Gardener jobs in Portishead

Assistant Gardener (Maternity cover- fixed term)
The Bishop’s Palace, Wells, Somerset
30 Hours per week
Salary: £20,982 (FTE £25,877pa)

The Bishop’s Palace is a 13th century medieval palace and has been home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells for over 800 years. The Palace is surrounded by a breath-taking moat, drawbridge and iconic gatehouse. It is a beautiful and inspirational place to work. As a charitable organisation our purpose is to conserve The Bishop’s Palace.

Join the team caring for one of Somerset’s most remarkable historic gardens. The 800-year-old Bishop’s Palace is set within 14 acres of RHS Partner Gardens and welcomes more than 140,000 visitors each year. As an independent charity, The Palace Trust works to conserve and share this special place for everyone.

This is an exciting opportunity for a practical, enthusiastic gardener to help our beautiful and varied gardens thrive. Working with the Garden team, you will care for the grounds, support our dedicated volunteers and help create a memorable experience for visitors. The role is fixed-term maternity cover for approximately 12 months from November 2026.

What you’ll do

· Care for lawns, borders, trees, shrubs, greenhouse plants, kitchen gardens and garden features to an exceptional standard

· Work alongside our volunteers and contribute to established and new garden projects

· Use and maintain machinery safely and follow good health and safety practice

· Help keep the gardens welcoming in all conditions and engage positively with visitors and event attendees

About you
You will bring at least one year’s practical gardening experience, good knowledge of plants and kitchen gardening, and experience of working with volunteers. You will enjoy working as part of a team, take pride in doing a job well and offer excellent service to visitors. You will have a horticultural qualification, heritage or visitor-attraction experience and experience of working with volunteers.

If you would like to learn more, you can find the full job description on the Bishop's Palace website.

To Apply: Closing date for this role is 12noon on Wednesday 28 October 2026.

An application form needs to be completed for this role - this will be sent when you apply.

Interviews will be held at The Bishop’s Palace on Wednesday 4 November 2026

The anticipated start date for this role will be mid-late November 2026. As a fixed term, Maternity cover role we anticipate the role being for 12 months.

Pay: £20,982.00 per year

Benefits:

• Company events
• Company pension
• Employee discount
• Enhanced maternity leave
• Health & wellbeing programme
• Life insurance
• Paid volunteer time
• Sick pay

Ability to commute/relocate:

• Wells BA5 2PD: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (preferred)

Experience:

• Gardening: 1 year (required)

Work authorisation:

• United Kingdom (required)

Work Location: In person