Senior Experience Design Consultant

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty; Swindon; Hybrid; GBP 75,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Substantial pension up to 10%

Free entry to National Trust places

Season ticket loan

EV car lease scheme

Perks at work discounts

Holiday allowance up to 32 days

Job summary

The National Trust is seeking a Senior Experience Design Consultant to lead the Experience Design practice and shape visitor experiences across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. You’ll drive audience-led, inclusive design strategies and ensure experiences are commercially sustainable and distinctive for each place.

You’ll collaborate with cross-disciplinary teams to turn audience insight into long‑term plans, investment priorities and capability growth.

Qualifications

• Detailed understanding of place-making and how spaces promote well-being.
• Experience leading major audience-led, place-based change.
• Experience using audience insight to influence business priorities and design/operation of properties.
• Strong communication, presentation and influencing skills.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams and fostering inclusive collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Champion audience-led, inclusive design-led change across teams and places.
• Shape long-term visions, investment priorities and business plans using audience insight.
• Develop frameworks, tools and partnerships to support effective change and grow the practice.

Skills

Place-making

Audience-led design

Strategic thinking

Stakeholder influence

People leadership

Communication

Job description

Are you passionate about how people engage with the historic environment and natural world?

Are you skilled at leading multi-disciplinary teams to create ambitious plans for places?

Do you enjoy thinking strategically about business development in purpose driven operations?

We're looking for a Senior Experience Design Consultant to join our Visitor Experience Proposition team and help shape the future of visitor experiences across the National Trust. In this strategic role, you’ll have significant scope to innovate a substantial scale of impact. You'll lead and develop our Experience Design practice, ensuring experiences are audience-led, inclusive, commercially sustainable and rooted in what makes each place distinctive. Working on someofourmost significant strategic projects, you'll bring together audience insight, conservation priorities, access, placemaking and commercial considerations to create meaningful experiences that benefit both people and places. You’llinfluence how millions of people experience some of the UK's most loved places while helping build capability and best practice across the organisation.

What it's like to work here

Reporting to the Head of Visitor Experience Proposition, you’ll work closely with colleagues across the organisation, including specialists in operations, commercial, communications, fundraising, membership and curation. As part of a collaborative and purpose-driven team, you’ll help turn audience insight into inspiring visitor experiences. You’ll draw on diverse expertise to influence strategic decisions and support long-term plans for change across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Your contractual location will be our head office in Swindon and there will be an expectation for you to attend the office. However, there is flexibility on where you are based at other times. You’ll be required to work at a National Trust location for 40-60% of your working week. This will be discussed in more detail at interview.

What you'll be doing

You’ll champion audience-led, inclusive design-led change, helping teams create more welcoming, relevant and impactful experiences. Using audience insight, evidence and design thinking, you’ll shape long-term visions, investment priorities and business plans, providing expert challenge and advice on major projects and programmes. You’ll build capability across the organisation by developing frameworks, tools and partnerships that support effective change, while leading the Experience Design community of practice and supporting the growth of practitioners.

Who we're looking for

You’ll bring a broad range of the following knowledge, skills and experience, shaped by different roles, sectors or career paths, and the judgment to apply them effectively at scale;

• Detailed understanding of the principles of place-making and creating spaces which promote happiness, health and well-being.
• Experience leading major audience-led, place-based change
• Experience using audience insight to significantly influence business priorities and the design and operation of our properties
• Strong communication, presentation and influencing skills.
• Experience influencing at a senior level both internally and externally
• Experience of people leadership across multidisciplinary teams, creating a collaborative, inclusive environment where different perspectives are valued.

The package

The National Trust has the motto ‘For everyone, for ever’ at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary
• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
• Season ticket loan
• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)
• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts
• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.

National Trust place

Heelis, Kemble Drive, Swindon, SN2 2NA

Documents

Senior Experience Design Consultant Grade 4.pdf

Requirements

Compliance.Eligibility to Work in the UK

Additional information

Closing Date: 25 October 2026

Interview Date: 20 November 2026

Equal Opportunities Statement

The National Trust celebrates diversity and is committed to creating a fair and equal society, free from discrimination. You can read more about our commitment to inclusion and diversity here .

Safeguarding Statement

The National Trust is committed to a safe recruitment processes to help the organisation attract and appoint the right staff/volunteer for the role and responsibilities as set out in the vacancy advert. We will not accept applicants who are not suitable to work with children, young people or adults at risk. If you have any questions around your suitability for this vacancy, please contact the people service centre.