Horticulturist

Adur & Worthing Councils; Worthing; On-site; GBP 31,000 - 37,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in West Sussex is seeking a full-time Horticulturist to maintain a prestigious botanical collection, including assisting with an expansion project. The role requires expertise in horticulture, especially with alpine plants, and the ability to interact with volunteers and the public. The position offers a comprehensive benefits package and a supportive work environment. The successful candidate will work closely with experienced horticulturists and engage in various horticultural tasks.

Benefits

Generous leave entitlement

Local Government Pension

Training & development

Occupational Health

Employee Assistance Programme

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Qualified horticulturist for maintaining a botanical collection.
• Experience with a wide range of plants and to work in a team.
• Excellent communication skills for interactions with volunteers.

Responsibilities

• Care for and maintain the historic botanical collection.
• Work with the Head Gardener and Curator.
• Assist in training volunteers and engaging with the public.

Skills

Knowledge of horticulture

Experience with alpines

Ability to work with tools and machinery

Teamwork and communication

Education

Qualification in horticulture

Job description

Post title

Horticulturist

Post No

TBC

Salary

Starting from £31,537 to £36,363 per annum

Scale / Band

Grade 5

Hours

37 hours per week

Place of work

Highdown Gardens

Closing date

25th January 2026 at 23:55 pm

Interviews

TBC

Full time horticulturist required for historic plantsman's garden in West Sussex.

We are looking for a knowledgeable, qualified, experienced horticulturist to help our team grow, care for and maintain a historic botanical collection that includes the National Collection "The Plants Selected by Sir Frederick Stern". We are in the middle of an ambitious project to expand this collection and manage the site so that they exemplify the vision of Sir Frederick Stern in his book A Chalk Garden.

Highdown Gardens is an 8 1⁄2 acre public garden, located around 1km from the West Sussex Coast and is on the south face of a chalk hill in the South Downs. Part of the garden is a former chalk quarry and it was no doubt the fascinating topography that led its founder to choose it as the site to build a broad collection of trees, shrubs, bulbs, alpines and other herbaceous specimens from around the world. Many of these plants were collected in the wild and some were among the first of their kind to be grown outside of their native environment. The garden was set up as a charitable trust by the gardens founders and Worthing Borough Council was made the sole trustee.

Your role will be to form part of the team of four horticulturists that care for and maintain this prestigious collection. You will work with the Head Gardener and Curator, the Visitor Experience Manager as well as a large number of volunteers. You will be practical, skilful and knowledgeable, preferably with experience of working with alpines as well as the propagation of a broad number of plant types. We are looking for somebody with experience of working with a wide range of tools and machinery and an understanding of amenity horticulture. You will be open, friendly and helpful as every day will include numerous interactions with volunteers from a variety of backgrounds as well as the visiting public alike.

If this sounds like the role for you, we look forward to hearing from you!

Staff Are Our Most Important Asset And We Therefore Have a Benefit Package Which Reflects Our Continuing Commitment To Our Employees. This Includes

• Generous leave entitlement; a minimum of 26 days + Bank Holiday entitlement
• Local Government Pension
• Training & development
• Occupational Health
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Employee resource groups/networks
• Buddy Support Programme
• Flexible working options

At Adur & Worthing, we are committed to supporting care leavers, in accordance with the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and the Children and Social Work Act 2017. To that end, we operate a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone meeting the essential criteria of the role they are applying for. In order to be considered for this, you will need to be a care leaver under the age of 25 at the time of application. Please confirm that you are a care leaver within your covering letter.

As a Disability Confident employer, we will ensure that a fair and proportionate number of applicants declaring a disability, that meet the essential criteria for this position, will be offered an interview.

We are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit. Staff work in a supportive and safe environment, recognising their responsibility to value and respect each other’s contributions. Standards of conduct must be of the highest level to ensure that no-one is harassed, bullied or victimised. We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, staff engagement forums and are keen to hear from applicants from a variety of different backgrounds.