Grounds Operative (Grade C)

Driving license essential ROLE TITLE:           Ground Maintenance Operative ( Full Time)

POST ID:                  OPWS

GRADE:                    BAND C      SCP 5 £18,795 – SCP 8 £19,945

HOURS:                   37 per week basic (However, there will be a requirement to work 43 hrs per week annualised hours from Mid March until end October

WORK PATTERN:    Monday to Thursday 7.30am to 5pm, Friday 7.30am to 3pm

LOCATION:

Which may change in the future if the service location needs to relocate. Relocation or disturbance allowance will not be paid if this happens.

RESPONSIBLE TO:  Area Supervisor

DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE (DBS) CHECK: Appointment to this post is exempt from Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and is subject to the following DBS check (Please specify level of check:,

(e)                            No DBS Required for this post

WELSH LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT:

Welsh language skills are desirable;

Waste & Street Services …..Who are we?

Waste and Street Services is a newly established Department within Operations. It sees the merger of some of the most high profile services that the Council provides – Recycling & Waste, Street Cleaning, Cleansing and Grounds Maintenance.

SAFEGUARDING: Safeguarding and Child and Adult Protection are key priorities for the Council. We aim to support children and adults at risk to be as safe as they can and to fulfil their potential. All Council employees and volunteers are responsible for playing their part in the well-being, safety and protection of children and adults at risk. All employees and volunteers will be trained to the appropriate level of safeguarding and have a duty to fulfil their personal responsibilities for safeguarding.

Our Purpose:-

“To provide a safe, clean & sustainable environment”.

Specific to the Commercial and Operations section we want:

Our residents to have an environment which is safe, clean and sustainable. Specifically we will undertake to keep streets and green spaces clean and tidy whilst ensuring we are able to maintain in the most sustainable manner available to us, creating a sense of pride and safety in our communities.

To work and support our residents as they become more sustainable and reduce their impact on the environment. We will do this by depositing less into landfill and recycling as much as is possible.

To promote the creation of our Pollinator Policy and to establish more environmentally sustainable habitats on land owned and maintained by us.

To provide a high quality, after cost effective service on behalf of the council for our external clients, whilst ensuring financial benefit to the council.

To have a more flexible and multi trained workforce.

To provide all our staff with the level of training that would be expected from us in addition to help promote personal improvement and personal development.

The Purpose of this Role:- Grounds maintenance provides an essential service in ensuring the County delivers its aspirations of providing an environment which is safe, clean and sustainable.  Grounds maintenance operatives, either working individually or as a team, will maintain public open space; verges; planting; schools and contracted sites to provide a quality green and sustainable environment.

The majority of the time the officer will be undertaking grounds maintenance activities. However you will be required at times to work as part of a street services team, maintaining local environmental quality which includes litter picking, responding to fly-tipping etc. Loading of waste will only be undertaken if the operative has indicated a willingness to participate in the service (e.g. bank holiday catch-up).

Expectation and Outcomes of this Role:- This role will actively support the organisation in shaping the culture and workforce of Monmouthshire.

You will be required to:-

Maintain Safe Working Practices for self and others in accordance with the Council’s Safe Working Practices and Health and Safety Policy

Comply with the relevant legislation in relation to Health and Safety

Carry out your role in a polite and orderly manner

Undertake other duties commensurate with the grade of post if the relevant training has been provided.

Clean and current driving licence (and HGV licence if applicable)

Undertake any training that is required to undertake your role safely and effectively.

Abide by the principles and practices of Equal Opportunities as laid down within the Council’s Equal Opportunities Policy.

Work within the Annualised hour’s scheme: working 43 hours per week from mid-March through to October and 37 hours per week November to March. Hours accumulated to be taken as leave between November and March.

Work outside normal working hours:

Weekends and evenings:- some weekend or evening working will required.  This could include being on a rota for cleaning town centres, waste collections from markets (please note these are examples and not a definitive list). These rotas will be available to everyone to indicate availability or willingness to work.

Bank holidays:- the Council will provide the bank holiday and catch up working pattern on a three year rolling basis. It is presumed that staff are working and a fair and equitable system will be developed to allow people to have time off over bank holidays.

Responding to emergencies (including evenings, weekends and bank holidays):- staff will be expected to be able to assist the Council in its response to emergencies on instruction from management.  This includes instances such as flooding (sandbagging), snow (town centre clearances), storms (tree removal).

Scheduling for working bank holidays, weekends etc. will be based on principles of fairness and equality with single status agreement applying.

Your responsibilities are to:-

Grass cutting activities using both hand held and ride on equipment to open spaces, schools etc.

Assist with grave digging and cemetery related tasks when suitable training has been given.

To maintain horticultural features inclusive of shrub bed and areas of annual bedding.

To carry out the marking and maintenance of various sports facilities.

To undertake landscaping of open spaces.

Arboriculture work.

To empty litter bins and to carry out litter picking to open spaces, verges and hard surfaces (reactive or proactive/scheduled).

Respond to fly-tipping service requests ensuring the correct process is followed for evidence collation.

To ensure that vehicles are kept clean and that daily safety inspections are carried out.

To ensure that all plant and machinery is used in accordance with manufactures advice and instruction.

To carry out other duties and works to provide services for the Authority and commensurate with the terms and conditions .

Responding to fly-tipping service requests ensuring the correct process is followed for evidence collation .

Collect waste:-

Bank holiday rota – but only when the operative has indicated a willingness to be included in the rota for Waste.

Normal working day:- only when staff shortages are at such a level that there is no alternative and all other appropriate means to ensure cover have been exhausted.

To abide by all Health and Safety legislation and codes of practice to ensure your own safety and that of your colleagues

To abide by the principles and practice of equal opportunity as laid down in the Council’s Equal Opportunity Policy.

Here’s what we can provide you with:-

Relevant training that will enable you to carry out your duties safely and effectively.

Equipment and clothing that will enable you to carry out your duties safely.

We will aspire to decrease or replace the paper forms of instruction and communication and provide you with more electronic means of communication e.g. The Connected Person, access to Monmouthshire Hub.

We can provide you with the opportunity to be part of a new flexible team which wants to deliver excellent services to our customers, whether they are residents of Monmouthshire or External Clients who pay for our services.

What else you need to know…..Monmouthshire Values are:

Openness:   We aspire to be open and honest to develop trusting relationships. Fairness:     We aspire to provide fair choice, opportunities and experiences and become an organisation built on mutual respect. Flexibility:    We aspire to be flexible in our thinking and action to become an effective and efficient organisation. Teamwork:  We aspire to work together to share our successes and failures by building on our strengths and supporting one another to achieve our goals. And this role, will work with Monmouthshire to achieve these.

In addition: All employees are responsible for ensuring that they act at all times in a way that is consistent with Monmouthshire’s Equal Opportunities Policy in their own area of responsibility and in their general conduct.

The authority operates a Smoke Free Workplace Policy which all employees are required to abide to.

Person Specification

How will we know if you are the right person for the role? As the successful candidate you will have demonstrated:-

Hold a clean driving licence.

Have related experience within a similar environment as described within this role.

Have a good understanding of Health and Safety issues plus the ability to abide by the Authority’s agreed policies and procedures.

Have experience and be able to work as part of a team.

Are able to work without close supervision.

Be able to self-motivate.

Have pride in the quality of your work to ensure a quality service is provided.

Good communication skills.

Have a willingness to undertake any relevant training.

Flexible and able to work outside the core hours to meet the needs of the service      when required, including covering Bank Holidays. Welsh Desirable.