Horticulture Instructor

Job overview

We are seeking to recruit a technical instructor for our horticulture department, part-time 30 hours per week, at Wathwood Hospital. The horticulture department is set within beautiful grounds which overlook South Yorkshire. We have resources which includes large polytunnels, animal enclosures, and a café which we use to support patient care.

This role supports patients with their reintegration into the community as part of their mental health rehabilitation and recovery. As a horticulture technical instructor you will be supporting patients in group and individual sessions to engage in gardening-related activities and animal care, as well as other practical, creative and social activities in the horticulture department, the wider hospital, and in the community.

The horticulture site has a café which is open to the public on the weekends, therefore there will be an element of working with food, and liaison with the public will be a regular part of the role. This role includes working on weekends and bank holidays on a rotational basis.

Interviews will be held on 5th November.

Main duties of the job

To facilitate specific individual and group therapeutic horticultural activities within the hospital grounds and in the community.

To have oversight of the maintenance of all horticulture areas including the polytunnels, allotment, fields, and greenhouse.

To maintain animal husbandry for the wellbeing of animals which are on-site at Wathwood Hospital, including feeding the animals and maintenance of their housing.

To utilise available green space to promote recovery and well-being. This includes offering hospital-based gardening related activities; particularly for those patients unable to access the external horticulture area.

Risk assessment and risk management in the horticulture department. To be part of writing and reviewing activity-based risk assessments, producing protocols, patient guidelines and undertaking patient and staff inductions.

To assist in the running of the café on a weekend alongside the café staff and volunteers, including some catering duties.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To support in the provision of individual and group programmes related to therapeutic horticulture, both within the unit and the community.

To contribute to the therapy provision at Wathwood Hospital under the direction of senior occupational therapy staff.

Providing ongoing support to patients and staff to include horticultural skills, animal husbandry, environmental awareness, safe use and maintenance of potentially dangerous machinery and tools and community engagement through the Farm Shop and Café. Food hygiene training to support working in the café is required.

To work as part of a team to deliver therapy using practical, vocational, creative, and leisure activity, to provide services for individuals experiencing mental ill health and/or personality disorder.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment. The cost of the DBS application is £20.00 (standard) or £41.00 (enhanced), this cost will be deducted from your salary over the first 2 months of employment.

You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. An annual fee of £16 per year applies.

Applicant requirements

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.