Hemel Food Garden Site Manager

Sunnyside Rural Trust

Accountable to: Head of Service

Responsible for: Day to day operations of the entire HFG site, management of a high quality, person led day services for people with learning disabilities. Supporting engagement in horticultural projects, Farmshop and café activities and delivering off site gardening projects/contracts

Based: Hemel Food Garden and across the organisation as necessary

Working hours: 37.5 hours per week, Mon-Fri hours flexibly between the hours of 8am – 5pm. There will be some weekend and out of hours work required.

Hemel Food Garden is a busy and innovative service supporting young people and adults with learning disabilities opportunities to train and work. The site has a farm shop, café, numerous horticultural structures, repair shed and a large team.

As post holder you work in collaboration of both a site-based management team and with support and direction from a senior management team. As site manager your role is to ensure our Hemel Food Garden (HFG) service operates to a high standard and that the team receive the support and guidance needed.

Site Manager Responsibilities

Site management and development of HFG:

· Work with the HFG site management team to ensure high quality, safe, and effective delivery of all HFG site and off-site contracted services, projects, and activities.

· Implement the policies and procedures of SRT robustly, ensuring all regulatory requirements, such as Health & Safety and reporting are consistently met.

· Coordinate all HFG daily site and off-site operations, alongside the SRT senior and HFG management teams, in an effective, planned, and organised way.

· Oversee Farmshop café site and support of Farmshop café Manager

· Act as emergency contact for out of hours alarm calls

· Ensure all rotas, shift, and transport plans are consistently in place with adequate staffing, stepping in to cover if required.

· Seek new and work alongside existing partner organisations e.g., Community Action Dacorum, and Boxmoor Trust that contribute to SRT and have synergy with our values and ethos.

· Contribute to the strategic development of the organisation, as necessary.

· Lead and inspire HFG staff teams to implement SRT strategic vision for HFG.

· Communicate to the staff teams effectively, provide clarity of SRT strategic direction and the role the staff teams play in the development of HFG

· Manage of the goals/objectives set for the staff teams and trainees that contribute towards the overall site development.

Trainees:

· To provide leadership and ensure promotion of people’s rights and responsibilities. Ensuring the team are involving trainees in decision making within the service, the promotion of self-advocacy and advocacy. To ensure excellent standards of consultation.

· To implement Connected Lives. Ensuring the team are conducting assessments, regular reviews of trainee wishes, needs and aspirations are carried out and the service meets trainee’s needs and places them at the centre of the service.

· To ensure prompt and individualised support. Ensuring trainees are receiving a service which benefits them and that the team can offer the standard of care and support required.

· To ensure support to maintain/develop relationships. This involves establishing and building supportive links with parents/carers, responding appropriately to concerns raised.

· Health and Safety support. This includes, health and other changing needs, safeguarding/adult protection issues, emergencies, accidents / incidents, risk management, and challenging behaviour.

Team:

· To provide effective and dynamic leadership. This includes providing support, information, supervision, induction, and training to meet need, aid career and service development. Manage all HR processes such as annual leave and sick leave. Liaising with external HR support, when necessary.

· Volunteers. To support volunteers to make the most of their time and maintain appropriate boundaries.

· Placements. To ensure that teams fulfil the Trust’s contractual responsibilities with funding authorities.

· To oversee and ensure proactive review of service delivery. Involving the team in service planning, the review and continuous development of policies, procedures, and effective communication systems, ensuring awareness and adherence.

· To provide necessary training support to Team members. Including identifying training needs within the team. To facilitate training as appropriate and support teams to plan and undertake team development, as necessary.

· To work in partnership with the senior management team. This includes sharing information at a senior level. Taking responsibilities for decisions made and being aware of the limits of authority attached to the role. To ensure we work in a positive and friendly manage to achieve our strategic plan objectives.

Administration

· To provide and ensure a high standard of service administration. Including continuous review of service provision, effective time management and regular liaison with other colleagues and in line with agreed policy.

· IT systems. To ensure this aspect meets the need of the service and team and develop with support from the senior management team.

Management:

· Recruitment and selection. To participate as required.

To promote partnership work with external agencies. Accessing specialist services as appropriate, promoting work of the Trust, attending relevant meetings and forums. Occasionally evening and weekend work may be required.

· To ensure a high standard of performance management. Addressing performance and grievances issues promptly and effectively in line with relevant procedures.

Finances

· To ensure effective budget management. Identifying resources needed, negotiating annual budgets; promoting team understanding ensuring financial controls are observed. To offer training and support to the team in this area. To be accountable and responsible for the expenditure of services.

· Financial controls. To ensure the safe keeping and responsible use of all equipment, resources and monies belonging to the Trust. Management of petty cash.

· Fundraising. This includes participating in the fundraising activities of the Trust.

Property Management and Equipment:

· To oversee and ensure effective property management. Ensuring that the buildings are maintained to a high standard. Development of any building is discussed and addressed as necessary in partnership with the senior management team. Carry out regular health and safety checks, risk assessments and COSH reviews.

· Equipment. To ensure the team and trainees follow guidelines on safe use. To ensure the correct cleaning, storage and safeguarding of all Trust equipment. To ensure appropriate certificates of competence are in place.

Risk Management:

· To ensure effective risk management within the service. Ensuring the team and trainee involvement and understanding of risk assessment processes. Ensuring the completion of these in line with Health & Safety legislation. To ensure that quality standards are met, monitored, and evaluated appropriately.

· To develop and review organisational policy and practice. To support the implementation and development of Quality Assurance systems, meetings, working groups, training, supervision, and appraisals, etc. Participating in the emergency on-call system as required. To provide reports as required to the Board of Trustees and its relevant Committees ensuring effective communication and the development of policies and procedures across the Trust.

The post holder will work individually and collectively to promote a constructive, fair, and sensitive approach to working with others from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. All employees are expected to conduct their tasks within the terms and intentions of the Equal Opportunities, Core Values, policies and procedures and relevant legislation.

This job description is a guideline only and is subject to review. A degree of flexibility is required in this position and the post holder may need to undertake work not specifically referred to above, such work will be consistent with the post.

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