Job summary
Join Our Outstanding Hospice!
Were seeking an experienced and capable Housekeeping Team Leader
to lead our dedicated team and ensure the delivery of a consistently clean,
safe and welcoming environment for everyone who walks through our doors. Youll
play a vital role in supporting patient comfort, infection prevention, and the
smooth running of our hospice.
This is a hands-on leadership role that requires a deep understanding
of housekeeping standards alongside strong people management skills. Youll
oversee daily operations across all areas of our hospice site including a
15-bed inpatient unit, day hospice, and non-clinical areas and lead a small
team through changing needs, high standards, and occasional challenges.
Youll need the confidence to guide others, the experience to solve
problems calmly, and the motivation to keep standards high even under
pressure.
Main duties of the job
Main Duties:
- Lead, supervise and support the housekeeping team to deliver consistently high standards in all clinical and non-clinical areas.
- Use your expert housekeeping knowledge to ensure compliance with COSHH, infection control, and health and safety regulations.
- Monitor quality through audits, inspections and regular checks, taking action to maintain service standards.
- Manage staff rotas, annual leave, and absence to ensure effective cover and continuity.
- Build a positive team culture, offering coaching, guidance and support to individuals and the wider team.
- Address and resolve team issues proactively and sensitively, including performance concerns or conflict.
- Support staff development through induction, training, and appraisal.
- Liaise with clinical and operational teams to respond to cleaning needs, including specialist requests (e.g. barrier nursing).
- Oversee ordering and stock control to ensure availability and value for money.
About us
Ashgate Hospice, based in North Derbyshire, offers free palliative and end of life care for adults with life-limiting or incurable illnesses, including cancer, neurological diseases, and advanced heart, kidney, and lung conditions. Last year, we cared for over 2,400 people. Our aim is to support our patients by keeping them informed, managing their symptoms, and improving their quality of life from diagnosis onwards.
We also provide vital support to the people who are important to them, offering practical assistance and emotional support, including bereavement services.
We're more than a care provider. We're a campaigner for sustainable end of life care funding in the UK, and we continually invest in our services and workforce.
Our
values are at the heart of everything we do. We are compassionate, a team, respectful, open, and inclusive.
We strive to
create a workplace thats inclusive, happy, safe, and supportive and our team seems to
agree! In fact, 86% of staff would recommend Ashgate Hospice as an employer.
We know how important wellbeing and work-life balance are, which is why we're open to flexible work arrangements, including job sharing.
As part of our
team, youll have access to training opportunities to help you grow, both
personally and professionally. Whether you want to develop in your current role
or explore new career paths, well support you every step of the way. To find out more, visit our website or check out our social media
channels.
Job description
Job responsibilities
As Housekeeping Team Lead, you will lead the delivery of safe,
high-quality, and person-centred housekeeping services across all hospice
settings, including clinical and non-clinical. You will be a visible and
proactive leader, responsible for maintaining the highest standards of
cleanliness, infection prevention, and environmental presentation, ensuring a
welcoming and dignified space for patients, visitors, volunteers, and staff
The role involves the day-to-day line management of the housekeeping
team, overseeing all housekeeping standards, scheduling, training, and resource
management to ensure a safe, clean, and welcoming environment for patients,
families, visitors, volunteers, and staff.
The post holder will ensure compliance with infection prevention
protocols and promote the hospices values of compassion, dignity, and
excellence in service delivery.
The post holder will be a visible leader, capable of developing the team and building strong working relationships across departments. They will be adaptable, organised and capable of balancing operational demands with effective staff support and performance oversight.
What youll bring:
- Significant
experience working in housekeeping or cleaning services, with a strong grasp of
industry standards, infection control, and best practice.
- Experience in
supervising or managing a team, ideally in a healthcare, care or hospitality
environment.
- The ability to
lead a team through change and challenge with confidence, empathy, and
fairness.
- Excellent
interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to give feedback and
handle sensitive issues constructively.
- Strong
organisational skills and the ability to plan and prioritise in a busy
environment.
- IT literacy and
familiarity with rota or reporting systems.
- A values-driven
approach, demonstrating care, respect and professionalism in all that you do.
Desirable
but not essential:
- Experience supporting audits or inspections (e.g. CQC).
- Training or experience in coaching
and mentoring.
- Familiarity with digital systems
such as Cascade, Outlook, Teams or Excel.
- Prior experience working in a hospice or
palliative care environment
Job description
Job responsibilities
As Housekeeping Team Lead, you will lead the delivery of safe,
high-quality, and person-centred housekeeping services across all hospice
settings, including clinical and non-clinical. You will be a visible and
proactive leader, responsible for maintaining the highest standards of
cleanliness, infection prevention, and environmental presentation, ensuring a
welcoming and dignified space for patients, visitors, volunteers, and staff
The role involves the day-to-day line management of the housekeeping
team, overseeing all housekeeping standards, scheduling, training, and resource
management to ensure a safe, clean, and welcoming environment for patients,
families, visitors, volunteers, and staff.
The post holder will ensure compliance with infection prevention
protocols and promote the hospices values of compassion, dignity, and
excellence in service delivery.
The post holder will be a visible leader, capable of developing the team and building strong working relationships across departments. They will be adaptable, organised and capable of balancing operational demands with effective staff support and performance oversight.
What youll bring:
- Significant
experience working in housekeeping or cleaning services, with a strong grasp of
industry standards, infection control, and best practice.
- Experience in
supervising or managing a team, ideally in a healthcare, care or hospitality
environment.
- The ability to
lead a team through change and challenge with confidence, empathy, and
fairness.
- Excellent
interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to give feedback and
handle sensitive issues constructively.
- Strong
organisational skills and the ability to plan and prioritise in a busy
environment.
- IT literacy and
familiarity with rota or reporting systems.
- A values-driven
approach, demonstrating care, respect and professionalism in all that you do.
Desirable
but not essential:
- Experience supporting audits or inspections (e.g. CQC).
- Training or experience in coaching
and mentoring.
- Familiarity with digital systems
such as Cascade, Outlook, Teams or Excel.
- Prior experience working in a hospice or
palliative care environment
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- NVQ Level 2 in Cleaning or equivalent
- Knowledge and experience of Infection Control standards
- Working knowledge and experience of COSHH and manual handling procedures
- Basic Health & Safety awareness or training (e.g. risk assessments, safe systems of work)
Desirable
- Level 3 Team Leader/Supervisor or equivalent leadership training
- Formal COSHH training certificate
- Previous Training in the correct manual handling technique
- Formal Health & Safety qualification or Risk Assessment training
Experience
Essential
- Proven track record in managing a cleaning or housekeeping team, ideally in a healthcare or hospitality environment.
- Experience in staff rostering, absence monitoring, and conducting performance reviews.
- Experience with procurement or stock systems.
- Understanding of the importance of service improvement, and ability to support change in a team setting
- Willingness to engage in and contribute to changes that improve service delivery and team dynamics
- Ability to lead by example, build rapport, and motivate a team.
- Effective communication and interpersonal skills, including tact and empathy when dealing with patients and families.
- Strong organisational and time management skills.
- Ability to lead during periods of change and maintain team morale under pressure.
- Confidence to give and receive constructive feedback to support performance improvement.
- Confidence in using Microsoft Office and staff systems such as rostering and time management software (e.g. Cascade or similar).
- Able to work independently and take initiative while maintaining oversight of a busy and varied workload.
- Able to maintain high standards under pressure and ensure compliance with regulatory standards.
Desirable
- Experience in a hospice, care, or healthcare setting.
- Experience in quality audits or inspections.
- Experience of leading service or process improvements in a housekeeping or facilities team
- Experience of implementing change or supporting others through change initiatives
- Ability to mentor, train and develop staff
- Skilled in managing change and improving team culture and morale
- Ability to analyse service delivery and implement improvements for efficiency or quality.
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Willingness to undertake further training relevant to the role.
- Flexibility to work additional hours on occasion to meet operational needs.
- Commitment to the values and mission of the hospice.
- Physical ability to undertake manual tasks and move around the site.
- Emotional resilience and ability to work around patients receiving end of life care.
- Commitment to maintaining confidentiality and upholding professional standards at all times.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- NVQ Level 2 in Cleaning or equivalent
- Knowledge and experience of Infection Control standards
- Working knowledge and experience of COSHH and manual handling procedures
- Basic Health & Safety awareness or training (e.g. risk assessments, safe systems of work)
Desirable
- Level 3 Team Leader/Supervisor or equivalent leadership training
- Formal COSHH training certificate
- Previous Training in the correct manual handling technique
- Formal Health & Safety qualification or Risk Assessment training
Experience
Essential
- Proven track record in managing a cleaning or housekeeping team, ideally in a healthcare or hospitality environment.
- Experience in staff rostering, absence monitoring, and conducting performance reviews.
- Experience with procurement or stock systems.
- Understanding of the importance of service improvement, and ability to support change in a team setting
- Willingness to engage in and contribute to changes that improve service delivery and team dynamics
- Ability to lead by example, build rapport, and motivate a team.
- Effective communication and interpersonal skills, including tact and empathy when dealing with patients and families.
- Strong organisational and time management skills.
- Ability to lead during periods of change and maintain team morale under pressure.
- Confidence to give and receive constructive feedback to support performance improvement.
- Confidence in using Microsoft Office and staff systems such as rostering and time management software (e.g. Cascade or similar).
- Able to work independently and take initiative while maintaining oversight of a busy and varied workload.
- Able to maintain high standards under pressure and ensure compliance with regulatory standards.
Desirable
- Experience in a hospice, care, or healthcare setting.
- Experience in quality audits or inspections.
- Experience of leading service or process improvements in a housekeeping or facilities team
- Experience of implementing change or supporting others through change initiatives
- Ability to mentor, train and develop staff
- Skilled in managing change and improving team culture and morale
- Ability to analyse service delivery and implement improvements for efficiency or quality.
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Willingness to undertake further training relevant to the role.
- Flexibility to work additional hours on occasion to meet operational needs.
- Commitment to the values and mission of the hospice.
- Physical ability to undertake manual tasks and move around the site.
- Emotional resilience and ability to work around patients receiving end of life care.
- Commitment to maintaining confidentiality and upholding professional standards at all times.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
