Boarding House Matron

The House
A Matron works closely with the Housemaster/mistress to care for and promote all personalities, talents and interests of pupils in the House. Both a Housemaster/mistress and a Matron act as guardians of the potential of all pupils in their House and they promote the collective experience of living in a school community.

The Position
The key role of the House Matron is helping to ensure the general well-being and supervision of all the pupils within the House. The position requires significant involvement in the pastoral and health care of all pupils in the House, together with administrative responsibilities, under the direction of the Housemaster/mistress as well as supervising the cleaning and house laundry services. All support staff are required to participate in a regular appraisal of their performance.

Reporting
A Matron will report directly to the Housemaster/mistress and, accordingly, to the Facilities Manager and, ultimately, the Bursar.

There are six key overall responsibilities of the House Matron:

1 To provide proactive pastoral and supervisory support in the House.
2 To be the primary point of contact for any pupil in the House who may be feeling unwell or who needs medical/dental treatment during the school day.
3 To provide administrative support for the Housemaster or Housemistress using the College’s management information systems.
4 To be the point of contact with parents/guardians for any routine matters, taking messages for the Housemaster/mistress as necessary.
5 To supervise the team of Domestic Assistants in the House and liaise closely with the Assistant Matron, ensuring that the provision of housekeeping care is consistent with the College’s high standards.
6 To monitor the wear and tear of the house and arrange for any repairs where necessary.

• To help new pupils settle in the House.

• To assist the Housemaster/mistress in creating a friendly and happy atmosphere in the House.

• To assist pupils through periods of uncertainty and difficulty, but without intrusion. It is a careful and important balance: pupils are encouraged to talk about problems with those who can help, but also are also encouraged towards mature resolution of them through their own thought and effort.

• To supervise pupils and be the adult responsible within the House throughout the day.

• To liaise regularly with the Housemaster/mistress and Tutors over concerns about pupils’ well-being.

• Carry out all duties in line with safeguarding procedures and protocols.

• To be the point of contact for parents over housekeeping matters such as routine medical appointments, arranging taxis etc. Take messages for the Housemaster/mistress and inform him/her of matters as and when they arise.

• To assist the Housemaster/mistress with routine administration using the College’s management information systems.

• To assess illness and injuries, deal with minor problems and administer daily medicine where deemed
appropriate by the Medical Centre.

• To accompany boarding pupils on medical appointments including visits to Accident and Emergency, as required.

• To oversee pupils’ behaviour in the House, and be ready to alert the Housemaster/mistress both to areas of concern and commendation.

• To communicate effectively with pupils to ensure a well ordered House.

• To monitor the daily routines of the pupils including punctuality, registration, attendance at activities, school events; issue town leave and ensure the ethos of the school and high standards of behaviour are maintained at all times.

• To ensure that pupils are correctly and appropriately dressed when leaving the House; for example, full school uniform, correct games kit, etc.

• Under the direction of the Housemaster/mistress maintain administrative records of pupils, safekeeping of passports, etc and undertake routine administration; for example, off gameschits, accident reports, allocation of study keys/billing when lost,

• To assist the Housemaster/mistress in organising and attending House events, open days, etc

• To have a full understanding of child protection procedures within the school and uphold the National Boarding Standards.

• To attend specific training, on occasion, as directed by line-managers.

• To report to the Facilities Manager with regard to the scope, timing and extent of all housekeeping duties.

• To co-ordinate and undertake any housekeeping/cleaning duties as required.

• To order and maintain food supplies. (eg, milk, bread, snacks)

• To maintain and update the soft furnishings, pictures, photographs etc in the House and agree with the Housemaster/mistress replacements each year.

• To communicate the housekeeping standards, workflow sequences and work schedules to Domestic staff.

• To ensure that all areas are cleaned according to the work schedules.

• To cover cleaning duties in the case of staff absence.

• To plan and arrange all deep cleaning duties as necessary.

• To oversee all areas of responsibility within the house to ensure sufficient stock levels of materials and quality of equipment is available as necessary.

• To sort pupils’ personal laundry for both collection by, and on return from, the Laundry.

• To sort pupils’ dry cleaning for collection by, and on return from, the contractor.

• To ensure that all bed linen is changed, as required.

• To report and record all staff absence/sickness/annual leave.

• To maintain all housekeeping records.

• To attend all mandatory and relevant training as required by the Facilities Manager.

• To report any defects, using the Maintenance Chit system, monitor progress of Maintenance Chits, and label and remove from service all defective items.

• To ensure that all Domestic house staff are aware of their responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act, 1974. To ensure that they adhere to all relevant regulations; for example, Fire Precautions, Manual Handling, C.O.S.H.H. etc.

• To ensure that all Domestic house staff dress appropriately in the uniform provided.

• To ensure that the Facilities Manager is informed of all personnel matters and recruitment needs.

• To ensure all Domestic house staff are aware of child protection procedures, implications of strangers on campus, and all staff are conscious of their security responsibilities.

• To undertake any other reasonable task as directed by the Facilities Manager and Housemaster/mistress and to adopt a flexible approach to the role.

• Ensure the House is ready for external commercial lets at the end term.

• Prepare the House at the end of the commercial lets ready for the next academic year.

No job description can fully cover all aspects of the role and consequently the responsibilities are likely to evolve and change over time. This description gives an overall view of the position.

Epsom College is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects the Matron to embrace fully this commitment and the new role.

Essential
– People management experience.
– Experience of working without direct supervision.
– Experience of working with children or within a school environment.
– An understanding and knowledge of safeguarding protocols and procedures within a school setting.
– Qualified First Aider at Work (or willing to attend training and qualify).
– Good written and verbal communication skills in response to pupils, parents and staff.
– Comprehensive knowledge and experience of professional Housekeeping requirements.
– Experience in cleaning to specified standards within a commercial environment and ideally supervising responsibilities.
– Possess strong organisational skills.
– Evidence of IT skills with a good knowledge of Word, email and school IT systems.
– Basic administrative skills (eg record keeping, managing budget allocation, and filing.)
– An ability to adapt, show initiative and be flexible in approach.
– Able to drive/own car (on occasions required to take a boarding pupil to medical appointments, A&E, source new items for the house in agreement with the Housemaster/mistress).

Desirable
– Experience of working in a School Boarding House.
– A childcare/nursing experience or qualification. Essential Person attributes
– Enjoy working with young people
– Encouraging and motivating with a professional approach and a strong ethos in supporting pupils to achieve their potential
– A personal commitment to a culture of equality, diversity and inclusion.
– Approachable and empathetic and patient
– Good listening skills and objective
– Tactful, diplomatic and discreet
– A sense of humour and cheerful disposition
– Firm but fair and even tempered when dealing with situations.
– Sensitive to other people’s needs and respect for their opinions
– Warm, caring and nurturing
– Enthusiastic and positive
– Flexible and adaptable approach

Hours

During Term time 34 weeks pa (including Inset Days) 8am – 6pm Monday – Saturday working alternate Saturdays. One designated day off during the week (currently a Thursday) when working the Saturday.

During the holidays (in addition to term time working): First week and last week of summer holidays, 1 week during Easter and Christmas holidays (3 days at the beginning of the holidays and 2 days at the end of the Christmas and Easter holidays). Holiday working hours will be 8am – 1.30pm Monday – Friday.

Salary

Based on the above working arrangement a total salary of £36,645 per annum inclusive of holiday entitlement paid monthly in arrears on 25th of the month.

Holidays

The holiday entitlement is a total of 33 days paid holiday per annum inclusive of bank holidays pro rated for part time working and taken at the earliest opportunity during the College’s published holiday dates. Holiday entitlement has been calculated and paid within the above total salary.

Pension

The College operates the Epsom College Automatic Enrolment Scheme. The Scheme is administered by the Pensions Trust. Eligibility is based on statutory criteria. If eligible, the Employee will be required to contribute a minimum of 5% of Basic Salary and the College will contribute 4% in compliance with pension regulations.

Life Assurance

Members who are automatically enrolled or who choose to opt into the College Pension Scheme will be provided with life assurance cover at two x contractual annual basic salary subject to scheme rules at no cost to the employee.

School Fee Discount

Subject to qualifying conditions a generous school fee discount is offered.

Refreshments

Free refreshments available and free meals when the dining room is open during break times.

Health care plan

Private healthcare and well-being plan offered to staff subject to qualifying conditions.

Health, Fitness and Wellbeing

Free use of Fitness suite and swimming pool are available to staff at certain times.

Employee Assistance Programme

The College offers an employee assistance programme including counselling and other support services.

Cycle to Work / Parking

Subject to qualifying conditions, the College offers a cycle to work loan scheme. Free car parking for staff is available on campus.

Computer Loan

Subject to qualifying conditions, the College offers a computer loan scheme.

In compliance with safer recruitment regulations, the post will be offered subject to receipt of satisfactory written references, pre-placement medical assessment, proof of appropriate qualifications, a check of online search engines and websites of publicly available information that does not identify the candidate as potentially unsuitable to work within a school setting, a satisfactory Enhanced Disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service and overseas police check if appropriate, as wellas confirmation that the successful candidate is able to work in the UK. Prior to interview, an online search of internet search engines, websites and other publicly available and publicly accessible platforms to ascertain applicant’s suitability to work within a school environment will be undertaken on applicants that have been shortlisted. Please note whilst the Enhanced DBS check will be paid by the College if an overseas police check is required it will be at the cost of the successful applicant.

Applicants are required to complete the Application for Employment Form available from our website www.epsomcollege.org.uk. To comply with safeguarding procedures when working in a school, CVs cannot be accepted. Applicants should refer to the Recruitment, Selection and Disclosure and the safeguarding policies on the College website.
Applications will be assessed in order of receipt and interviews and appointment may occur at any stage after applications are received. Please apply as soon as possible.

Applicants are encouraged to contact Kay Wright, Facilities Manager, tele 01372 821260 for an informal chat or further information.