View Vacancy – Estates Officer (Stores) AO (PTA)

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Job Category

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Operations and Corporate Services)

Job Subcategory

Estates

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)

Main purpose of job:

The British High Commission, Pretoria oversees the UK Government’s operations in South Africa across the following locations:

• British High Commission, Pretoria (BHC)
• UK Visas & Immigration Office (UKVI), Pretoria
• UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT), Johannesburg
• British Consulate General, Cape Town

The BHC Corporate Services team, based largely in Pretoria with some staff in Johannesburg and Cape Town, is responsible for delivering corporate services to support the work of the mission.

The Estates Officer (Stores) will work with an Estates Manager, helping manage the offices and residential properties occupied by diplomatic staff. The job holder will act as a Facilities Manager for some of these properties, helping to ensure the effective and efficient management of the Estate, demonstrating professionalism, and delivering a high quality, energetic customer service.

This Estates Officer (Stores) plays a crucial role in:

Furniture Storeroom management, oversight of stock control using a web-based App and disposal of furniture in line with BHC policy. Maintaining compliance documentation and updating Storeroom Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Preparing residential properties for occupation by diplomatic staff, requiring forward-planning, close attention to detail and strong organisational and time-management skills.

Dealing with on-going maintenance issues across the BHC Estate, requiring multi-tasking numerous concurrent activities.

Providing a professional customer service to BHC staff and residents, requiring excellent written and oral communication skills.

Managing two Maintenance Assistants, liaising with external suppliers and contractors, complying with BHC procurement policies.

The job holder will be required to work flexibly to help colleagues, take on a range of administrative tasks where work pressures are heavy, cover leave absences and respond to emergencies.

Whilst the role is based in Pretoria, the job holder will be required to undertake short periodic visits to offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

The following roles and responsibilities are general guidelines for Estates Officers. The roles listed are not exhaustive and are subject to periodic change with prior consultation, subject to operational needs.

• Ensure that an accurate, up-to-date and complete inventory lists are maintained of all BHC properties, updating property files with standardised float and furniture inventory lists, disposal of furniture in line with BHC policy. (60%)
• Organising tasks required to manage owned and leased residential properties; including site visits, managing and escorting contractors, tracking progress and record keeping. (5%)
• Organising the workload of two Maintenance Assistants, for facilities management activities on the Estate. Includes weekly planning / scheduling of work and ensuring staff have the correct information, tools and training required. (5%)
• Raising requisitions, purchase orders and receipting jobs on the BHC Hera finance system, dealing with financial issues and budgeting requirements. (5%)
• Conducting ‘March In’ (assignment of accommodation) and ‘March Out’ (taking back possession of a property), ensuring all steps are completed to FCDO standards, complying with Health & Safety requirements, and maintaining strong customer service with customers. (5%)
• Monitoring maintenance requests from customers on a daily basis, ensuring that issues are addressed in line with Charter deadlines, and communicating with customers promptly and effectively (5%)
• Estates administration duties, including internal record-keeping on properties, suppliers, contractors, budget issues and asset registers. Management of property information such float lists, information sheets, inventories and property images. (5%)
• Regular property visits, using experience / knowledge to observe and highlight any estate concerns as well as accompanying suppliers / contractors, for inspections and maintenance such as generator issues, electrical, plumbing or structural issues. Highlighting property concerns to the Estate Manager. (5%)
• Assist Estates Manager maintain and co-ordinate compliance with UK Health & Safety audits for all properties, ensuring properties are safe to occupy. (5%)

Resources managed (staff and expenditure)

• Line management of two Maintenance Assistants.

Essential qualifications, skills and experience

• Strong administrative and organisation skills
• Strong IT literacy, including management of the web-based stock control App
• Experience of customer-facing roles.
• Experience of procurement and obtaining value for money (VFM)
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Valid driving licence

.

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience

• Experience of facilities and property management and furniture procurement in a similar environment
• Line management experience, and an individual who is keen to develop others

Required behaviours

Delivering at Pace, Managing a Quality Service, Working Together

Application deadline

2 June 2026

Grade

Administrative Officer (AO)

Type of Position

Permanent

Working hours per week

36.5 hours

Region

Africa

Country/Territory

South Africa

Location (City)

Pretoria

Type of Post

British High Commission

Number of vacancies

1

Salary Currency

ZAR

Salary

342,540.72

Type of Salary

yearly

Start Date

3 August 2026

Other benefits and conditions of employment

Learning and development opportunities (if any)

• Job-specific training will be provided to the successful candidate. A wide range of developmental learning opportunities are available to BHC employees.

The British High Commission pays in full for the Key Care Plus option on Discovery Health for staff including their spouses/partners and dependants.

• After successful completion of probation the British High Commission will contribute 9% of your monthly salary to a Provident Fund.
• Annual leave entitlement of 25 days
• Working hours per week of 36.5

Additional information

Please ensure that your application is authentically written based on your own experiences. If AI tools are used, their usage must only be limited to specific tasks such as ensuring formatting consistency and keyword relevance. The core content, personal narratives, and responses to behaviour and skill-based questions must genuinely reflect your professional journey, experiences, and achievements. We place great importance on originality and individual effort throughout the application process. Any form of plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification.

• Please complete the application form in full as the information provided is used during screening.
• Kindly note, all required behaviours for this role will be assessed during the interview stage.
• Please check your application carefully before you submit, as no changes can be made once submitted.
• The British High Commission will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position.
• Employees recruited locally by the British High Commission in Pretoria are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in South Africa.
• It is essential that the applicants already have the right to live and work in South Africa without the need to apply for a work permit.
• Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary may have their salaries reduced by the equivalent local income tax amount.
• Information about the Civil Service Success Profiles can be found on this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles.
• Reference checking and security clearances will be conducted on successful candidates.
• Please log into your profile on the application system on a regular basis to review the status of your application.
• Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’. If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate

Please be aware that you will only be able to apply to vacancies for Country Based Staff roles with the British Government through this official tal.net site (operated by Oleeo). Jobs may be advertised on third party websites, however our adverts will always link back to the official tal.net site. If you complete and send an application through any other site, we will not receive it.