Director of Estates

About the company

The Opportunity We are partnering with a large, multi-site education organisation in the North East to appoint an experienced Director of Estates. This is a senior leadership opportunity with responsibility for the strategic and operational performance of a diverse estate, ensuring sites provide safe, sustainable and high-quality environments for students and colleagues.

Your tasks

This is an excellent opportunity to take on a broad and influential estates leadership position, shaping the future direction of a significant property portfolio and delivering improvements that have a direct impact on the student and colleague experience.

The Director of Estates will provide leadership across the full estates portfolio, including:

• Developing and delivering the organisation’s estates strategy.
• Leading major capital projects, refurbishment and improvement programmes.
• Managing consultants, contractors and key outsourced services.
• Ensuring the estate remains safe, compliant and fit for purpose.
• Providing assurance across statutory compliance, fire safety, building safety, security and business continuity.
• Leading estates budgets, forecasting, procurement and resource planning.
• Driving value for money and effective contract performance.
• Leading improvements across energy management, sustainability, waste and environmental performance.
• Providing clear estates, compliance and risk advice to the senior leadership team.
• Creating a high-performing estates culture focused on collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement.

Requirements

We are looking for an established senior estates professional with the credibility and experience to lead within a large and complex multi-site environment.

You will bring strong experience across

• Senior-level experience leading estates and facilities within a complex, multi-site environment.
• Strong experience across capital projects, statutory compliance, estates risk and contractor management.
• Proven budgetary, procurement and commercial management experience.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to influence stakeholders and drive continuous improvement.
• A relevant qualification in estates, property, construction or facilities management, with RICS, CIOB or IWFM membership/qualification desirable.

You will combine strategic thinking with a hands-on understanding of operational estates delivery and be comfortable influencing senior stakeholders while leading change and continuous improvement.

What we offer

This is an opportunity to shape the future of a significant education estate and make a visible contribution to the experience of students and colleagues. You will have the scope to influence estates strategy, strengthen organisational resilience and deliver sustainable improvements across multiple college campuses.