Visitor Services

The National Trust for Scotland are looking for friendly, professional, hard-working individuals to join their 14th century castle in Anstruther.

As a member of our Visitor Services team your job is to give visitors from across the globe a warm welcome to Kellie Castle. You will be part of the team responsible for the smooth and safe running of the day to day operations, making the property the best possible place to visit.

You will help maximise sales through your excellent customer service and product knowledge and you will take pride in the castle’s presentation and operation to make a memorable and positive experience for all your visitors.

As a Visitor Services Assistant you get the privilege of working in an inspirational environment, surrounded by nature, gardens, arts & crafts, fine interiors, ornate buildings and furniture and be part of a fairytale backdrop and historical stories

Your role as Visitor Services Assistant at Kellie Castle in Anstruther is:

To provide a consistently high standard of visitor care at all times
Assist with admissions, catering, membership and retail sales
Proactively engage with visitors in talking about the stories and history of the castle; including the delivery of tours and answering visitors’ questions around the property as and when required
Promoting the National Trust for Scotland brand
You will be well presented at all times, wearing correct uniform & name badge
You will ensure any instances of damage and wear and tear issues are reported promptly to your line manager
As a Visitor Services Assistant your role in catering includes; food and drink preparation and service to customers and ensure good housekeeping of all catering areas at all times
Within retail you will support ticket sales and memberships and work towards achieving the castle’s targets
Work with your line manager to actively feedback visitor comments and to develop and improve offerings, service and operations
You will be flexible to work across other departments and properties in Fife if required
You will assist with the set-up, stewarding and break-down of events when required

To be successful in the role of Visitor Services Assistant at Kellie Castle you will need at least some of the following skills and experience:

Ability to work within a team or independently, with minimal supervision, to a high and safe standard
Ability to be flexible and adaptable to working patterns and tasks to meet the property needs
Ability to adjust pace to match customer flow without compromising quality of service
Excellent front of house persona – warm, welcoming, patient and understanding
Genuine belief in the value of good customer service
Ability to be proactive and to take the initiative
Excellent time management skills
An understanding and commitment to the aims and objectives of the National Trust for Scotland
Experience in a customer-facing retail-based and or a catering role, delivering impeccable customer care through excellent inter-personal skills
Experience and confidence in ticket sales, admissions, till work, cash handling
Experience in a heritage/tourism context
Comfortable in storytelling and a passion for Scottish heritage and history
Basic food hygiene certificate but we will support you gain this if not

The Visitor Services Assistant for Kellie Castle offers a competitive rate of £10.90/hour and pension.

There is opportunity to be full time or part time in this role.

You have the opportunity to work with an engaging organisation that looks after its people (their team and their visitors) and be able to make a difference, give back and be part of a team that love what they do.

You will also get free NTS membership, free parking, 20% off NTS holiday cottages and excellent holiday allowance 30days plus 7days at Christmas.

Interested please send your CV to joyce@xpressrecruitment.com

Xpress Recruitment is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy. All candidates registering with Xpress Recruitment will need to provide proof of identity, eligibility to work in UK and any relevant qualifications and references.

The National Trust for Scotland are looking for dedicated, inquisitive and welcoming individuals to join their team as a Visitors Services Assistant within the picturesque surroundings of Culross Palace near Dunfermline.

As a member of our Visitor Services team your job is to give visitors from across the globe a warm welcome to Culross Palace, you work with the team to ensure the smooth and safe running of the day to day operations, making the property the best possible place to visit.

You will help maximise sales through your excellent customer service and product knowledge and you will take pride in the Culross’ presentation and operation to make a memorable and positive experience for all your visitors to the Palace and Village.

As a Visitor Services Assistant you get the privilege of working in a jewel of a village with its white-harled houses, red-tiled roofs, cobbled streets and beautiful ochre-coloured palace. The backdrop to tv and films and known as one of the most picturesque villages in Scotland.

Your role as Visitor Services Assistant at Culross Palace in Dunfermline is:

To provide a consistently high standard of visitor care at all times
Assist with admissions, catering, membership and retail sales
Proactively engage with visitors in talking about the stories and history of the Palace and its Village. This will include the delivery of tours and answering visitors’ questions around the property as and when required
Promoting the National Trust for Scotland brand
You will be well presented at all times, wearing correct uniform & name badge
You will ensure any instances of damage and wear and tear issues are reported promptly to your line manager
Within catering you will prepare and serve food and drink to customers and ensure good housekeeping of all catering areas
Within retail you will support ticketing and membership sales and work towards achieving the palace’s targets
Work with your line manager to actively feedback visitor comments and to develop and improve offerings, service and operations
You will be flexible to work across other departments and properties in Fife if required
You will assist with the set-up, stewarding and break-down of events when required

To be successful in the role you will need some of the following skills and experience:

Ability to work within a team or independently, with minimal supervision, to a high and safe standard
Ability to be flexible and adapt to working patterns and tasks to meet the property needs
Ability to adjust pace to match customer flow without compromising quality of service
Excellent front of house persona – warm, welcoming, patient and understanding
Genuine belief in the value of good customer service
Ability to be proactive and to take the initiative
Excellent time management skills
An understanding and commitment to the aims and objectives of the National Trust for Scotland
Experience in a customer-facing retail-based and or a catering role, delivering impeccable customer care through excellent inter-personal skills
Experience and confidence in ticket sales, admissions, till work, cash handling
Experience in a heritage/tourism context
Comfortable in storytelling and a passion for Scottish heritage and history
Basic food hygiene certificate but we will support you gain this if not

The Visitor Services Assistant for Culross Palace offers a competitive rate of £10.90/hour and pension.

There is opportunity to be full time or part time in this role.

You have the opportunity to work with an engaging organisation that looks after its people (their team and their visitors) and be able to make a difference, give back and be part of a team that love what they do.

You will also get free NTS membership, free parking, 20% off NTS holiday cottages and excellent holiday allowance 30days plus 7days at Christmas.

Xpress Recruitment is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy. All candidates registering with Xpress Recruitment will need to provide proof of identity, eligibility to work in UK and any relevant qualifications and references.

Are you a dynamic storyteller and passionate about creating memories?
Then you could be a Visitor Assistant at The Scotch Whisky Experience!

Proactively acknowledge every visitor with a warm, genuine welcome
Anticipate every visitor’s needs so that no-one is disappointed
Connect with each guest personally to make them feel valued
Uphold outstanding levels of service to overcome any problem or challenge
Ensure the customer experience you offer is never just fine, it’s always
excellent.

What about you?
A confident, outgoing storyteller with a natural character
An engaging communicator overflowing with a warmth of spirit
An inquisitive, keen learner with a thirst for knowledge
A passionate and enthusiastic presenter
A hardworking, flexible problem solver determined to raise the bar
A cheerful and outgoing host ready for a double measure of fun!

What will you be doing?
Enthusiastically leading tours, ensuring everyone has a memorable experience
Proactively welcoming customers and proudly promoting the whole attraction
Selling tickets from our box office and offering advice to customers
Selling and serving in our Gift Shop and Scotch whisky bar, giving
knowledgeable recommendations
General housekeeping to keep our bar, tour and shop looking their best!
You will be busy; on your feet all day and you will be learning lots! Our friendly and supportive team will look after you and encourage you to reach your full
potential through regular training and coaching.

What we offer:
Contract Full-time 36.25 hours per week
Hours Rota based, includes evenings and weekends
Salary £11.45 per hour, increasing to 11.90 with experience

What about us?
We are a team of friendly and passionate storytellers in a five-star visitor attraction. We exist to make the world fall in love with Scotch whisky! Why not have a look around our website, or to get a better feel for our team’s enthusiasm, expertise and personality, why not read our blog? Our visitor assistant team work together to connect everyone- from absolute beginners to connoisseurs- with Scotch whisky.

Interested?
Do you think you’d bring something special to our team? Then we’d love to
hear from you! Maybe you’ve worked in tourism before, or perhaps you
speak a foreign language. If so, your application will really stand out. But this
isn’t essential; just tell us why you’d love to join our team.

We can’t wait to meet you!

Distillery Ambassador Opportunity!

We currently have an exciting opportunity for a fun, energetic and enthusiastic individual to join our family as one of our prestigious Distillery Ambassadors at our Edinburgh Gin distillery. As a Distillery Ambassador, you will be a true advocate of Edinburgh Gin, delivering engaging distillery tours and tastings, virtual experiences, retail and event work.

We have a multi award-winning premium gin and our visitor experience is rated on Trip Advisor as one of Scotland’s top-rated tourist attractions! Our Edinburgh Gin Distillery can be found in the bustling Westend of its home city.

We’re looking for someone who is charismatic, can use their own initiative, has a positive work attitude and a strong focus on providing an exceptional visitor experience. Our experience offering is varied and our visitors come from all over the world to learn about Edinburgh Gin, so the ability to adapt and build rapport with different groups is essential. Typical daily tasks include hosting tours, guiding guests through in-person or online tastings, and assisting with the preparation and clearing down of experience spaces on-site.

Our Distillery Ambassador role is a varied and rewarding role so… if this type of role excites you then we’d love to hear from you!

The working pattern is flexible hours on an annualised basis and will include weekend and occasional evening work. We are an equal opportunities employer, however unfortunately due to the age of the premises the distillery is not currently wheelchair accessible. Candidates must also be able to demonstrate that they currently have the required documents to live and work in the UK.

Please note, this is an open application window therefore we may close the advert at any point depending on the candidate applications received, so our recommendation is that you apply early to ensure you do not miss out!

Relevance Instigator

Location: Iona House, Kirkcaldy
Working Hours: Full time
Contract Type: Fixed Term 18 months
Grade: FC07
Salary Range:£29,245 – £36,547
Reference:ON000414

We are OnFife and as Fife’s largest cultural organisation we specialise in making jaws drop, hearts warm, eyes light up and imaginations run wild.  We work with a huge range of partners, artists and creatives and our spaces are some of Fife’s favourite places. An ambitious leadership-oriented charity, we’re built on strong values, and those values make us who we are – Fearless, Inviting, Fair and Exciting.

We offer a local government pension scheme, generous holiday allowance and flexible working opportunities.  If you need to travel for work, we can provide pool cars if you’re near head office or pay travel expenses so you are not out of pocket! Along with this, you can also access discounted gym/swim memberships and other employee benefits.

The Role
Support the Head of Creative Development on developing and delivering a long-term commitment to community engagement based on the Of/By/For All Relevance approach, across three pilot areas in Fife; Kirkcaldy, Levenmouth and Lochgelly.

You will ensure communities are engaged and supported to have their say about services and issues that affect them, ensuring that their views and perspectives inform OnFife’s local service delivery. Identifying and acting on opportunities for meaningful engagement and co-creation that bring audiences into our venues and connect with our services.

You will lead a core team of staff through a 12-month Change Network Programme, leading on the development of a framework for community-based relevance using learnings from the programme and own experience to spread effective community involvement practices across OnFife.

This role is full-time, with occasional evening and weekend work as required. This is a rare opportunity to join a busy creative team and help shape and deliver an exciting service that is of, by and for the people of Fife.
You can view the full job description on our current vacancies page on our website.

About You
You understand the value of relevance-based work and are experienced in community engagement, youth and social work or audience development. You are used to multitasking in a creative project management environment, as well as creating exciting and engaging programmes that meet the needs of communities.

You’re an organised and motivating leader who enjoys working as part of a team as well as independently. You’re confident in communicating with a wide range of people and use a variety of tools to do so. As the remit of this role is spread between Kirkcaldy, Lochgelly and Levenmouth, you need to be able to travel to these locations regularly.

How to Apply
If you would like to find out more information about this role before applying, please contact Dan Brown, Head of Creative Development for an informal chat, contact details can be found in the advert on our current vacancies page on our website.

When you are ready to apply, please complete an Application Form and equal opportunities monitoring form and return these to the HR team. Application pack can be downloaded from our current vacancies page on our website.

The closing date for applications is 9am on Wednesday 12 April.
Interviews will take place on 18 & 20 April.
We are an equal opportunities employer.
We are proud to support the Armed Forces community and are committed to the Armed Forces Covenant.

Join our team as a Guest Services Team Member at the newly refurbished Loch Ness Centre!

Join us when we re-open as we walk guests through 500 million years of Loch Ness history. Our guests will be delving deeper into the real places, people, stories, and scientific research that has turned Nessie into an iconic Scottish legend.

As a member of our guest services team, you will deliver outstanding experiences for our guests ensuring their time with us is a memorable one.

Using your vibrant personality, you will greet and host our guests giving them the warmest of welcomes and a reason to return.

We are looking for team members with sparkle and passion, that are genuinely interested in providing high quality guest service and telling the stories of our unique attraction. A team playing attitude is a must.

In return, we will invest in your career. We offer:

Cash back on your medical costs
An additional day off for your birthday
Shopping discounts and much more…

Contract: Various contracts available. We will be offering year-round contracts by providing guaranteed hours outside of peak season.

We have the following permanent contracts available:

Contracts that have 30 guaranteed hours out of peak, with hours increasing to full time in peak season.
24-hour year-round contracts
12-hour year-round contracts

We will then also be recruiting several seasonal fixed term team members for those that only want to work over school holidays. Let us know in your application.

Salary:  £10.90 per hour

A full Job Description and details on how to apply can be downloaded from the Continuum Attractions website. 

We look forward to reviewing your application!

JOB PURPOSE

The Garden Trainee role at Threave Garden will provide the post-holders with development in a broad range of work-based practical horticultural skills over the course of a year spent as part of the team there. The training will be based primarily around the content of the RHS Level 2 Certificate in Practical Horticulture, but additional enhancements will also be available. Our aim is to take people who have undertaken a horticultural apprenticeship, an academic horticultural qualification or who have proven practical gardening experience and to develop them further into the rounded skilled, craft professional gardeners that the heritage garden sector, including the National Trust for Scotland, requires.

WHAT WE OFFER

The year at Threave comprises paid day-to-day work in the garden alongside practical training and assessments of the skills learnt. The RHS Level 2 training is supplemented by several assessed assignments designed to enhance trainee learning. This includes fortnightly plant identification tests, keeping a diary, completing plant profiles and participation in a study tour (visiting a number of gardens and nurseries to gain a greater appreciation of the variety a career in horticulture can provide) from which a report is requested.

The Garden Trainees are overseen by our teaching staff of Gardener Instructors, seasoned experts in their fields who have worked in a wide range of gardens themselves. Each Instructor is responsible for a different area of the garden: the grounds (lawns, hedges, herbaceous borders, woody plants, alpines, hard landscapes, aquatic, and bog), the walled garden and the glasshouses. The Garden Trainee will work in each of these areas, moving between them on a rota basis, to ensure in-depth training across the seasons. Trainees will work alongside the Gardener Instructors, other garden staff and volunteers, receiving hands-on practical tuition. Study and assignments will be completed largely in their own time.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES

While in the garden the Garden Trainee will be formally line managed by the Head Gardener and will be expected to take direction from any member of staff they are allocated to work alongside or for. The employment is for a fixed period of 1 year, subject to continued progression on the course with acceptable practical performance.
Trainees will be expected to take responsibility for their learning which will include out of hours study and/or project work.

ABOUT THE GARDEN

The School of Heritage Gardening, based at Threave Garden was formed in 1960, shortly after the National Trust for Scotland took ownership of the property. For over 60 years we have been teaching horticultural skills and techniques to aspiring professional gardeners. Former trainees have gone on to have successful careers in the industry, many choosing to stay with the Trust.

Threave Garden is perfectly suited for a range of training requirements, having been created over the years by students, for students, to accommodate a variety of horticultural situations. The garden has a large and diverse plant collection set within an extensive landscape and includes features such as a rock garden, fruit and vegetables, ponds, naturalised bulbs, woodland, orchard, nursery, lawns, herbaceous beds and borders and glasshouses. This purposefully broad array of garden landscapes, plants and features ensures that trainees are able to receive an extensive and well-rounded education, covering many aspects found in a career in horticulture.

Threave is an approved centre to deliver Royal Horticultural Society qualifications, one of only a handful across Scotland.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, EXPERIENCE & KNOWLEDGE

This is a development role intended to take the Garden Trainee to competent professional gardener level for the heritage garden sector through the vehicle of RHS Level 2 Certificate in Practical Horticulture. A horticultural apprenticeship at SVQ Level 2 or equivalent is preferred as a minimum, however places are also open to those with higher or academic horticultural qualifications or who have proven practical gardening experience. Prior achievement at SCQF Level 5 or above is required to underpin learning, as is a relevant level of computer literacy and ability to produce well-prepared diaries or reports and to communicate clearly with colleagues and visitors. Proof of the right to work in the UK is required.

In addition, we are looking for the following:

• Able to follow clear instructions competently
• Willing to work outside in all weathers and undertake physically demanding tasks
• Prior knowledge of relevant Health and Safety procedures would be useful, as would prior experience of horticultural machinery
• Able to use tools and equipment as required for the role
• Good people skills enabling strong relationships both externally and internally, to be built and maintained
• Enthusiasm for horticulture and commitment to completing the training year
• Able to work flexibly as part of a team
• Commitments to our customer service standards – our gardens are open to the public almost every day!

DIMENSIONS AND SCOPE OF JOB

The Garden Trainee
• will work as part of the garden team increasing their knowledge and experience of duties such as soil cultivation, weeding, establishing and maintaining plants and displays, propagation, turf care, using tools equipment and machinery, and much more
• will take responsibility for their learning which will include significant out of hours study and/or project work
• will be required to meet regularly with Trust staff for assessment or to discuss progress
• will take part in additional training offered by the Trust

The Garden Trainee
• will be based in Threave Garden but may be given opportunities to visit or work in other Trust gardens
• will work 5 days out of any 7, which may include weekends and evenings helping with events and other activities
• may, as confidence and skills develop over time, guide less-experienced volunteers or other Garden Trainees or Garden Apprentices
• will work closely with rest of the property team, and the area Gardens & Designed Landscapes Manager
• will be expected to interact daily with other staff, volunteers and visitors and may be asked to meet donors who are supporting the Trust with finance
• is not a budget holder but will be responsible for submitting any expense claims in good time and in line with allowances

The Purpose, Context, Key Responsibilities, and Person Specification reflect the requirements of the job at the time of issue. The Trust reserves the right to amend these with appropriate consultation and/or request the post-holder to undertake any activities that it believes to be reasonable within the broad scope of the job or his/her general abilities.