Role: Gardener

Line managed by: Deputy Park Manager or Director Parks Management (the Director will be the line manager for an initial period whilst the Deputy is on maternity leave)

Location: Crystal Palace Park. The Trust’s offices are currently based in the park: GLL College, National Sports Centre, Ledrington Road, SE19 2BB

Type: Part time, 0.6FTE / 24 hours per week (inclusive of paid lunch break)

Responsible for: Leading on a wide range of gardening and horticultural tasks and projects to ensure the protection and flourishing of Crystal Palace Park’s natural landscape. Providing direction to the Community Gardener and Volunteers

Salary: £31,000 per annum pro rata (£18,600 for 0.6FTE)

Benefits: 25 days annual leave plus statutory holidays, increases by a day, pro rata, each year completed, up to 30 days pro rata. Employer Pension Contribution 5%; Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) service; Cycle to Work scheme; Flexible working.

The Gardener role offers the opportunity to join a young and growing registered charity at an exciting point in its evolution, and to help lead on establishing Crystal Palace Park as an exemplar in urban park management, community-led regeneration and cultural and heritage programming whilst restoring its position as one of the UK’s leading visitor attractions.

We are looking for an experienced and knowledgeable gardener to join our team and working with the Deputy Park Manager, Director of Park Management, community gardener and volunteers. Responsible for raising standards throughout the park in formal horticulture and gardening for wildlife, achieving increases in biodiversity and curating a beautiful 200-acre natural landscape for visitor enjoyment and satisfaction, you will be part of the park management team and provide guidance to our grounds maintenance contractor. Alongside this you will oversee the performance of the park’s maintenance contracts for cleansing, trees and other related gardening services.

The appointment comes at a pivotal moment: in September 2023, after 25 years of community campaigning, Crystal Palace Park Trust took over custodianship of this unique landscape via a 125-year lease from the London Borough of Bromley. We are now working closely with them and a wide variety of other park and community stakeholders to deliver our mission: to protect, manage and improve Crystal Palace Park as a green, historic, ecological, recreational, sporting, cultural and educational resource in the interests of park users and of the wider community.

About the role

You’ll be joining a small and energetic Park Management team as we make sure trees are healthy, wildflower meadows are buzzing, and public toilets are squeaky clean in Crystal Palace Park. As our in-house Gardener, you’ll be deeply embedded in the natural environment of the park, with much of your time spent outside. You’ll be collaborating with our contracted Grounds Maintenance team to share your expertise in pruning, weeding, planting and maintaining trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants.

As a young organisation, it's essential for us to set and maintain high standards in the work we deliver and contract - you’ll assist Park Management colleagues in managing the Grounds Maintenance, Tree Survey and Tree Works contracts to deliver great value and quality for our park visitors and other stakeholders.

You’ll bring enthusiasm, expertise, and a knowledge of the diverse plants and trees in the park to the role. A passion for sharing this knowledge is essential as you’ll be working alongside our Community Programming Team to support the delivery of regular volunteer sessions and community gardening projects. Engaging with visitors and volunteers is also a key part of the role, whether it's answering questions, leading gardening workshops, guiding tours, or simply sharing your passion for gardening.

How to apply

For more information on how to apply, please download the application pack here.

Crystal Palace Park Trust is an equal opportunities employer. We believe that our staff should represent the communities, organisations and individuals that we work with and support. We want people from all backgrounds to contribute to our work and be given the opportunity to share their experience, expertise and enthusiasm and therefore welcome applications from all sections of the community. If there are any adjustments that would help support you in your application, please do let us know when you apply.

Submit the following documents as separate .pdf files:

1. CV
2. Covering letter not to exceed two single-sided pages. The covering letter should consist of a statement of personal interest and clearly describe how the applicant satisfies the job description (main responsibilities and person specification) outlined above.
3. Equal opportunities form

Submit the three documents above to jobs@crystalpalaceparktrust.org quoting ‘Role: Gardener’ in the subject line.

Deadline: 16 June 2025 by 10:00

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