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Salaried Horticultural Training Placements for horticultural college graduates and new entrants

Employer
The MacRobert Trust
Location
Royal Deeside and Cairngorms National Park, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Salary
National Minimum Wage
Closing date
9 May 2021

Job Details

The MacRobert Trust supports Horticultural Education through its extensive charitable agenda. Our Horticultural Training Scheme accepts up to six trainees who are paid a salary and provided with accommodation. Training placements run for both one and two years and applications are now invited for four trainees to start in mid-September.

A programme of full-time, practical hands-on training, craft-skill development and proficiency, and machinery use and maintenance is undertaken whilst trainees assist our professional gardens team in the maintenance and development of the Trust’s ornamental and productive horticultural training gardens. Additionally, full training and assessment towards the achievement of the RHS Level 2 Certificate in Practical Horticulture is funded and undertaken in-house throughout the year. Training and assessment in pesticide application PA1/PA6 and chainsaw operation CS30 is also carried out allowing trainees to achieve and practice these important certificates of competence. Training is based at our flagship Douneside House Garden which is an RHS Partner Garden and an RHS Qualifications Approved Centre.

Applications are encouraged from current or recently qualified horticultural college students who wish to progress their horticultural skills and enhance their professional career options through the programme of; hands-on immersive training and practice, RHS Qualifications, Certificates of Competence and structured work experience. Applications are also encouraged from new entrants to horticulture who, alongside the above, will also have the opportunity to study towards the RHS Principles of Horticulture Level 2 through distance learning. A second year is available to two trainees and may include paid internships to the Royal Botanic Gardens Logan, National Trust of Scotland Crathes Gardens and The Prince’s Foundation Dumfries House Gardens.

Whilst horticultural qualifications are not essential, applicants must provide clear evidence of a keen interest in developing a professional horticultural career.

The training placements are full-time and trainees are paid the National Minimum Wage and share accommodation within a modern, fully equipped six- bedroom estate house and each trainee has their own private bedroom and en-suite bath/shower room.

MacRobert trainees have all been fortunate in gaining full-time employment, many within prestigious gardens across the UK, or accepted on to further training placements such as the HBGTP and Horticulture Level 3 with the RHS.

Applications can only be accepted by using The MacRobert Trust Application Form. This form and further information and testimonials from former trainees is found on our our website http://www.themacroberttrust.org.uk/grant-making/horticultural-training-scheme/ To contact the Head of Gardens:

Stephen McCallum CHort MCIHort, Tel:013398 81072 or Email: stephen@themacroberttrust.org.uk

Company

THE MACROBERT TRUST

About Us

Welcome to The MacRobert Trust, a modern and dynamic charity with an exceptional legacy. As a forward-thinking grant maker and landowner, with a large and vibrant estate, we take pride in managing our resources with a fresh perspective while staying true to our roots.

 At the heart of our decision-making lies our benefactor, Lady MacRobert, who believed that young people can achieve great things, no matter their backgrounds. We strive to keep alive Lady MacRobert and her family’s memory and legacy by creating opportunities and supporting charitable organisations that share our vision.

 Since our inception, we have donated millions of pounds to charitable organisations, created prizes, awards, traineeships, and endowments, and funded building works across the country. We believe in nurturing talent and empowering young people to achieve their full potential.

Our approach to overall estate management, grants, and training schemes is innovative, and we are committed to supporting our beneficiaries in the best way possible. You can learn more about our work and the MacRobert legacy by exploring our website.

The History of the MacRobert Family

There are few in the military or amongst those who remember the Second World War who don’t know the story of the MacRobert family.  Lady Rachel Workman MacRobert (1884 – 1954) and Sir Alexander MacRobert (1854 – 1922) had three sons, Alasdair, Roderic and Iain.

The eldest, Alasdair, who inherited the baronial title on his father’s death, was killed in a civil flying accident in 1938, aged just twenty-six. On his death, the baronetcy passed to his brother, Roderic, a pilot in the Royal Air Force. Roderic was lost in action just three years later on May 22nd, 1941, also at the age of twenty-six, while leading a flight of Hurricanes in a strafing attack on a German-held airfield in Iraq. The baronetcy now passed to the youngest son, Iain, who was by then a pilot officer in the RAF having joined straight from Cambridge University.

Less than six weeks after the death of his brother, Iain was reported missing when his Blenheim aircraft failed to return from a search and rescue mission which set out from RAF Thornaby in North Yorkshire. His body was never found. He was twenty-four years old.

One can only imagine how Lady MacRobert must have felt on hearing of the loss of her sons but her immediate response gives a flavour of her character. She made a donation of £25,000 to purchase a bomber for the RAF and asked that it be named “MacRobert’s Reply”. The chosen bomber was a Stirling of XV Squadron, which was handed over in October 1941 to its first captain, Flying Officer PJS Boggis, who captained it on twelve operational missions. This was the start of a tradition that the RAF has kept alive. A succession of RAF aircraft has since carried the name.

In 1942, Lady MacRobert donated a further £20,000 to purchase four Hurricane fighters, which were sent to RAF operations in the Middle East. Three were named after her sons and the fourth after her.

These acts of fortitude and determination cemented a charitable legacy that originated with her husband’s benevolence in India and still resonates today.

Between 1943 and 1950, Lady MacRobert established a series of trusts to reflect the interests of her late husband, who through hard work and study rose from humble origins to make his fortune in India, and of her American parents who were famous mountaineers, explorers and authors. In particular, Lady MacRobert wanted to provide the means and organisation to foster in young people the best traditional ideals and spirit, which she believed had prompted so many young people, including her own sons, to fight in the Second World War.

These ideals and this spirit still inform the work we do today and underpin the ethos of The Trust.

Ethos

The MacRobert Trust Coat of Arms motto translates as “Not for self but for country” and this philanthropic ethos remains central to The MacRobert Trust.

Our work is rooted in the character of Lady MacRobert and her interests and passions.

It is these interests and passions that continue to form the focus of The Trust’s work today, in particular:

  • To maintain a strong and vibrant connection with the armed services.
  • To advance academic and practical education and training.
  • To encourage and reward excellence in the arts, science and engineering.
  • Promote best practice in agriculture, horticulture, the environment, biodiversity and rural skills, through the advancement of research and learning, and in the pursuance of best practice and professional excellence.
  • To promote good practice in farming and horticulture.
  • To keep The Trust and its work at the heart of the Tarland area and support local charitable projects and activities.
Company info
Telephone
013398 81072
Location
Cromar
Tarland
Aboyne
Aberdeenshire
AB34 4UD
United Kingdom

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