Senior Project Manager

University of Southampton; Southampton; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Southampton is seeking a Senior Project Manager within its Estates Development team to lead a diverse portfolio of refurbishment and new build projects across multiple campuses.

Reporting to the Associate Directors of Estate Development, you will manage schemes typically ranging from £1m to £30m, with opportunities up to £100m+, guiding them from inception through design, construction and mobilisation to meet programme, cost, quality and sustainability objectives.

Job description

c. £70,000 to £75,000, plus excellent benefits

The University of Southampton is seeking to appoint a Senior Project Manager within its Estates Development team.

The University of Southampton is a leading UK institution and a founding member of the Russell Group, recognised globally for the quality of its education, research and wider societal impact. With a large and diverse international community spanning multiple campuses, the University combines academic excellence with a vibrant, well‑established environment. Consistently ranked among the world’s leading universities, Southampton delivers education at scale while maintaining a strong focus on student experience, engagement and outcomes.

The University has a diverse estate, property and land portfolio spanning several campuses, including the main Highfield Campus, the City Centre Campus, Avenue Campus, the Boldrewood Innovation Campus, and the Winchester School of Art. The Estates & Facilities team ensures that the University’s built environment supports the activities of a world‑class institution, across a portfolio of academic, state‑of‑the‑art research, clinical, enterprise, workspace, residential, social, sporting and community facilities. Ambitious plans are underway, with a long‑term estates masterplan set to deliver c.£1bn of investment in a more sustainable and inclusive estate over the next decade.

Following the successful expansion of the Estate Development team in 2024 and 2025, the University is now entering the next phase of its growth, with the recruitment of additional Senior Project Managers and Project Managers.

Reporting to the Associate Directors of Estate Development, the Senior Project Manager role offers an excellent client‑side opportunity to lead and manage a diverse portfolio of refurbishment and new build projects, typically ranging from £1m to £30m, with the opportunity to support the delivery of major schemes up to £100m+. You will be responsible for overseeing projects from inception through design, construction and mobilisation, ensuring that programme, cost, quality and sustainability objectives are met.

The successful candidate will demonstrate a proven track record in the development and delivery of capital projects within complex physical and stakeholder environments. You will bring excellent communication skills, a collaborative and inclusive approach to stakeholder engagement, and a genuine commitment to delivering a high‑quality, future‑ready estate.

The University of Southampton is committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion. We believe that we can only truly meet our objectives if we are reflective of society, so we are passionate about creating a diverse environment. Therefore, we particularly encourage applications that will continue to strengthen the diversity of our governing body. We are a Stonewall Diversity Champion and are immensely proud to have been awarded an institutional Athena SWAN silver award, which underpins our pledge to improve equality for women. We are also delighted to have received the Race Equality Charter bronze award from Advance HE, which recognises that we have a solid foundation for eliminating racial inequalities and developing an inclusive culture that values all staff and students. We work with our people to ensure their ideas are always heard, and we invite you to share your background and life experiences with us to help us create a truly unique working environment.