Head of Grounds

Homewood; Freshford; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free parking

Food prepared by chefs on duty

Training and development opportunities

Job summary

Homewood, a 32-bedroom boutique hotel and spa just outside Bath, seeks a Head of Grounds to lead a small team while spending substantial time outdoors.

You will maintain and develop our grounds year-round, balancing guest experience with practical hotel needs. Bring horticultural expertise, plan projects, manage budgets and suppliers, and contribute to an environmentally conscious estate.

Qualifications

• Professional horticultural or grounds maintenance experience.
• Experience leading or supervising a small team.
• Good plant knowledge and an eye for how gardens develop through the seasons.
• Experience in landscaping, garden development or larger grounds projects.
• Practical understanding of Health & Safety and compliance.
• Confidence managing budgets, suppliers and contractors.
• Plenty of ideas and the enthusiasm to bring them to life.

Responsibilities

• Lead the day-to-day care, maintenance and development of our grounds and gardens, making sure they look their best throughout the year
• Bring your horticultural knowledge, experience and ideas to help shape how the Homewood estate develops over the seasons
• Plan both day-to-day work and longer-term projects, balancing beautiful gardens with the practical needs of a busy hotel
• Think about the gardens through the eyes of our guests, creating spaces that are interesting, welcoming, safe and memorable
• Care for a wonderfully varied estate including formal gardens and borders, guest garden suites, outdoor dining terraces, lawns, and woodland
• Oversee landscaping, planting, seasonal maintenance and improvement projects
• Support, develop and share your knowledge with the grounds team
• Manage contractors, suppliers and existing maintenance contracts where required
• Take responsibility for relevant Health & Safety, compliance and safe working practices within the grounds
• Manage your departmental budget carefully and plan ahead for future projects, equipment and maintenance
• Help us continue developing an environmentally conscious and sustainable approach to managing the estate

Skills

Horticultural knowledge

Team leadership

Plant knowledge

Landscaping

Health & Safety

Budget management

Creativity & ideas

Job description

Be our Head of Grounds – but most importantly, be you!
Full time - 40 hours per week, 5 days out of 7

At Homewood, we want our people to be themselves – and that means you.

Join our team and here’s what you’ll get for being yourself:

• Amazing monthly tronc payments on top of your salary - our service charge is shared with team and paid montly
• Free parking
• Food prepared by our chefs while you’re on duty
• Training and development opportunities across Kaleidoscope Collection
• Cash-saving benefits and wellbeing support for you and your family
• Discounts on eating, drinking and staying at all of our properties
• £500 refer-a-friend scheme
• A stimulating place to work, surrounded by a brilliantly diverse bunch of people
• The chance to be part of a team who genuinely live and breathe what we do

And there’s more where those came from…

Part Georgian country house, part playground for the curious.

Homewood is a 32-bedroom boutique hotel and spa just outside Bath, where luxury loosens its tie and nobody takes themselves too seriously.

We’re a zesty, imaginative bunch with a habit of hiding a little mischief around every corner. Talking-point chandeliers, unexpected sculptures in the gardens and a giant teddy bear or two – that’s just how we do things here.

Our grounds are a huge part of the Homewood experience, and we’re looking for someone who will take real pride in shaping, developing and caring for them.

Get a better feel for us on Instagram: @homewoodbath

What you’ll be doing as our Head of Grounds

This is very much a hands‑on role. You’ll lead a small grounds team while still spending plenty of your time outside, getting stuck in.

You’ll:

• Lead the day-to-day care, maintenance and development of our grounds and gardens, making sure they look their best throughout the year
• Bring your horticultural knowledge, experience and ideas to help shape how the Homewood estate develops over the seasons
• Plan both day-to-day work and longer-term projects, balancing beautiful gardens with the practical needs of a busy hotel
• Think about the gardens through the eyes of our guests, creating spaces that are interesting, welcoming, safe and memorable
• Care for a wonderfully varied estate including formal gardens and borders, guest garden suites, outdoor dining terraces, lawns, and woodland
• Oversee landscaping, planting, seasonal maintenance and improvement projects
• Support, develop and share your knowledge with the grounds team
• Manage contractors, suppliers and existing maintenance contracts where required
• Take responsibility for relevant Health & Safety, compliance and safe working practices within the grounds
• Manage your departmental budget carefully and plan ahead for future projects, equipment and maintenance
• Help us continue developing an environmentally conscious and sustainable approach to managing the estate

What we’re looking for

You’ll have strong practical horticultural knowledge and experience looking after substantial gardens, grounds or an estate.

You’ll also be comfortable leading people, planning workloads and taking responsibility for your own department.

We’d particularly love to hear from you if you have:

• Professional horticultural or grounds maintenance experience
• Experience leading or supervising a small team
• Good plant knowledge and an eye for how gardens develop through the seasons
• Experience of landscaping, garden development or larger grounds projects
• A practical understanding of Health & Safety and compliance
• Confidence managing budgets, suppliers and contractors
• Plenty of ideas and the enthusiasm to bring them to life

Most importantly, you’ll enjoy being outdoors, take pride in what you create and understand that at Homewood our gardens aren’t simply something guests look at – they’re part of the whole experience.