Visitor Experience Officer - Somerton

National Trust; Somerton; On-site; GBP 27,000 - 29,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension scheme

Free entry to NT places for you and a

Season ticket loan

EV car lease scheme

Perks at work discounts

Holiday allowance up to 32 days + buy

Job summary

The National Trust is seeking a Duty Manager to help run Lytes Cary Manor and Tintinhull Garden. You will open and close the properties, oversee bookings, support volunteers, and create a welcoming visitor experience across two sites.

As a key team member, you will manage rotas, respond to incidents as First Aider, and ensure all visitor communications, displays and promotional materials reflect the property's spirit.

Qualifications

• Experience in visitor management and event delivery.
• Ability to supervise volunteers and manage rotas.
• Strong communication with visitors and groups.
• Comfortable with IT and digital communications.
• Commitment to health and safety procedures.

Responsibilities

• Open and close the manor house and manage the rota.
• Act as First Aider and respond to incidents.
• Coordinate group bookings and enquiries.
• Ensure accurate visitor-facing communications across channels.
• Deliver a high-quality visitor experience and supervise volunteers.
• Support two sites: Lytes Cary Manor and Tintinhull Garden.

Skills

Time management

Organization

Communication

Team player

IT skills

Interpretive materials

Health & safety

Tools

Microsoft Office

Web & Social Media

Job description

As part of the Duty Manager rota, the successful candidate will regularly take responsibility for opening and closing the property, acting as a First Aider, and ensuring a safe, welcoming and well-presented environment for visitors, volunteers and staff., As a key member of the team, you will be involved in all aspects of daily operations, including visitor experience, volunteer management, conservation support and event delivery. You will play a central role in opening and closing the manor house, supervising and supporting volunteers and organising rotas. You will ensure all visitor-facing communications, from website content and social media to signage, displays and promotional materials, are accurate, engaging and consistent with the property's spirit of place. The role will also act as the main point of contact for group bookings, managing enquiries, communications and bookings, and ensuring group arrivals are organised and delivered smoothly to provide an excellent visitor experience from start to finish. As a Duty Manager, you will respond appropriately to incidents and emergencies and act as a designated First Aider, helping to ensure the safety and wellbeing of visitors, volunteers and colleagues.

Working alongside the Senior Visitor Experience Officer and as part of the property team, you will have a flexible, positive outlook and be willing to go the extra mile to deliver exceptional customer service. You'll help deliver a high-quality, enjoyable, creative and engaging experience for all visitors., We’d love to hear from you if you’re:

• used to multiple deadlines and managing your own workload
• skilled in organisation and planning, with a good eye for detail
• good at talking to, and getting on with, all kinds of people
• a hard-working and committed team player
• comfortable with IT: Microsoft Office, as well as web and social media
• experienced in producing interpretive materials, such as displays and exhibitions, and marketing or promotional materials
• familiar with health and safety procedures

Reporting to the Senior Visitor Experience Officer, you will be part of an enthusiastic, supportive yet small team working across two sites. Lytes Cary Manor welcomes over 80,000 visitors between February and November, while Tintinhull Garden attracts over 22,000 visitors between April and September each year.

Lytes Cary Manor is an intimate medieval manor house surrounded by a beautiful Arts and Crafts-style inspired garden, offering visitors the chance to imagine life in a historic family home. Originally home to Henry Lyte, who translated the groundbreaking Niewe Herball, the manor was lovingly restored in the early twentieth century by Sir Walter Jenner. The garden rooms contain a magical collection of topiary and herbaceous borders, while peaceful walks on the estate follow the River Cary through the Somerset countryside. Tintinhull Garden lies in the charming village of Tintinhull, Somerset. With its working kitchen garden and orchard, glittering pools, secluded lawns, colourful borders and clipped hedges, it offers visitors a tranquil place to relax and unwind.

If you love working with all kinds of people and are excited by the Trust’s cause, to protect and care for places so that people and nature can thrive, then this could be the job for you.

Salary: 16,567.20 pro rata (FTE 27,612 per annum). Salary will be paid in 12 equal payments throughout the year. Hours worked each month may vary due to seasonal demand.

Contract: Permanent Hours/ working pattern: This is a permanent role on an annualised hours contract of 1,170 hours, worked on a rota throughout the year. The role will require weekend, bank holiday and out-of-season availability. Duty management responsibilities form part of the rota.

The package

The National Trust has the motto ‘For everyone, for ever’ at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary
• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
• Rental deposit loan scheme
• Season ticket loan
• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)
• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts
• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.
• Flexible working whenever possible
• Employee assistance programme
• Free parking at most Trust places