Operations Director, St George’s Guildhall and Creative Hub

Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk; King's Lynn; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

St George’s Guildhall and Creative Hub in King’s Lynn is seeking an outstanding Operations Director to shape the operating model and visitor experience for a nationally significant heritage destination reopening in autumn 2028.

The role requires senior leadership in culture and heritage, strong financial and governance expertise, and the ability to mobilise multidisciplinary staff and volunteers while building sustainable commercial foundations.

Qualifications

• Significant senior leadership experience in cultural/heritage sectors.
• Strong financial management, budgeting, and long-term sustainability skills.
• Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary staff and volunteers.
• Experience across income generation, hospitality, venue hire, partnerships.
• Knowledge of governance, risk, compliance, health & safety.

Responsibilities

• Shape operating model and visitor experience for an international destination.
• Build systems, teams, partnerships, and commercial foundations for reopening.
• Engage trustees, funders and senior partners; oversee governance and risk.
• Lead financial planning and sustainability strategies.
• Collaborate with Development Director and Creative Director.

Skills

Senior leadership

Financial management

Strategic planning

Stakeholder engagement

Governance & risk

Staff & volunteer leadership

Negotiation

Job description

For an ambitious leader from the heritage, arts or cultural sector, we have a rare and exceptional opportunity to help bring one of the UK’s most extraordinary historic places back to life as a leading international heritage and cultural destination.

We are seeking an outstanding Operations Director to join our team at St George’s Guildhall and Creative Hub in King’s Lynn, as it moves towards reopening in autumn 2028, following a major programme of restoration and renewal led by the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk.

At its heart is the UK’s oldest working theatre, where William Shakespeare himself is believed to have performed in the 1590s, set within a wider site that will become a living theatre, creative hub and community asset where 600 years of history inspires creativity, learning, enterprise and pride in place.

Conservation work on-site is currently transforming the medieval venue, surrounding buildings and courtyards into welcoming spaces for everyone, with a year-round programme of performances, events, exhibitions and education, new creative workspaces, hospitality and commercial uses.

At West Norfolk, we have placed our rich cultural heritage at the centre of our regeneration vision. The Guildhall is our flagship scheme, with the potential to raise King’s Lynn’s cultural profile, support regeneration, grow the creative economy and open up heritage, creativity and learning to wider audiences.

This exciting role is central to making that vision work in practice, shaping the operating model, visitor experience and commercial future of a nationally significant destination from the ground up.

We are looking for someone who understands the power of culture and heritage to transform places, and who can combine that passion with the commercial, operational and financial acumen needed to run a complex public-facing international destination.

Working closely with trustees, senior stakeholders, the Development Director and the Creative Director, the Operations Director will build the systems, teams, partnerships and commercial foundations needed for successful reopening and long-term sustainability.

You will bring:

• Significant senior leadership experience in a cultural, heritage, visitor attraction, arts, leisure, hospitality, charitable or comparable public-facing environment.
• Strong financial management, business planning, budgeting and performance-management skills, with the ability to build long‑term sustainability.
• Proven ability to mobilise and lead multidisciplinary staff and volunteer teams in a complex venue or destination setting.
• Commercial experience across income generation, hospitality, retail, venue hire, leasing, partnerships or audience‑facing services.
• Sound knowledge of governance, risk, compliance, health and safety, audit and organisational resilience.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement, communication, negotiation and problem‑solving skills, with the judgement to advise trustees, funders and senior partners.

For an informal conversation, contact: Kate Blakemore, CEO, on [e-mail] or Robin Lewis, Development Director for the Guildhall Programme, on [e-mail]

Closing date: Noon, Monday 2nd November 2026.

Assessment centre shortlisting: Monday, 16th November 2026.

Interview date: Tuesday, 17th November 2026.