Chief Operating Officer

Nottingham Playhouse Trust Ltd; Nottingham; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 69,000; Full time

Job summary

Nottingham Playhouse Trust Ltd seeks an outstanding leader to join our Executive Team as Chief Operating Officer. You will oversee finance, commercial activity, people, systems, operations and our historic Grade II* building, ensuring resources and resilience to deliver artistic ambitions.

You will work closely with the Chief Executive, Artistic Director and Board, translating strategy into clear plans, giving senior managers authority while maintaining rigorous performance oversight, and

Qualifications

• Significant senior leadership experience in a complex organisation.
• Demonstrated ability to translate plans into action and deliver results.
• Strong financial or commercial acumen with ability to analyse evidence and make balanced decisions.
• Experience leading senior managers and setting clear expectations and performance.
• Sound judgement in risk, investment and priority management.
• Ability to engage with a Board and communicate complex issues clearly.
• Inclusive leadership approach balancing financial sustainability with artistic/public aims.
• Curiosity, resilience and willingness to learn.
• Experience in theatre, arts or culture is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Turn strategy into clear, achievable business plans and priorities.
• Lead long-term financial planning and ensure financial security.
• Drive commercial development to grow income and maximise use of spaces/assets.
• Provide the Chief Executive and Board with timely performance information.
• Set expectations for senior managers and empower delivery while monitoring results.
• Shape the long-term future of our Grade II* listed building and estate, including major projects.
• Ensure structure, people, technology and ways of working support goals and remain affordable.
• Develop new income, partnerships and uses of spaces and assets while protecting artistic purpose.
• Deputise for the Chief Executive and represent the organisation with funders and partners.

Skills

Senior leadership

Action planning

Financial/commercial acumen

People leadership

Risk judgment

Board liaison

Inclusive leadership

Curiosity & learning

Arts/culture experience desirable

Job description

Chief Operating Officer

Company: Nottingham Playhouse Trust Ltd

Salary: £65, 000 to £69, 000 per annum (depending on experience)

Hours: Full-time

Location: Nottingham, NG1 5AF

Job type: Permanent

Posting date: 8 Oct 2026

Closing date: 7 Nov 2026

Nottingham Playhouse is looking for an outstanding leader to join our Executive Team as Chief Operating Officer.

We are in a strong position, with sustained significant artistic achievements as well as progress in our finances, income generation and the way the organisation works. We are looking for someone who can build on this and help us take the next step.

This is a wide-ranging role covering finance, commercial activity, people, systems, operations and our buildings. At its heart is a simple purpose - making sure Nottingham Playhouse has the resources, organisation and resilience to deliver its artistic ambitions and charitable purpose.

You will work closely with the Chief Executive as their principal strategic and operational partner, alongside the Artistic Director, Board and Senior Management Team. You will help turn our ambitions into clear and achievable plans and make sure we understand how we are performing, where the opportunities are and where action is needed.

You will lead experienced senior managers across Finance, Commercial, Operations and Facilities, People & Culture and IT. They will have the authority to run their areas. Your role is to set direction, support and challenge them and make sure the organisation delivers what it has agreed to do.

You might already be a COO, CFO, Finance Director or Commercial Director, or hold a senior leadership role in another complex organisation.

We are particularly interested in people with strong financial or commercial experience who can also think across a whole organisation. You will need good judgement, curiosity and the ability to lead people with expertise different from your own.

The opportunity

• - Turn our strategy into clear, achievable business plans and priorities.
• - Lead our long-term financial planning and help ensure the Playhouse remains financially secure.
• - Lead our approach to commercial development, looking for opportunities to grow income and make better use of our spaces and other assets.
• - Give the Chief Executive and Board clear and timely information about performance, opportunities, choices and risks.
• - Set clear expectations for senior managers, give them the authority to deliver and address problems when things are not going to plan.
• - Help shape the long-term future of our Grade II* listed building and wider estate, including major investment and capital projects.
• - Make sure our structure, people, technology and ways of working support what we are trying to achieve and are affordable.
• - Develop new income, partnerships and uses of our spaces and assets while protecting our artistic and charitable purpose.
• - Deputise for the Chief Executive when needed and represent Nottingham PlayHouse with funders, partners, public bodies and other organisations.

What you will bring

• - Significant senior leadership experience in a complex organisation.
• - Experience of turning plans into action and taking responsibility for results.
• - Strong financial or commercial experience and the ability to understand evidence, ask the right questions and make balanced decisions.
• - Experience of leading senior managers, giving people the freedom to do their jobs while being clear about expectations and performance.
• - Good judgement when dealing with risk, investment and competing priorities.
• - The confidence to question assumptions, work effectively with a Board and explain complicated issues clearly.
• - An inclusive approach to leadership and an understanding that financial sustainability must support our artistic ambitions, public purpose, accessibility and environmental responsibilities.
• - Curiosity, resilience and the willingness to learn.
• - Experience in theatre, the arts or culture would be useful, but it is not essential.

We welcome applicants from charities, public bodies, commercial businesses and other organisations where success means balancing financial and operational demands with a wider purpose.

Experience of capital projects, property, organisational change, public funding or working with a wide range of stakeholders would also be useful.

How you will lead

We need someone who can see the whole organisation and understand how its different parts connect.

You will give senior colleagues genuine authority and support to do their jobs while keeping a clear view of how the organisation is performing. You will spot problems early, ask difficult questions when necessary and step in when something needs Executive attention.

You will bring clear thinking and financial discipline, but you will never lose sight of why Nottingham PlayHouse exists - to make a difference through theatre, with our audiences and communities at the heart of what we do.

Why work at Nottingham PlayHouse?

Nottingham PlayHouse is one of the country's leading producing theatres. We were named Theatre of the Year at The Stage Awards 2025 and create bold, brilliant and relevant theatre for Nottingham and beyond.

Our commitment to our audiences and visitors has also received national recognition. We were named Most Welcoming Theatre at the UK Theatre Awards 2023 and received Silver for Accessible and Inclusive Tourism at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2026.

Our environmental work has been recognised too, including the Nottinghamshire Tourism Award for Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism in 2025 and Silver Carbon Literate Organisation status.

We work from our Grade II* listed theatre, home to Anish Kapoor's Sky Mirror. Our new workshop and storage facilities give us further opportunities for artistic production, commercial development and more sustainable ways of working.

Our work goes far beyond our stages. We run more than 60 participation programmes for people of all ages, with our local communities at the heart of what we do.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

Nottingham PlayHouse is committed to equality of opportunity and to building a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we work with.

We particularly encourage applications from people from the Global Ethnic Majority and Disabled people.

Applicants who tell us they are from the Global Ethnic Majority and/or are Disabled will be guaranteed an interview for workforce vacancies if they meet the minimum criteria in the person specification.

We are a Disability Confident employer and are happy to discuss reasonable adjustments to make our recruitment process accessible.

We also welcome applications from people with caring responsibilities and from people looking for a positive work/life balance.

Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme

About Disability Confident Disability Confident is a government scheme. It encourages employers to recruit and retain disabled people and those with long term health conditions.