Head Housekeeper

Full time

Permanent, live-in (where required)

Location address: Abernethy, Nethy Bridge, Inverness-shire, PH25 3ED

Start date: March 2026

This is a fantastic opportunity to live and work in the Scottish Highlands and be part of a Christian Community providing excellent hospitality.

Small, routine, things can have a big impact Our guests' experience is hugely shaped by the hard work of our housekeeping team in creating welcoming spaces, and keeping them looking great day-in, day-out.

As Head Housekeeper you will oversee all aspects of the organising and delivery of excellent housekeeping services within our buildings, and you will develop and lead our housekeeping team. As a Christian, you will be a role-model for the housekeeping team and wider Centre staff, having a discipling and mentoring input into their lives.

You will have the opportunity to get involved in the wider ministry of the Centre, including our evening sessions with kids, and ministry teams serving on one of our events weeks and weekends (e.g. playing music, organising games / sport, etc).

Who we are

Founded in 1971, Abernethy is a ministry that combines outdoor activity, residential experience and Christian team witness. Our vision is: 'Seeing Lives Transformed'.

The team as Abernethy are Christians, and together our mission is:

• Through the outdoors we provide challenge and adventure
• Through community we create belonging and see growth
• Through hospitality we nurture wellbeing
• Through witness we provoke curiosity
• In all things, we live the life to which Jesus has called us

Who we are looking for

We are looking for a committed Christian, with a heart for service, evangelism and Christian discipleship, who is passionate about great hospitality. You will be overseeing the delivery of an excellent housekeeping service for our guests – excellent in terms of the quality of the service, being well planned and smooth running, being a team that works well together and has fun, and in terms of safety.

To achieve this, you will have a good eye for detail and a warm, friendly and collaborative approach. You will have aptitude in planning and organising, be adaptable in the face of changing plans and a good problem solver, work in a calm and efficient manner under pressure to set deadlines, enjoy working in an active and fast paced job, and be willing to be flexible and go the extra mile.

You will be committed to training and helping our Gap Year team in learning new skills in housekeeping. You will have a heart to be getting alongside all your team members to help disciple them in their Christian faith to make their time at Abernethy one that will be life changing.

Key roles

• Lead, train, motivate and mentor our housekeeping team, General Assistants, Gap Year team and volunteers.
• Plan team shift patterns around the needs of our guests and staff.
• Ensure all the guest accommodation, facilities and public areas are maintained at an excellent level of cleanliness and repair.
• Manage and take full part in the smooth running of changeovers at the centre, timeshare and self-catering accommodation, ensuring areas are ready in the time allocated.
• Maintain an efficient, hygienic, and safe laundry.
• Organise and manage the housekeeping stores to ensure we have enough equipment, cleaning fluids and uniforms for the Housekeeping and Kitchen teams to operate.
• Keep up to date with the paperwork and record keeping associated with housekeeping.
• Accomplish deep cleaning targets set during close-down and maintenance periods.

Qualifications and Experience

• A mature and growing Christian faith
• Have good Word, Excel and Outlook IT skills
• Ability to develop and maintain good working relationships with team members, while ensuring delivery of a high standard of work.

We would also love you to have

• Experience in house keeping
• Driving license
• People management experience
• Experience of managing budgets

What we can offer you

• Monthly salary
• Full-board single accommodation provided, if required
• Paid annual leave (30 days per annum, inclusive of bank holidays)
• Use of Centre facilities including outdoor equipment.
• Opportunities to take an active role within the life of our local church and Christian youth work
• Living as part of a vibrant Christian community in a beautiful part of Scotland
• Opportunity for personal training and development
• Weekly Team Fellowship on a Wednesday evening
• Very favourable rates for family on most Abernethy holidays and camps
• Participation in our annual 3-day Team Gathering
• Easy access to the local area including the Cairngorm mountains, river Spey and the Moray coast – a fantastic outdoor playground

Good to Know

It is a Genuine Occupational Requirement that the holder of this post is a practising Christian whose lifestyle is consistent with the values and doctrine of the Christian faith.

As part of our commitment to safeguarding, the successful applicant will be required to become a member of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Scheme and the appointment will be subject to a satisfactory PVG Scheme Disclosure.

We cannot accept overseas applications for this role unless you have the right to work in the UK. If you would like to volunteer with us then please refer to our International Volunteer page.

Interested?

Please prayerfully consider whether this role may be right for you. For an informal chat about the role please contact the Centre Director, Stu Newland, on during office hours. If you feel you are the person we are looking for, please complete the on-line application form.

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