Strategic Head of Estates & Facilities (Multi-Site)

Nigel Wright Recruitment; North East; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous holiday

Pension scheme

Job summary

North East Learning Trust is seeking an ambitious Head of Estates in County Durham to lead estates and facilities across 15 academy sites. Reporting to the Director of Estates, you will drive maintenance, compliance, and capital projects to deliver safe, high-performing learning environments.

This senior role offers strategic influence, multi-site leadership, and opportunities to shape estates strategy while managing budgets, contracts, and suppliers across the trust.

Qualifications

• Experience leading hard and soft FM services across multiple sites.
• Strong knowledge of compliance, health & safety and estates governance.
• Experience managing budgets, contracts and suppliers.
• Track record of delivering operational improvements.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement with senior and operational levels.
• Qualified in Facilities, Construction or related discipline.

Responsibilities

• Leading estates operations across maintenance, cleaning, security, catering and site services.
• Driving compliance across health & safety, fire safety and statutory obligations.
• Managing contractor performance, procurement and service delivery standards.
• Supporting the delivery of capital projects and planned maintenance programmes.
• Leading and developing estates and site teams across multiple locations.
• Working closely with senior stakeholders to ensure estates support high-quality service delivery.

Skills

Estates leadership

Facilities management

Stakeholder engagement

Budget management

Contract management

Multi-site leadership

Regulatory compliance

Capital project delivery

Education

Facilities/Construction qualification

Job description

North East Learning Trust is seeking an ambitious Head of Estates in County Durham to lead estates and facilities across 15 academy sites. Reporting to the Director of Estates, you will drive maintenance, compliance, and capital projects to deliver safe, high-performing learning environments.

This senior role offers strategic influence, multi-site leadership, and opportunities to shape estates strategy while managing budgets, contracts, and suppliers across the trust.