Live-in Head Housekeeper for a Large Country Estate in Dorset

Location: Dorset, UK

Contract: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: £55,000 - £60,000 per annum, depending on experience

Status: Live-in

We are working with a fantastic HNW family who are looking to appoint a Head Housekeeper for this large, brand-new estate. This is the family’s holiday residence as they live abroad, and only use this residence for approximately 4 months of the year.

As this is a newly renovated estate, you will have input in the onboarding of new staff, as well as the setup and layout of the interior furnishings and the housekeeping schedules and rotas. Although there are a lot of managerial responsibilities, this is a hands-on role, so you must have a positive attitude and lead by example. The property is operational but needs fine-tuning, this will be the essence of the role.

As the Head Housekeeper, you will be responsible for the general cleanliness and upkeep of the entire estate. It is a growing estate, with other active property renovations on site currently. On completion, the Head Housekeeper would be responsible for the housekeeping of these properties as well.

You must have extensive housekeeping and laundry knowledge, including caring for delicates. You will be confident, with fantastic leadership skills, have a fantastic eye for detail and should have a good comprehension of different cleaning products and chemicals. You will start creating and implementing functional systems and practices while forming a ‘House Bible’ in which these systems, inventories and other useful information about the estate will be kept. The ideal candidate will have previous experience either in the hotel industry, yachting or in private estates.

The family are lovely, thoughtful people who look after their staff well, so it is important we find like-minded candidates. The existing staff are a tight-knit, drama-free team -it is essential that you are a team player with a can-do approach.

Working hours will be Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm when the principals are not there, but you must be flexible with your working hours to accommodate longer days when the family are in residence.

Accommodation will be provided in a private cottage close to the estate for the first year or so while the staff accommodation is being renovated on site. It is located approximately 5 minutes by car from the estate. Due to the location of the house, someone who loves the countryside and is comfortable around animals and country pursuits is vital. Partners and pets are welcome to live here as well, however, it is important to note that this is not a couple’s position so partners would have to find work in the local area.

DUTIES TO INCLUDE BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

· All housekeeping duties to include dusting, vacuuming, mopping, changing beds, cleaning bathrooms and living/dining areas

· Liaising with the Estate Manager, Chef, Head Gardner, and Maintenance man

· Recruitment of household staff and training, managing rotas and holiday requests

· Writing and implementing deep cleaning and maintenance schedules

· Keeping the house bible up to date

· Purchasing and management of household stock

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

· Prior housekeeping experience on a super yacht, hotel or private estate

· Fluency in spoken English

· Positive, professional can-do attitude

· Exacting standards and a good eye for detail

· Full, clean driving license and your own car

· Non-smoker

· Willingness to obtain an Enhanced DBS check

· Excellent checkable references

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: £55,000.00-£60,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Housing allowance

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday
• Weekend availability

Work Location: One location

Reference ID: EA43