Apprentice Gardener

One of the thirty-one Colleges of the University of Cambridge. The College’s grounds and gardens are one of Cambridge’s best-kept secrets. The original design was drawn up in the early 1960s, creating landscapes with borders surrounding buildings rather than traditional gardens. There is a small arboretum, wildflower areas, a parterre and fruit orchards, beautiful herbaceous borders, an orchid collection, and nearly 1,000 trees across the forty-two acre site. The College also holds the National Plant Collection of plants named after Sir Winston Churchill. The College is now looking to recruit an Apprentice Gardener to join our experienced team of nine Grounds and Gardens staff. The ideal candidate will have a keen interest in Horticulture and some personal experience of gardening. They will also have a willingness and ability to learn new skills and techniques. The successful candidate will assist the team in maintaining the College grounds & gardens to a high standard at all times and in a safe manner.

General garden maintenance working with the head gardener to include:

• Mowing lawns
• All aspects of gardening tasks
• Strimming
• Hedge cutting
• Composting
• Border control
• Turfing
• Planting
• Fencing
• Snow/ice clearing
• Working with machinery and power tools (tractors, lawn mower, strimmer, hedge cutter, leaf blower)
• Keeping records of machinery use for noise and vibration
• Hard & Soft Landscaping
• Maintaining tools/equipment

Desired skills and qualities

• An interest in gardening and landscaping and working outdoors is essential
• Experience in a garden or with plants
• Used a range of garden machinery
• Working as part of a team
• Reliable and trustworthy
• Able to work well with others
• A keen interest, enthusiasm, a willingness to learn and reliability are most important
• Good communication skills with the public
• Sensible with a methodical approach

Desired qualifications

• GCSE’s, or equivalents in maths and English are desired but not essential
• A level 1 in horticulture is desirable
• Full driving license is desirable

Future prospects

• Continued employment after the Apprenticeship for the right candidate.

Training:

• Full training to be provided by the employer and KEITS at the place of employment.
• The applicant will be working towards and gain a Level 2 Horticulture and Landscape Operative Apprenticeship.
• The learner will be allocated an industry specific training consultant who will provide both remote and on site visits throughout the apprenticeship.
• The apprentice will work towards an End Point Assessment (EPA) at the end of their apprenticeship.
• You will also need to achieve Level 3 award in Emergency First Aid at Work and Level 2 Principles of Safe Handling and Application of Pesticides Guidance or Level 2 Award in the Safe Use of Pesticides before undertaking the End Point Assessment.

Things to consider

• The candidate must be happy to work outdoors in all weathers and flexible on hours of working due to weather conditions.
• The candidate must be able to work at heights and lift heavy objects
• An extremely friendly environment, with an enthusiastic team with a wealth of knowledge, where the candidate will learn and thrive.
• Weekend working – open days and snow clearance

Job Type: Apprenticeship

Pay: £23,923.97 per year

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday
• Weekend availability

Work Location: In person

Reference ID: gardener cambridge