Our Café, Shop and Gardens are open Wednesday to Friday, 10.30 am – 3pm. Our Accommodation is available all year – Book Now!
Careers and volunteering
Find out about our latest vacancies and volunteering opportunities. Join a dynamic team, dedicated to maintaining and improving Swarthmoor Hall.
Hospitality/Commercial Supervisor at Swarthmoor Hall
Hours 20 hours per week, with the possibility of overtime
Salary £17,845 (£31,230 pro rata) per annum
Contract Part time, permanent
Location Swarthmoor Hall, Swarthmoor Hall Lane, Ulverston, Cumbria, LA12 0JQ
Closing date 8am, Thursday 20 November 2025
Interview Thursday 27 November 2025, Swarthmoor Hall
Swarthmoor Hall in Ulverston is a place of international significance as the birth of the Quaker movement in 1652. It now comprises the historic Hall as a visitor attraction with gardens, a busy café and shop, on site holiday accommodation and facilities for the local community. Swarthmoor Hall has lots to offer local visitors and tourists and it is a great place to work with an excellent team.
We have plans to develop the attraction further in 2026, and this along with increasing visitor numbers means we need some new staff. The site is currently open on Wednesday to Friday as well as on some weekend and bank holidays; in 2026 this will move to being open on Wednesday to Saturday.
We are looking for a new Hospitality/Commercial Supervisor, covering the cafe and shop. The duties and the hours are outlined below, but there is flexibility for the right person.
You’ll be a motivated and flexible person, confident in running all aspects of a small café and/or retail site. You will be confident, friendly and a strong team player, able to work alone and with others and able to supervise some staff and volunteers.
We have a generous staff package including annual cost of living salary reviews, an exceptional pension scheme, substantial holiday entitlement and health and well-being resources.
Interested? Explore our website to learn about the history of Swarthmoor Hall, what we do now, and the values of the Quakers, which are a core part of our identity.
Visit us – we’re a short walk from Ulverston station with plenty of parking on site for cars or bicycles. For an informal discussion about the role, you can call John Moffat, our General Manager, on 01229 583204.
Quakers are committed to equality and welcome applicants from all identities and backgrounds. Selection is based solely on skills, experience, qualifications, and abilities. Sex, sexual orientation, age, race, religion, belief, ethnicity, nationality, disability, marital status, or class will not be a barrier to employment. We aim for an equitable, user-friendly application process, and reasonable adjustments can be made if needed. Quiet Company is a Quaker organisation, and we expect all applicants and employees to uphold our values.
We are committed to safeguarding children, young people, and vulnerable adults, and all candidates will undergo pre-employment checks in line with our Safer Recruitment guidelines.
Volunteering
We’re always looking for volunteers to help us run the Hall. There’s plenty to do on such a large site and any help is welcome.
We’re currently on the lookout for passionate volunteers to help with our reopening. We especially need volunteers to assist with our historic house tours, in our café and in our gardens. So, whether you’re a history enthusiast, a café connoisseur or you have green fingers, we have a place for you!
We’re open Wednesday to Friday, 10am to 4pm. You can give as much or as little time as you like. Half-day volunteers enjoy complimentary tea/coffee and biscuits, while those here over lunch receive a free meal. Perks include shop discounts, exclusive social events and free passes to other historic houses!
Please contact us at info@swarthmoorhall.co.uk to find out more.
Benefits provided by Quiet Company
Holiday – 27 days a year plus bank holidays and three days for Christmas closure.
Subsidised Café – We have an on-site café which provides subsidised meals.
Cycle to Work Scheme – We offer a cycle to work scheme which helps you save money on a new work bike and spread the cost of the bike over monthly tax-free instalments.
Annual Season Ticket Loan – We will provide with a loan of up to £7,500 to cover the cost of your season ticket repayable in 11 monthly instalments.
Sabbatical Scheme – Staff are able to take a nine-month unpaid sabbatical leave after five years’ continuous service.
Pension Scheme – Quakers have a generous pension scheme where we contribute 8% of your salary and you contribute 3% of your salary. You have the option to increase your contributions should you wish and to pay your contributions via salary sacrifice.
Sick Pay Scheme – We have a very generous sick pay scheme:
- If you have less than 12 months service, you are entitled to full sick pay for 3 weeks followed by three weeks at half pay.
- After 1 years’ service, you are entitled to full sick pay for 3 months followed by 3 months at half pay, subject to a maximum of six months since the start of your service
- After 4 years’ service you are entitled to full sick pay for six months followed by six months at half pay, subject to a maximum of 12 months.
Private Health Insurance – If you are off work due to sickness for more than 52 continuous weeks you will be eligible, subject to requirements of the scheme, to sick pay.
Employee Assistance Programme – Quakers offers access to an independent, confidential employee assistance programme, which is available 24 hours a day.
Family Friendly Policies – Our family friendly policies give enhanced maternity and adoption leave:
- All staff with more than 26 weeks service will receive 16 weeks full pay, followed by 18 weeks half pay and 5 weeks SMP consecutively
- Parents expecting multiple births will receive an additional two weeks parental leave,
- Staff undergoing IVF treatment will receive 10 days paid leave to attend the appointment and up to 5 days paid leave for staff who wish to accompany their partner to appointments who are receiving IVF treatment in any 12 months period.
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