Sports Turf Technician
1 day ago
Leicester
Uppingham School, founded in 1584, is a leading co-educational independent boarding school. Its 800 pupils, aged 11-18, are accommodated in 15 boarding houses, taught by over 20 academic departments, and participate in numerous extra-curricular activities such as sports, music, and drama. The academic programme is supported by business units responsible for marketing, estates, finance, human resources, IT, catering, cleaning, health and safety, and the schools trading subsidiary. The school employs c. 550 staff and operates seven days a week during term-time. Uppingham is committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and welcomes applications from anyone who feels they could fulfil the role. Job purpose Games and a full sporting curriculum form an integral part of school life at Uppingham. The playing fields and sports facilities, covering approximately 56 acres over three sites, cater for multiple sporting activities throughout the year, such as rugby, football, cricket and athletics. We are looking for a committed, experienced, and passionate grounds operative with strong knowledge of machinery and sports pitch maintenance. This role will play a key part in ensuring that the grounds and school pitches are maintained to an excellent standard. Your accountabilities To ensure the maintenance and upkeep of sports fields, ensuring they are safe, functional, and visually appealing for use in sporting activities. This role involves a variety of tasks such as mowing, fertilising, aerating, irrigating, repairing turf surfaces, and maintaining artificial pitches/courts. The goal is to provide high-quality playing surfaces that meets the needs of the school while adhering to safety standards and regulations. Additionally, be responsible for managing equipment, completing scheduled maintenance activities, and liaising with other staff or stakeholders to support field usage. Qualifications, skills and experience, personal qualities required. Qualifications: PA1, PA2 and PA6 spraying certificates (desirable). NVQ Level 2 Sports Turf qualification or similar (desirable) Skills and experience: Experience of sports grounds maintenance and associated work. Experience in mowing, aeration, fertilising and weed control. Ability to use a range of machinery and equipment. Experience in initial setting out and marking pitches. Full driving licence* (essential) Personal qualities: Excellent communication skills at all levels of the organisation Positive, can-do and forward-looking attitude, striving for improvement. Diplomatic problem-solver who understands the requirements of stakeholders and colleagues Good eye for attention and details Ability to • Be decisive and confident in own skills and ability., • Self-motivate, self-evaluate and show initiative., • Work alone, with minimum supervision or as part of a team., • Work at a commercial pace and in a clean, efficient and logical manner., • Solve unexpected problems within the normal working day in a calm and logical manner. JBRP1_UKTJ