Parties Team Leader

Mary Rush Care Ltd; Epsom; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Hobbledown Epsom is seeking a brilliant Party Team Leader to take ownership of birthday parties at our venue. You will act as the link between party bookings, Party Hosts and management, ensuring every event is ready and runs smoothly.

You’ll lead a busy team, coordinate planning, communicate dietary needs, and keep rooms and equipment prepared. This role requires clear people skills, top organisation and a calm, hands-on approach to busy party days.

Qualifications

• Experience in visitor attractions, leisure, hospitality, events or party operations would be ideal.
• Experience leading younger or less experienced team members would be a real advantage.
• Highly organised and good at managing multiple priorities.
• Clear communication with guests, team members and managers.

Responsibilities

• Checking upcoming party bookings and making sure details are accurate
• Preparing party sheets and weekly party information
• Making sure dietary requirements, allergies and special requests are clearly communicated
• Keeping party stock topped up and placing orders when needed
• Making sure party rooms, equipment and supplies are ready before guests arrive
• Keeping accurate records of party numbers and attendance
• Flagging anything unusual or potentially tricky before it becomes a problem
• Making sure the management team knows what’s coming up each week
• Brief Party Hosts before service
• Help allocate roles and responsibilities
• Coach and support team members during parties
• Keep parties running to time
• Step in when a host needs support
• Give feedback and help develop less experienced team members
• Support with rota planning where needed
• Flag staffing or performance issues to management

Skills

Leadership

Organised

Communication

Team leadership

Job description

Horton Lane, Epsom, KT19 8PT, UNITED KINGDOM

If you can keep twelve excited children, two slightly stressed parents, three dietary requirements, a birthday cake and a party timetable all moving in the right direction at once, you might be exactly who we’re looking for.

We’re looking for a brilliant Party Team Leader to take ownership of birthday parties at Hobbledown Epsom.

And when we say parties, we mean proper Hobbledown parties.

Excited children. Busy parents. Food timings. Party rooms. Hosts. Presents. Allergies. Last-minute questions. The occasional missing sock.

Your job is to make sure everything feels smooth, organised and fun for our guests — even when there’s plenty happening behind the scenes.

The big part of the job? Making it all look easy

A great birthday party doesn’t happen by accident.

Before the first guest arrives, someone needs to know how many children are coming, what food they’re having, whether there are allergies, which room is being used, who is hosting and whether somebody has made a very specific request involving balloons, cake or dinosaurs.

That someone is you.

You’ll be the link between party bookings, Party Hosts and the management team, making sure everyone has the information they need and every party is ready to go.

So, what will you actually be doing?

A mix of planning, organising, leading and getting stuck in when things get busy.

You’ll be responsible for:

Checking upcoming party bookings and making sure details are accurate

Preparing party sheets and weekly party information

Making sure dietary requirements, allergies and special requests are clearly communicated

Keeping party stock topped up and placing orders when needed

Making sure party rooms, equipment and supplies are ready before guests arrive

Keeping accurate records of party numbers and attendance

Flagging anything unusual or potentially tricky before it becomes a problem

Making sure the management team knows what’s coming up each week

In short, there shouldn’t be many surprises on party day.

Apart from the presents. Those are allowed.

You’ll lead the party team

This isn’t just an admin role.

You’ll be visible during party service, supporting and leading our Party Hosts and making sure everyone knows what they’re doing.

You’ll:

Brief Party Hosts before service

Help allocate roles and responsibilities

Coach and support team members during parties

Keep parties running to time

Step in when a host needs support

Give feedback and help develop less experienced team members

Support with rota planning where needed

Flag staffing or performance issues to management

Many of our Party Hosts may be young people who are still building their confidence at work, so we need someone who can be clear, supportive and approachable while still keeping standards high.

You’ll know when somebody needs a bit of encouragement — and when they simply need to be told that the party starts in five minutes and the room needs finishing.

Then there are the guests...

Birthday parties are important.

Parents have paid for an experience, children have been counting down to it and expectations can be high.

You’ll help make sure every family feels looked after from the moment they arrive.

That means:

Welcoming party families and helping everything start smoothly

Making sure rooms are clean, presentable and properly set up

Keeping an eye on timings throughout the party

Making sure food and other elements arrive when they should

Responding quickly if something isn’t quite right

Handling guest concerns calmly and professionally

Making sure the team keeps the energy up from the first party to the last

Sometimes the answer is straightforward.

Sometimes you’ll need to think on your feet.

Either way, the parent shouldn’t have to worry about what’s happening behind the scenes.

We’re looking for someone seriously organised

You don’t need to walk around carrying a clipboard at all times.

Although, to be fair, it may help.

You’ll be someone who enjoys keeping track of lots of moving parts and notices the small details before they become bigger problems.

We’re looking for someone who:

Is highly organised and good at managing multiple priorities

Communicates clearly with guests, team members and managers

Is confident leading and motivating a team

Has excellent attention to detail

Can stay calm when things get busy

Can make decisions and solve problems quickly

Takes pride in presentation and high standards

Is comfortable with admin as well as hands-on operational work

Is flexible around weekends, school holidays and peak periods

Experience in visitor attractions, leisure, hospitality, events or party operations would be ideal.

Experience leading younger or less experienced team members would also be a real advantage.

The important stuff

Parties need to be fun.

They also need to be safe.

You’ll help make sure the team follows our procedures around:

Food hygiene

Allergens and dietary requirements

Health & safety

Safeguarding

Safe setup and clear-down

Cleaning and presentation

Equipment and party-area checks

We want plenty of energy and personality, but never at the expense of doing things properly.

About Hobbledown & The Escapade Group

Hobbledown Epsom is part of The Escapade Group, a growing family of visitor attractions built around play, adventure, animals and brilliant family days out.

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

Across the group, we welcome huge numbers of families every year for days out, adventures, events and thousands of birthday celebrations.

Different attractions. Different experiences. Plenty of organised chaos.

And whether someone is hosting a birthday party, caring for animals, serving lunch, running an attraction or welcoming families through the gates, every member of the team plays a part in creating a brilliant day out.

Screening Questions

• Do you have experience in a similar role?