Job Description:

Head of Estates – Healthcare

Location: Greater Manchester
Contract: Fixed Term Contract – Initial 6 Months, Rolling up to 18 Months
Salary: Band 8b Equivalent
Potential Permanent Opportunity

We are working in partnership with a large healthcare organisation in Greater Manchester to appoint an experienced Head of Estates to lead its operational Estates and Technical Services function.

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced senior Estates professional looking to take responsibility for a complex, multi-site healthcare estate. The position is being offered initially on a 6-month Fixed Term Contract, with the ability for the contract to roll for up to 18 months and the potential to move into a permanent position.

The Role

Reporting into the senior Estates & Facilities leadership team, you will have overall responsibility for the effective management and delivery of operational Estates services across hospital and community environments.

You will provide leadership across a broad technical portfolio including building and engineering maintenance, statutory compliance, fire, waste, estates systems, sustainability and specialist engineering services.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading and managing the Estates and Technical Services function, including in-house teams and specialist contractors.

• Ensuring the estate remains safe, compliant, resilient and fit for purpose.

• Providing senior specialist engineering and technical advice to Estates colleagues, senior management and key stakeholders.

• Ensuring compliance with relevant statutory requirements, NHS standards, HTMs and associated healthcare engineering guidance.

• Managing Estates budgets, resources and expenditure while identifying efficiencies and service improvements.

• Supporting Estates condition, statutory investment and future Estates planning.

• Providing leadership around governance, risk management and technical assurance.

• Managing outsourced specialist maintenance services and ensuring contractors achieve appropriate quality and performance standards.

• Supporting the organisation's energy management and sustainability objectives.

• Maintaining robust operational systems and processes across the Estates function.

• Providing senior oversight across critical engineering infrastructure including electrical systems, medical gases, water safety, ventilation, steam and other specialist healthcare systems.

• Participating in the Estates management on-call arrangements and supporting the response to significant operational incidents.

The Successful Candidate

We are looking for an established senior Estates professional with significant experience managing complex building and engineering services.

You will ideally have:

• Significant operational Estates and engineering management experience within a healthcare or similarly complex environment.

• Strong knowledge of statutory compliance, technical governance and risk management.

• Knowledge and understanding of healthcare engineering standards and HTMs.

• Experience managing multidisciplinary Estates and Technical Services teams.

• Strong understanding of critical engineering infrastructure, including areas such as HV/LV electrical systems, medical gases, ventilation, water safety/Legionella and steam systems.

• Experience managing significant budgets and financial resources.

• Experience procuring and performance-managing specialist contractors and outsourced services.

• Strong leadership, stakeholder management and communication skills.

• A relevant Engineering, Construction, Building Services or Estates qualification.

• Membership of an appropriate professional body would be advantageous.

Previous experience within an acute hospital environment would be particularly beneficial due to the complexity and technical nature of the estate.

Why Apply?

This is an opportunity to take on a genuinely influential Head of Estates position within a complex healthcare environment, providing both strategic leadership and operational oversight of critical Estates services.

The initial appointment will be for 6 months on a Fixed Term Contract, with the potential to extend on a rolling basis for up to 18 months. There is also the potential for a permanent opportunity, making this particularly attractive for candidates seeking greater longer-term security than a traditional short-term contract.

If you are an experienced Estates leader with a strong technical background and are interested in discussing the position in more detail, please apply with an up-to-date CV for a confidential conversation.