Head of Estates and Operations

Location: Central Trust Office, Guildford, with regular travel to schools across the Trust.

Grade / Salary: GST Grade L (£67,732 - £78,968 FTE)(6 scale points within banding for progression)

Hours / Working Pattern: 36 hours, All Year Round

Contract Type: Permanent

Reporting to: Chief Finance & Operating Officer (CFOO)

Responsible for: Strategic leadership of estates and premises operations across the Trust, working through school-based premises teams and external providers. Direct line management responsibilities may evolve as the Trust continues to grow and develop.

1. About the Role

This is a senior leadership opportunity to shape the future of estates and operations across a growing, values-led Multi-Academy Trust of 23 schools. The postholder will provide strategic leadership for a diverse estate serving thousands of pupils and staff across Surrey and Hampshire, ensuring that investment, compliance and operational delivery support the Trust's long-term educational objectives.

Reporting to the CFOO, you will lead the development and delivery of the Trust's estates strategy, ensuring that our sites are safe, compliant, well-maintained and fit for the future. You will provide professional leadership across estates planning, premises compliance, health and safety, capital investment, major works programmes, contractor management and operational assurance.

Working closely with Headteachers, School Business Managers, trustees and external partners, you will lead through influence, establishing consistent standards, systems and assurance processes across school-based premises teams and external providers.

You will be expected to exercise sound judgement, manage competing priorities across multiple sites, support and develop colleagues, and hold contractors and consultants to account for the safe, cost-effective and timely delivery of services and projects. You will also provide clear, evidence-based advice and reporting to senior leaders and trustees, helping to ensure that estates investment and operational decisions deliver the greatest benefit for pupils, staff and local communities.

Act as the Trust's designated professional lead for estates compliance, health and safety and fire safety assurance.

2. What You Will Lead

• Establish and lead a Trust-wide estates, health and safety and compliance assurance framework, providing robust monitoring, action tracking, performance reporting and assurance to senior leaders, Trustees and committees, ensuring statutory risks are identified, controlled and resolved across all schools.

• Set and deliver the Trust’s estates strategy, including condition priorities, accommodation needs, planned maintenance, capital works and future site requirements.
• Ensure all school sites are safe, compliant, well maintained and able to support high-quality teaching and learning.
• Lead the Trust's estates compliance and assurance framework, establishing systems for monitoring, verification, action tracking, escalation and reporting to ensure statutory responsibilities are consistently met across all schools.
• Establish and oversee Trust-wide systems for tracking, monitoring and reporting actions arising from audits, inspections, incidents, compliance reviews and risk assessments, ensuring timely completion and effective assurance.
• Plan, procure and oversee building projects, major works and estates contracts, ensuring value for money, safe delivery, budget control and minimal disruption to schools.
• Manage School Condition Allocation and other estates-related funding streams through transparent prioritisation, evidence-based reporting and strong governance.
• Provide strategic oversight of premises operations, maintenance, building systems, Trust vehicles, incident response and school continuity arrangements.
• Advise the CEO, CFOO, Headteachers, Local Committees and Trust Board on estate condition, compliance, risk, investment priorities and delivery progress.
• Lead the review of estates-related incidents, enforcement actions and investigations, ensuring lessons learned are embedded and improvements implemented across the Trust.
• Build constructive relationships with school leaders, School Business Managers, central colleagues, contractors and consultants, balancing expertise, pragmatism and trust.
• Ensure appropriate competency frameworks, training programmes and assurance processes are in place for colleagues with premises, health and safety, fire safety and compliance responsibilities.
• Lead the Trust's response to regulatory inspections, enforcement activity and compliance reviews, ensuring issues are escalated, reported and resolved appropriately.

3. What We Are Looking For

Essential

• Degree, equivalent professional qualification or substantial senior-level estates/facilities management experience in a complex organisation.
• NEBOSH qualification, or an equivalent recognised health and safety qualification.
• Proven senior estates or facilities leadership experience, with clear accountability for safe, compliant and effective delivery across a complex or multi-site organisation.
• Strong knowledge of premises-related statutory compliance, including the ability to oversee effective systems, records and follow-up across key areas such as asbestos, fire, legionella, electrical safety, COSHH and contractor control.
• Experience of leading estates strategy, capital programmes, planned maintenance or major works, including procurement, delivery, risk management and budget control.
• Ability to manage significant revenue, capital or grant-funded budgets, ensuring accurate forecasting, transparent prioritisation, value for money and clear reporting.
• Ability to procure, mobilise and hold contractors, consultants and outsourced providers to account for quality, safety, compliance, cost and performance.
• Develop and maintain robust contractor management arrangements, including contractor selection, compliance checks, supervision, control of works and assurance processes.
• A proactive, solution-focused mindset and a constructive approach to challenge, change and continuous improvement.

• Sound judgement, calm decision-making, strong communication skills and the ability to produce clear, evidenced reports and recommendations for senior leaders and trustees.

Desirable (but not essential)

• Knowledge of the education, academy trust or public-sector environment, including safeguarding, public accountability, procurement compliance and value for money.
• Project management qualification such as PRINCE2, APM, Six Sigma or equivalent

We are more interested in professional judgement, leadership approach and mindset than a perfect sector match.

4. What We Offer

• Real influence over how estates and operations are shaped across a growing Trust
• A supportive, values‑driven culture where professionalism and kindness matter
• A senior role that values clarity, boundaries and sustainable workload
• The opportunity to shape, improve and standardise systems and processes across a growing Trust
• Professional respect, trust and autonomy
• A visible senior role with a meaningful impact on pupils, staff and school communities.

About The Good Shepherd Trust

The Good Shepherd Trust is a growing Multi-Academy Trust of 23 schools across Surrey and Hampshire. Our vision is “flourishing together”: building communities where children and adults can thrive. Strong financial stewardship underpins everything we do. Our central team works closely with schools to provide ro