House Manager

Our visionWe are working to a future where every familywith a seriously ill child in hospital can staytogether, close to their child’s hospitalbedside.Our missionWe provide welcoming, comfortable ‘Homesfrom Home’, to keep families together whenthey have a sick child in hospital and kind,caring staff to support themPassionate
We believe passionately that
families with a seriously ill child
in hospital should be together

Supportive
We care for families when they
really need us and we support our
staff to be the best they can be

Togetherness
We work together to make
a difference

Proud
We are proud to be able to welcome
all families that need us to our clean
and comfortable ‘Homes from Home’

We are open, honest and transparent in everything we do.
We spend our money responsibly ensuring that families are
always at the heart of our work

Our valuesTrustworthyOur ‘Homes
from Home’

We have ten ‘Homes from Home’across England that can support 148families a night. In 2024/25 weprovided 48,062 nights in our homes,supporting 3,203 families.98%

Our staff surveyof our colleagues are proud towork at The Sick Children's Trustof our colleagues said that thework of the charity inspires themto do a good job100%of our colleagues enjoy working atThe Sick Children's Trust100%We supported3,203 familiesWe provided48,062nights of accommodationOccupancy rates91%in our ‘Homes from Home’Average travel time82 minutesfrom home to hospitalOur impact 24/25Job title:

House Manager

Hours:

Days:

35 hours per week

Monday-Friday

Location:

Crawford House, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne

Reports to:

Operations Manager

Role purpose:

Crawford House supports families with a sick child being treated at Royal Victoria Infirmary by giving them a welcoming
and supportive place to stay just minutes from their seriously ill child’s hospital bedside.
The House Manager has full accountability of the management of Crawford House and the efficient day-to-day running,
ensuring rooms are allocated appropriately and families are supported. The House Manager is required to implement and
comply with our policies including health and safety, equal opportunities, safeguarding, data protection and security
guidelines together with hospital policies, if applicable.

Job DescriptionFamilies

To work in conjunction with the hospital medical teams to prioritise the allocation of rooms for families
Ensure that families are welcomed and are allocated appropriate rooms, and that family registrations and inductions are carried
out sensitively and on time
To ensure family information is kept confidential
To ensure that the safety and welfare of families and staff are high priority at all times through guidelines and regular checks
To be sensitive, respectful and understanding of families, recognising their emotional, physical and material needs
To be responsible for the security of the house and convey this to staff, families, visitors and contractors
Address any concerns relating to a family and where necessary refer to the operations team
 Liaise with families regarding the duration of their stay and arrangements when leaving the house

Maintenance of the ‘Home from Home’

To have a good understanding of the house lease agreements
To take full responsibility for the management and control of the maintenance of Crawford House premises and equipment
To ensure that the property remain a clean, safe, hygienic, comfortable and well-presented environment, meeting the high
standard that is expected at all times
To plan, prepare and follow a maintenance and redecoration programme, adhering to brand guidelines and budget constraints,
and with the approval of the Operations Team
Ensure maintenance and contractors work safely and risks to families are minimised

Key Tasks and Responsibilities
House Administration and Day-to-Day Procedures

To use initiative and to be proactive in time management, ensuring cost effective use of the working hours and resources, developing
the role, meeting objectives and development plans in order to enhance future progression
To build strong, professional relationships with the hospital staff and all related departments, communicating effectively at all levels
Ensure maximum occupancy rates
To have full accountability of all administration
To ensure that all documentation is accurate, complete and available to satisfy audit requirements
To complete and present mandatory reports with accuracy and working within strict time constraints
Respond to and address any unplanned incidents as appropriate
To recognise that the role will often be lone working and will involve hands on domestic duties to provide support for families. This
will include washing, ironing and making beds up, all routine checks etc.
To assist when the Crawford Team need help with domestic or any other duties, pulling together as a complete, effective team
Comply with General Data Protection Regulations

Staffing

Responsible for the day-to-day management of a small team
To be involved in the recruitment, induction and ongoing training of staff
To be competent in managing and motivating staff, establishing a high performing, effective working team
To conduct the annual appraisal and reviews for staff
To manage appropriate staffing levels without compromising standards during annual leave and sickness absence within the
constraints of your budget

Key Tasks and ResponsibilitiesBudget Management

To have total accountability for the compilation and management of the annual budget achieving financial efficiency
Work with the Operations and Finance Teams on budgetary issues
To analyse monthly management accounts and to act accordingly, reviewing all income and expenditure items regularly

Income Generation and Management

To lead and deliver income generation in order to meet financial efficiency and budgetary objectives
To raise awareness (primarily locally) in line with our charity campaigns
To be a positive ambassador for The Sick Children’s Trust, supporting families, organisations and anyone that expresses
an interest in fundraising for us
To keep the Fundraising Team updated at all times with any ‘Home from Home’ fundraising activities

Other Responsibilities:

To assist, as and when required, in the planning or running of other ‘Homes from Home’
The duties, as scheduled above, are not exhaustive and the House Manager must be flexible to carry out any other reasonable
duties that may arise within the broad remit of the post

Key Tasks and ResponsibilitiesHealth and Safety Management

Ensure that health and safety is always a primary consideration in the running of Crawford House
To have a thorough understanding and adherence to our Health and Safety policy
To take responsibility for health and safety in the ‘Home from Home’ including the provision relating to first aid, fire safety,
COSHH, security, etc.
To achieve compliance with statutory standards as a minimum
To produce and continually update meaningful risk assessments
To ensure all standard operating procedures, competencies and staff induction plans are completed and adhered to
To make and maintain accurate records, ensuring that all health and safety risk control checks are carried out

Policies and Values

To implement, demonstrate knowledge of and maintain all our organisational policies and procedures
To ensure team and house activities adhere to our core values of support, commitment, excellence and sustainability
To maintain excellent professional standards with no compromises
To comply with the personal and professional boundaries set by The Sick Children’s Trust

Key Tasks and ResponsibilitiesSkills, Abilities and Personal Attributes

The ability to organise, plan and prioritise the workload, which may be pressured at times
Ability to communicate effectively, both in writing and verbally, with good composition skills, accuracy, professionalism, in a
business-like manner and to a high standard
Literacy and numeracy skills to enable accurate and appropriate completion of administration and budgetary tasks
Ability to manage and lead a small cohesive and effective team
Effective team member with can-do attitude prepared to help with menial tasks as required
Effective and calm problem solver (including crisis management), able to assess key factors quickly and able to make sound
decisions recognising when to be pragmatic and when strict adherence to rules is necessary
Ability to lead in the establishment and maintenance of standards in the provision of service and compliance of regulations
Ability to work autonomously but has the judgement to recognise when to refer to or consult with Operations Team or
appropriate colleagues
To have a general understanding of relevant health and safety guidelines and can follow health and safety procedure
To be of a personable nature, approachable, sensitive and empathetic while having the ability to remain in control and
professional at all times
Resilient and empathic when managing difficult situations e.g. family bereavement
Ability to establish and maintain a good rapport and working relationship with colleagues in The Sick Children’s Trust and with
hospital and contract staff
Ability to project manage refurbishment programmes as directed by Operations Team
IT skills – Outlook, Word and Excel
Proactive approach and commitment to fundraising

Person SpecificationExperience  (Essential)

Experience of working in a role requiring a good rapport with colleagues or stakeholders

Experience  (Desirable)

Experience of managing a small team or service
Experience of implementing health and safety policies and procedures

Other Requirements

The role is ‘Home from Home’ based however occasional travel is required (for team meetings, house visits or training)
Ability to work occasional evenings, weekends or overnight stays (due to travel, attendance at an event or due to an emergency)
Commitment to our policies and values
Satisfactory enhanced DBS check

Person Specification35 hour working week
Discretionary hybrid working
25 days annual leave plus your birthday off
Time off in lieu policy
Auto-enrolment into a pension scheme at 3 months service
Commitment to development and training
Family friendly policies (flexible working and time off for
dependants)

Commitment to your
wellbeing including:

Post-probation
benefits:

Employee Assistance
Programme
Eyecare Voucher
Flu Vaccination
Life Assurance

Bonus day off in December
Enhanced pension option
Permanent health insurance
Access to Digicare+
Access to Medicash
Interest free travel loan

BenefitsThe Sick Children's Trust strives to be an Equal Opportunity employer. We are committed to developing a diverse and

 inclusive organisation, where people feel supported and valued to be the best they can be.

We welcome applications from people from all sections of the community, irrespective of race, ethnicity, gender, age,

disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief.

If you require any reasonable adjustments to apply for this role to the best of your ability such as an accessible venue for

interview, please let us know your requirements and we will make every effort to provide assistance.

Equal OpportunityTo apply please send your CV and a covering letter setting out why you are suitable for the role and how you meet
the requirements set out in the job description and person specification to: recruitment@sickchildrenstrust.org

The closing date for the role of House Manager is 30 January 2026

We will be considering applications as they are submitted so early application is advised

For further details about The Sick Children’s Trust please visit our website sickchildrenstrust.org

How to apply