cleaning records, stock records and maintenance reporting

• Willingness to complete required training

Desirable

• Previous experience as a Head Housekeeper, supervisor or team leader

• Experience in a care home, healthcare, hotel or hospitality environment

• COSHH or infection control training

• Experience managing cleaning schedules, audits or stock ordering

• Experience supporting staff induction or supervision

• Experience working around older people or people living with dementia

Additional Requirements

DBS Check

Enhanced DBS check required

Right to Work

Must have right to work in the UK

References

Satisfactory references required

Training

Completion of Oaklands induction and all mandatory training

Flexibility

Flexibility to meet the needs of residents and the home

Our Values

Everything we do at Oaklands is guided by our core values: Caring · Respectful · Person-Centred · Informative · Innovative · Collaborative · Honest · Reliable · Open · Trusted.

Our specialty is you — our residents. The Head Housekeeper plays a central role in making that real, every single day.