Position Overview & Specifications

If you want a career in Gardening, we can offer you some of the most beautiful outdoor spaces in the UK to work in as well as one of the largest plant collections in Europe.

What it's like to work here:The Thames Valley is a major tourist destination, with historic houses, parks and gardens, cycling, walking and boating on the river. It’s a beautiful area in which to live and work, with numerous small villages and towns in the countryside, yet good transport links to London by train and close to the east-west M4 motorway. The nearby thriving town of Reading with its range of housing types and prices, university and sporting facilities is the most important source for local visitors coming to the National Trust properties in this area. Basildon Park is just 12 miles from Greys Court, with nearby Nuffield Place – the third in the group, forming a close triangle of properties spilling out north across the valley.

What you'll be doing:You’ll love working outdoors and understand that our gardens and grounds are as significant as our mansion houses, collections and our historical places. Our visitors tell us how much they enjoy the peace and tranquillity of our well-kept outdoor spaces, which makes your role vital in making sure our visitors have an amazing experience.

We don’t just need you to manage our beautiful gardens, although this is an important part of the role; we’d like you to help manage the team too. As the Senior Gardener in our team, we’d like you to lead by example, with exceptional gardening skills, but you’ll also understand how to manage the workload for this team, and deliver exceptional training to new staff and volunteers.

Please also read the full role profile attached to this advert.

Who we're looking forTo be successful in this role you should be able to demonstrate the following:

Significant practical experience in horticulture supported by relevant qualifications

Have supervisory experience from a similar role

Good knowledge of plants

Competent with the use and maintenance of garden machinery including chainsaws, tractors, hedge trimmers, pedestrian and ride on mowers

Knowledge of relevant health and safety legislation and practice

The packageThe 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.