Estate Operations & Compliance Coordinator
1 day ago
Chilham
Job Title: Estate Operations & Compliance Coordinator (Full Time) Location: Chilham Castle, Kent, United Kingdom About Chilham Castle: Nestled within a historic estate in the heart of Kent, Chilham Castle is a distinguished 17th-century property with a legacy spanning centuries. The Castle continues to serve as a private residence and a venue for curated events, cultural gatherings, and private functions, requiring disciplined operational oversight and refined service standards. As the estate evolves, we are building a team of capable and forward-thinking individuals who can balance heritage preservation with professional operational excellence. Job Overview: We are seeking a highly organised, systems-oriented, and dependable Estate Operations & Compliance Coordinator to join our team on a full-time basis. This role is the administrative backbone of the estate. It carries responsibility for the day-to-day running of the estate office, the upkeep of compliance and health & safety records, bookkeeping and financial administration, and the control of stock, inventory, and assets across the estate and the Castle. It requires an individual who understands that accurate records, disciplined systems, and reliable follow-through underpin everything else the estate does. Some systems are already in place; others will need to be designed and built from the ground up. The successful candidate will be equally comfortable operating established processes to a consistent standard and creating new ones where gaps exist. The role reports to the Director and the Business Support Officer. Key Responsibilities: Administration & Estate Office Run the estate office day to day, including shared inboxes, telephone, post, deliveries, filing, and general correspondence. Maintain the central document control and filing system, ensuring records are accurate, current, and easy to retrieve. Coordinate diaries, meetings, and internal operational communications, preparing agendas and minutes where required. Administer HR records, including onboarding documentation, right-to-work checks, contracts, holiday and absence tracking, and training records. Manage supplier, utility, and service contracts, including renewals and service schedules. Provide occasional personal assistant support to the Director and family, including travel arrangements, bookings, and personal administration, handled with complete discretion. Bookkeeping & Financial Administration Maintain the purchase and sales ledgers, ensuring all invoices are coded, approved, and recorded accurately. Raise client invoices for events and guest experiences and follow up outstanding payments. Prepare supplier payment runs in line with agreed approval limits. Reconcile bank, card, and petty cash accounts weekly. Compliance, Health & Safety & Regulatory Own the estate compliance register and calendar, ensuring every statutory inspection, certificate, licence, and renewal is tracked and completed on time. Maintain risk assessments, fire safety records, COSHH records, and food hygiene documentation, working with the estate's external health & safety consultant. Administer contractor onboarding, permits to work, insurance certificates, and competency records. Manage premises licence obligations, temporary event notices, and associated records. Coordinate insurance renewals, claims, and correspondence with insurers. Maintain GDPR and data protection records and policies. Handle correspondence with external bodies, including the local authority, fire safety authorities, the Environment Agency, and listed building and planning matters, escalating to the Director where required. Monitor corrective actions and follow them through to closure. Stock, Inventory & Asset Management Own the estate's stock and inventory system across all categories: food & beverage and the wine cellar, event hire stock (furniture, linen, glassware, crockery), estate and maintenance supplies, cleaning consumables, wellness and retail products, and keys and equipment. Maintain the artwork and contents asset register for the Castle, including location, condition, and valuation records. Conduct scheduled stock counts, reconcile variances, and investigate and report discrepancies. Manage ordering, reordering, and receipt of goods within agreed approval limits. Maintain inventory records in Sortly and supporting spreadsheets, and standardise how stock is labelled, stored, and moved. Systems & Process Development Develop, document, and maintain Standard Operating Procedures across administration, finance, compliance, and inventory. Administer and build out the estate's core systems: Google Workspace, monday.com, Sortly, the accounting system, and HubSpot CRM as it is implemented. Design new systems and processes where none exist, and refine those already in place. Identify operational inefficiencies and propose practical system improvements. Support estate-wide projects and wider operational needs as required. Measures of Success: The role will be assessed against the following standards: Month-end bookkeeping closed and reports issued by the tenth working day of each month. Bank, card, and petty cash accounts reconciled weekly with no unexplained variances. Client invoices raised within five working days of an event; supplier invoices processed within five working days of receipt. No overdue statutory inspections, certificates, licences, or renewals on the compliance register; documentation audit-ready at all times. Full stocktake completed quarterly, with variances investigated and reported; asset register verified annually. Standard Operating Procedures covering all core administrative, financial, compliance, and inventory processes in place within the first six months, and reviewed annually thereafter. Qualifications and Experience: 2–4 years' experience in office administration, operations, bookkeeping, or estate and hospitality administration. Practical bookkeeping experience across ledgers, reconciliations, and VAT-ready record keeping. An AAT or equivalent qualification is desirable but not required. Working knowledge of health & safety and compliance frameworks. IOSH Managing Safely or equivalent desirable. Experience maintaining stock or inventory systems. Proficient in Excel and Google Workspace, monday.com or comparable project management tools, and cloud accounting software. Experience with Sortly or HubSpot is an advantage. Full UK driving licence required. Personal Attributes: Highly systems-oriented with exceptional organisational discipline. Detail-focused with a methodical approach to records, figures, and documentation. Reliable and consistent, following tasks through to completion without prompting. Calm under pressure and solution-driven in approach. Professional, discreet, and confident in high-standard environments, comfortable handling confidential financial, personal, and family matters. Interest in heritage properties, culture, literature, design and spatial presentation. Adaptable and flexible, understanding that operational needs will occasionally require hours beyond the standard working day. Working Structure: 40 hours per week, Monday–Friday, based in the estate office at Chilham Castle. Predominantly office hours, with flexibility required in line with business needs. Additional hours are compensated through time off in lieu (TOIL). Some physical handling and movement of stock around the estate. Six-month probationary period. Compensation: £27,040 – £29,120 per year (£13.00 – £14.00 per hour, 40 hours per week), commensurate with experience. 28 days' annual leave, inclusive of bank holidays. Scope for progression and increased responsibility as systems mature and responsibility grows. Application Process: Shortlisted candidates will be invited to interview, which will include a short practical exercise covering bookkeeping, spreadsheet, and documentation tasks. Chilham Castle is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates and make appointments on merit alone.