Receptionist & Support Services Administrator

Receptionist & Support Services Administrator
Location: Caldecott House, Smeeth, Ashford, Kent, TN25 6SP
Hours: Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.00pm
Salary: £12.71 per hour Holiday: 20 days per annum plus Bank Holidays Job share: We are happy to consider applications from candidates interested in a job share
About The Caldecott Foundation At The Caldecott Foundation, everything we do centres around helping children and young people build a brighter future.
We are a leading provider of therapeutic care and education, supporting children and young people who have not had the best start in life through residential care, fostering and education. Our services are underpinned by the Caldecott Relational Model, which places nurturing and reparative relationships at the heart of our approach.
We are now looking for a friendly, organised and adaptable Receptionist & Support Services Administrator to join our team at Caldecott House in Smeeth.
About the role You will be the first point of contact for visitors and callers to Caldecott House, helping us provide a welcoming, professional and friendly environment.
However, this is much more than a traditional reception role.
Our reception is not continuously busy, so an important part of the position is providing practical and administrative support across our Support Services teams. This could include helping colleagues in HR, Training, Finance and Fundraising, assisting with events, preparing meeting rooms and generally helping Caldecott House run smoothly.
No two days will necessarily look the same. We are looking for someone who enjoys variety, notices what needs doing and is happy to get stuck in and help.
What you'll be doing:
Your responsibilities will include:
Welcoming visitors to Caldecott House and ensuring they are directed appropriately
Answering incoming telephone calls and dealing with enquiries in a professional and friendly manner
Managing general reception duties and incoming and outgoing post
Providing general administrative support to our Support Services teams, including HR, Finance, Training and Fundraising
Booking and preparing meeting and training rooms
Ensuring rooms are clean, tidy and ready for colleagues, visitors and events
Helping to organise internal meetings, training sessions and fundraising activities
Ordering lunches, refreshments and other supplies when required
Monitoring supplies such as refreshments, milk and catering items and replenishing these when needed
Occasionally purchasing supplies locally when something is required at short notice
Supporting our Fundraising team with general administration and fundraising activities
Helping to prepare for our regular Friday BNI event, including setting up rooms and organising refreshments
Clearing and cleaning meeting rooms following events
Washing tablecloths and helping ensure equipment and facilities are ready for the next event
Carrying out general administrative tasks such as photocopying, scanning, filing and preparing paperwork
Providing practical assistance to colleagues across Caldecott House
Undertaking other reasonable duties to support the effective running of Support Services
About you This role would suit someone who is naturally helpful, organised and practical. You don't necessarily need to have worked in an identical role before. What's important to us is that you have the right attitude and are comfortable moving between reception, administration and practical tasks during the working day.
We'd particularly like to hear from you if you:
Have a warm, friendly and professional manner
Are confident speaking to people both face-to-face and on the telephone
Have good organisational and administrative skills
Have good written and verbal communication skills
Are comfortable using Microsoft Office, including Outlook and Word
Can organise your own workload and manage competing priorities
Have good attention to detail
Are reliable and able to maintain confidentiality
Enjoy being part of a team and helping colleagues
Are flexible and willing to turn your hand to different tasks
Are happy undertaking the practical aspects of the role, including setting up and clearing meeting rooms and events
Share our commitment to putting the needs of children and young people at the heart of what we do
Job share applications are welcome!
We recognise that full-time hours will not suit everybody and are therefore very happy to consider a job-share arrangement.
We anticipate that this could be divided broadly as:
Job Share 1: Monday, Tuesday and part of Wednesday
Job Share 2: Part of Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
The precise Wednesday arrangements can be agreed with the successful candidates.
Because reception needs to be covered throughout the working week, job-share colleagues would need to work closely together. We would also need both colleagues to have some flexibility to provide additional cover for one another during planned annual leave and, where reasonably possible, other absences.
Please tell us in your application if you are interested in the full-time position or a job share and, if applying for a job share, which days you would prefer to work.
Why join us?
You'll be joining an organisation with a long history of helping children and young people build a better future.
Our Support Services teams play an important role behind the scenes. Although you won't be providing residential care yourself, the work you do will help the colleagues and services that support our children and young people every day.
In addition to your annual leave and Bank Holiday entitlement, we offer:
Pension scheme with up to 5% employer contribution
Health cashback scheme (covering you and up to four children)
Employee Assistance Programme for wellbeing support
Access to retail, food and entertainment discounts
Cycle‑to‑work scheme and will‑writing service
Free onsite parking
Refer‑a‑friend bonus scheme
Safeguarding
The Caldecott Foundation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all colleagues to share this commitment.
All appointments are subject to satisfactory references and an Enhanced DBS check in line with safer recruitment guidelines.
If you're organised, approachable, practical and looking for a varied role where you can make a genuine contribution to the work of a children's charity, we'd love to hear from you.
The closing date for this position is: Friday 30th October 2026

Employment type
Employee

Work arrangement
No