Operations Manager

Mary Rush Care Ltd; Epsom; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Escapade Group is seeking an experienced, hands-on Operations Manager to join the team at Hobbledown Epsom. This broad role covers multiple operational areas and requires leadership across attractions, admissions, retail, F&B, guest experience, staffing and site standards.

You will lead operational teams, drive safety, cost control and revenue opportunities in a busy visitor attraction, reporting to the General Manager. Weekend/evening duties may be required.

Qualifications

• Must have management experience in a busy, customer-facing operation.
• Experience in visitor attractions, leisure or hospitality is preferred.
• F&B experience is a significant advantage.

Responsibilities

• Take responsibility for the smooth day-to-day running of the attraction.
• Lead, motivate and develop operational teams.
• Maintain high standards of safety, cleanliness, presentation and customer service.
• Manage staffing levels, rotas and labour to align with visitor numbers.
• Support admissions, retail, parties and Food & Beverage operations.
• Monitor revenue, costs and key performance indicators; identify efficiency gains.

Skills

Management experience

Customer-facing operations

Job description

Horton Lane, Epsom, KT19 8PT, UNITED KINGDOM

We’re looking for an experienced, hands‑on Operations Manager to join the team at Hobbledown Epsom.

This is a broad operational leadership role, supporting the General Manager with the day‑to‑day running of a busy visitor attraction. You’ll work across the whole operation, including attractions, admissions, retail, Food & Beverage, birthday parties, guest experience, staffing and site standards.

We’re looking for a strong all‑round operator who enjoys being out in the business, leading teams and solving problems. Experience within Food & Beverage would be a significant advantage, as F&B forms an important part of the site’s operation and commercial performance.

What You’ll Be Doing

Taking responsibility for the smooth day‑to‑day running of the attraction.

Leading, motivating and developing operational teams.

Ensuring consistently high standards of safety, cleanliness, presentation and customer service.

Managing staffing levels, rotas and labour in line with visitor numbers and business needs.

Supporting the performance of admissions, retail, parties and Food & Beverage.

Monitoring revenue, labour, operational costs and other key performance indicators.

Identifying opportunities to increase revenue, improve efficiency and control costs.

Ensuring strong stock control, ordering and wastage management across commercial areas.

Maintaining high standards of Health & Safety, food hygiene and operational compliance.

Conducting regular site inspections and ensuring maintenance and operational issues are resolved quickly.

Taking an active Duty Manager role during busy weekends, school holidays and events.

Supporting recruitment, training, performance management and development of the team.

Who We’re Looking For

You’ll already have management experience within a busy, customer‑facing operation, ideally within visitor attractions, leisure, hospitality, entertainment or a similar high‑footfall environment.

You’ll be commercially aware, comfortable managing people and numbers, and confident making decisions in a fast‑moving operation.

Previous Food & Beverage management experience would be highly advantageous, particularly experience of high‑volume catering, labour management, food cost, stock control, wastage and driving secondary spend.

Most importantly, we’re looking for someone who:

Is a strong, visible leader who leads from the front.

Can manage multiple operational areas rather than working within a single department.

Understands the importance of both customer experience and commercial performance.

Is comfortable managing budgets, labour and costs.

Can develop teams and hold people accountable for standards.

Remains calm and decisive when things don’t go to plan.

Has strong Health & Safety and compliance awareness.

Is happy to get stuck in when the operation needs it.

Can work weekends, evenings and peak holiday periods as part of the management rota.

Why Join Us?

Escapade Group is a growing UK operator of visitor attractions and leisure experiences, built around a simple belief in the importance of play, adventure, imagination and creating extraordinary shared experiences.

Our family of attractions includes Hobbledown Epsom, Hobbledown Heath, Gripped London, Kidspace Croydon, Kidspace Romford, Watermouth Castle and Farmer Ted’s Adventure Farm.

Across the Group, our teams share a passion for creativity, teamwork and delivering outstanding experiences for our guests. What began with a desire to create places where families could genuinely enjoy spending time together has grown into a diverse collection of attractions visited by hundreds of thousands of guests.

We’re an ambitious, people‑focused business that continues to grow — and we’re always looking for enthusiastic people who want to come along for the adventure.

This is a genuine general operations role, with exposure to every part of running a busy visitor attraction and the opportunity to develop towards more senior operational leadership within the Group.

If you’re a strong operator who enjoys leading people, delivering great guest experiences and driving commercial performance - with F&B experience an added bonus - we’d love to hear from you.

Screening Questions

• 5 days out of 7, including weekends and evenings as required?
• Do you have any type of Food & Beverage experience? If so briefly explain