Groundsperson - Sportfields

Why join us? | He aha ngā hua o tō piri mai?

Make a Difference: Help maintain the sportsfields and facilities that bring our community together.

Professional Growth: Develop your turf-management and operational skills through learning and development opportunities at Palmerston North City Council.

Benefits: We offer more than your hourly rate, with benefits including five weeks’ annual leave and a community service day.

About the role | Ngā kōrero mō te tūranga

Join our Sports Grounds team and help ensure Palmerston North’s sportsfields are safe, well presented and ready for community sport and events.

Reporting to the Sports Grounds Team Leader, you’ll maintain playing surfaces, cricket fields, surrounding grassed areas and associated equipment. You’ll work outdoors, operate a range of machinery and engage regularly with sports groups, event organisers and members of the public.

This is a full-time role, 40 hours per week, Monday – Friday. Some out-of-hours work is required to support weekend sports fixtures and respond to incidents or operational issues.

Your focus in this role will include

Mowing, spraying, fertilising, rolling, covering and marking playing surfaces.

Supporting water management and the preparation of cricket pitches and outfields.

Maintaining surrounding grassed areas, equipment and sportsfield furniture.

Operating and caring for plant, machinery and equipment safely and efficiently.

Carrying out litter control and helping keep sports grounds tidy.

Providing polite, helpful service to sports groups, event organisers and the public.

About you | Ngā kōrero mōu

You’ll enjoy practical outdoor work and take pride in preparing quality sports surfaces for the community. You can organise your workload, work independently and maintain attention to detail when priorities or conditions change.

What you will bring

A current driver’s licence, which is essential.

Knowledge of cricket pitch and outfield preparation.

Knowledge of amenity or sports turf maintenance practices and procedures.

The ability to operate safely and undertake frequent manual handling tasks, including lifting and carrying equipment.

Effective time-management and organisational skills.

The ability to work professionally with people from a wide range of backgrounds.

Sound judgement, integrity and the ability to manage challenging interactions appropriately.

About us | Ngā kōrero mō mātou

Palmerston North (or as we like to call it, Palmy) is a growing, innovative and exciting city. With small city benefits and big city ambition, Palmy has secured its place on the map as a creative and exciting city, with leading innovation and developments! We’re proud to be a city that includes, supports, connects and uses the talents of the whole community in our pursuit to provide a connected and safe community. We’re also a future-focused city who cares about enhancing our natural and built environment. Our future looks bright, it looks vibrant and progressive.

What we offer | Te āhua o ā mātou mahi

An hourly rate of $30.63 to $36.75, depending on qualifications and experience, plus a 3.5% KiwiSaver employer contribution where eligible.

Five weeks’ annual leave and a community service day.

Long-service leave after qualifying periods.

Paid parental leave benefits.

Annual flu vaccinations and subsidised health and eye checks.

Study leave, professional membership and fee support.

* The opportunity to make a practical difference for sport and recreation in our city.

Applications close: 11.00 pm, Tuesday 20 October 2026

We are an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and welcome applications from all those suitably qualified for this position.

Job Profile

Please click here to download and view this additional information.