MATRON (NON-RESIDENTIAL)
THE ROLE An opportunity has arisen for a Non-Residential Matron (term time, part time, mainly afternoons) to join Craigleith Boarding House at Fettes College. Reporting directly to the Houseparents and working alongside the wider pastoral team, you will be required to fulfil several key responsibilities. The successful candidate will be a fully committed professional; an open and friendly team player contributing to a rewarding and vital part of the whole life of the House. Craigleith is the 6th form boarding house, opened in September 2007, and accommodates the whole of the Upper Sixth Form during their last year of school.
The Boarding House is run by the Houseparents who have overall responsibility for the health and welfare of the students in their charge. Along with the Assistant Houseparents, the House Manager and tutors, the House has two non-resident Matrons who play an important support role to the Houseparents in the day to day running of the House. This support includes the following main areas: • • • • • •
General care and welfare of the students Housekeeping duties Medical attention for the students Communication with parents/guardians Administrative tasks Communication with other school departments
Craigleith House provides students with the opportunity to learn and apply independent life skills and it is expected that the students will play a large part in helping to keep the House tidy by doing their own washing and ironing and generally taking greater responsibility for their own personal organisation. The main duties and responsibilities of the role are as follows but given the flexible nature of it, the following list cannot be described as exhaustive. Main Duties and Responsibilities General Care and Welfare of the Students • Following a duty period, the Matron should liaise with the Houseparent about any matters that have arisen. • The Houseparents will undertake a ‘mentoring’ role, where appropriate, and this will be supported by a weekly meeting with the Matron. More frequent, informal daily contact is obviously expected and encouraged; indeed, the relationship works best when contact is simply ‘on-going’, for example, popping into the office, handing over observations and information picked up. • During a duty period the Matron should assess and dispense medication if deemed appropriate and necessary, refer any student with a medical problem to the Medical Centre, having telephoned in advance. • The Matron must appreciate that, during a duty period and in the absence of the Houseparents, they are in loco parentis and fully responsible for the care and welfare of the students in the House. • Matron should be ready to assist at the beginning and end of a term. A visible presence at the start and end of terms is an important part of the ethos and assists with the establishing of relations with parents/guardians.
• The Matron should read and be fully familiar with the contents of the ‘House Handbook’, the ‘School Rules’ and the ‘Notes for Operational Staff’ (the Enchiridion). Housekeeping Duties The Matron is responsible for the general cleanliness, appearance and smooth running of the House and its facilities. The role includes: • Daily checks to ensure that students keep their study bedrooms tidy, change their bed linen regularly and perform their cleaning duties to the required standard; • Checks of the pantry/kitchen areas to ensure healthy standards are maintained; • Overseeing of whatever system of laundry prevails at a given moment; • Purchase/distribution of some cleaning materials; • Sewing/darning/repairing torn or worn clothing; • Reporting defects that require to be repaired or any issues of health and safety requiring attention to the relevant department (usually Estates but in serious cases the Bursar). Being part of Craigleith House, it is intended that students take some responsibility for the routine cleaning in their study bedrooms. The Matron is involved in this process and play a part in the support, checking and monitoring of the students’ efforts. Each House has its own cleaners who are part of the school wide cleaning team managed by the Head of Housekeeping. House cleaning staff will normally liaise with Matron on a day-to-day basis. In the event of disputes or problems, Matron will revert to the Head of Housekeeping to resolve them. All House maintenance needs are dealt with by the Estates Team by reporting through the maintenance electronic system, FRED. Matron will liaise directly with the Estates Department to follow up on approved work requests until they are completed. Medical Attention for Students The school operates a separate central Medical Centre which is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week and which is staffed by registered nurses supported by the school Medical Officer. The Medical Centre staff will advise the Matron on any medication to be administered in House. The Matron will keep and dispense such medication in House as and when they are required or during the daily in-House surgeries held for this purpose. In general terms the Matron will deal with only the low-level medical needs of the students in her care and all serious medical issues will be referred to the Medical Centre staff. The Matron will arrange for the students to attend medical or dental appointments and, where appropriate, accompany them to hospital or surgery.
Communication with Parents/Guardians On the understanding that the Houseparent must be kept fully informed of absences and requests that require their approval, the Matron may be required to act as the initial contact point for parents/guardians for the following approval: • Reporting in of Day Student absences • Any minor domestic issues for which a parent/guardian might need assistance from the Matron (replacement uniform, ordering a taxi for a day student for example) It may be appropriate that the Matron will be present when prospective parents/guardians are shown round the House or entertained in House at the beginning and end of terms or on other important House occasions. The Matron will be expected to always play a full role along with the other House staff in reassuring parents/guardians that their children are in safe and competent hands. This is especially important when dealing with the parents/guardians of new students. Administrative Tasks There are several important, if generally routine, administrative tasks the Matron is expected to perform, for example: • Recording all consultations, treatments given and doses of medicine dispensed in House; • Recording laundry lists and related student charging sheets; • Keeping financial records of all purchases made in connection with the execution of duties; • Maintaining maintenance request form files. Ordinarily, Matron is expected to attend meetings of matron staff with the Head of Pastoral Care at least twice a term. Communication with other School Departments The Matron will liaise with the Accounts Department as necessary in respect of purchases, extras and related financial transactions. They will liaise with the Estates Department on maintenance issues and with the Head of Housekeeping in respect to cleaning and house provisions matters. The Matron will liaise with the Medical Centre on all medical issues affecting students. Finally, the School’s trading subsidiary, Fettes Enterprises Limited runs summer lettings of school facilities including the boarding houses and the Matron will liaise with Fettes Enterprises at the end of term and the holidays to agree an inventory of the House before and after the lets.
PERSON SPECIFICATION Knowledge and Experience Essential • Communication skills must be exceptional • Highly organised individual • Domestic experience Skills and Attributes • Computer-literate • Regard for young people • Friendly but firm manner You will ideally hold a recognisable Childcare or Social Care Qualification or be willing and able to obtain this within a given timeframe with our support. It is a requirement that Matron is registered/registers with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). Continuing professional development will be encouraged and funds will be allocated to Matron for this purpose. BENEFITS The remuneration package will be competitive and will, to an extent, depend on the experience of the successful candidate. This is a non-residential job-share role, requiring 32.5 hours per week, term time only, covering mainly afternoons. Hours of work are: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesdays and Fridays – 2 pm to 7.30 pm. Thursday – 7.30 am to 2.30 pm (with a 30-minute unpaid lunch break) Saturday – 1 pm to 5 pm The Matron may be required to work additional hours or to be on call to suit the exigencies of the post, for which time off in lieu will be granted. When on call Matron needs to be within easy contact and distance of the House in case is required. In that event time off in lieu will be granted by arrangement with the Houseparent. Matron is expected to stay on at the end of term and to resume work before the start of a new term as required to stand the House down or set it up for the students returning from the holidays. This is not expected to require more than 2 days in each case.
The Employee is entitled to statutory paid holidays which must be taken during school holidays. Employees are not normally required to work during school holidays, apart from as described above. The school has two “Recommended Leave” weekends per term and Matron is not required to work these. You will be opted into the Fettes Trust Operational Staff Pension Scheme after 3 months service. This scheme is a money purchase one and full details of it and your options will be made available to you prior to your opt-in date. The College also had a matching scheme in operation up to 10%. Meals, whilst on duty, may be taken in the Dining Hall free of charge. Membership of the Health Club operated by the Trust’s trading subsidiary (Westwoods) is available as a taxable benefit. New staff at Fettes join a friendly and supportive team with a vibrant mixture of age and experience. We value every member of staff’s contribution to the life of the school. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships. APPLICATION PROCESS To apply please submit an Application Form (available from https://www.fettes.com/about-us/vacancies), your CV and a covering letter outlining your suitability for the role via email to recruitment@fettes.com, along with the contact details of 2 referees or via www.TES.com. If you would like further information prior to applying for this role, please contact Mrs Carolyn Harrison, Deputy Head (Pastoral) at cm.harrison@fettes.com. An offer of employment will be subject to two satisfactory references being obtained from your referees and a clean report being obtained on you from the Disclosure Scotland PVG Scheme in view of the contact you will have with children during your normal duties. Closing date for applications is Friday, 12th August 2022 at 1 pm. We are keen to welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds into our staff body. If you would like a friendly conversation with an employee who identifies as an ethnic minority, please feel free to contact Sara Medel Jiménez (s.medeljimenez@fettes.com) who will be happy to share her experience of Fettes.
ABOUT FETTES Fettes College is a leading HMC co-educational boarding and day school close to the heart of Edinburgh. It has a strong tradition of academic, sporting and cultural excellence underpinned by outstanding pastoral care. Fettes opened its doors in 1870 and became fully co-educational in 1980: it is now an independent school of some 800 students. There are 592 students in the Senior School (13-18 years) and 208 students in the Preparatory School (7-13 years). The academic staff in the College consists of the Head and 92 full-time members of the Common Room. Our Prep School shares the same site and consists of a further 29 full-time teaching staff. The school stands on a magnificent site of 100 acres but still within walking distance of Edinburgh’s city centre. The historic main building holds the Chapel, Library, the English, Classics and History Departments as well as the Medical Centre and two boarding houses. A large purpose-built teaching block (the Spens Building) houses Art, Modern Languages, Mathematics, Economics, Geography, and Music. The Theatre, Science Laboratories and Dining Hall are adjacent. The Preparatory School and seven further boarding houses (including Craigleith a purpose-built U6th House) are also on the campus. Our sports facilities (including extensive playing fields, two all-weather pitches and a private Health Club) are excellent. As well as our teaching staff we employ over 220 Operational Staff across many departments, including Estates, Security, Housekeeping, Finance, Admissions and Marketing with a pervading sense of community amongst staff, students and parents/guardians alike. THE AIMS OF THE COLLEGE
Fettes College aims to nurture the individual while fostering a happy, well- ordered and caring community with strong family values at its core. To this end, we will do our utmost to ensure our students: • Receive the highest possible quality of education within a boarding environment. • Feel safe, valued, have a sense of personal worth and are thoughtful and considerate of the needs of others, possessing a willingness to take on responsibility. • Develop their self-confidence, integrity, emotional resilience, loyalty, good manners and humour, leadership skills and teamwork. • Value a sense of community and service, and develop a clear sense of right and wrong, equipping them for life beyond Fettes. • Are provided with equal opportunities regardless of gender, sexuality, ethnic origin or religion. • Are encouraged to stretch and challenge themselves in everything they undertake.