Technical Services Manager

British Museum; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 51,000 - 69,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free exhibition entry

Civil Service Pension Scheme

25 days’ annual leave

Discounts at onsite catering and shops

Social and wellbeing perks

Learning and development opportunities

Enhanced parental leave

Carers support

Job summary

The British Museum is seeking a Technical Services Lead to oversee building services, compliance and infrastructure across its historic estate. You will guide maintenance programs, manage external suppliers and liaise with contractors and internal teams to ensure safe, reliable operations.

Join a world‑leading cultural institution and help shape continuous improvement, sustainability and resilience across the museum’s estate while leading a small team and coordinating capital projects.

Qualifications

• Educated to degree or professional qualification level in a relevant subject, or equivalent strategic experience in facilities management.
• Experience in technical services and facilities management within heritage or complex environments.
• Strong knowledge of building services, compliance, regulations, health and safety.
• Experience managing third‑party facilities management suppliers and contracts for listed buildings.

Responsibilities

• Act as technical services expert, advising on building services, compliance and case-specific infrastructure.
• Oversee planned and reactive maintenance and monitor statutory inspections and remedial works.
• Manage supplier performance through SLAs, KPIs, audits and NEC4 communications.
• Review project briefs for technical soundness, alignment and value for money; hand over completed projects.
• Lead line management, continuous improvement, sustainability and emergency response.

Skills

Degree or professional qualification

Facilities management experience

Heritage sector experience

Listed buildings knowledge

Stakeholder leadership

Communication of technical matters

Education

Degree or professional qualification in facilities management

Job description

Vacancy Type Permanent Contract length Permanent Working Pattern Full Time Is hybrid working available? Yes If hybrid how many days on site minimum? at least 4 days per week on-site in Bloomsbury, London Location Bloomsbury, London (Hybrid) Salary £60,256 per annum Application Deadline Sunday, November 29, 2026 Job Profile Job Profile document

Role Summary

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity to take a leading role in the management of technical services across the British Museum’s complex Grade I listed estate. As the Museum’s technical services expert, you will ensure that our buildings and systems are maintained effectively, remain compliant with statutory requirements and support the needs of a world-leading cultural institution.

You will provide authoritative technical advice, oversee the performance of the Museum’s third-party facilities management supplier and act as a key interface between the Museum, contractors, consultants and internal stakeholders. You will also contribute technical expertise to maintenance, infrastructure and capital projects, while helping to modernise processes, strengthen documentation and address backlog maintenance.

The role includes line management of the Assistant Technical Services Manager and offers the opportunity to shape continuous improvement, sustainability and operational resilience across the Museum’s technical services.

About you

• Educated to degree or professional qualification level in a relevant subject, or with equivalent experience at a strategic level in Facilities Management with membership of relevant professional bodies (CIBSE, BIFM, IET etc.)
• Experience in technical services and facilities management within a heritage, cultural or similarly complex built environment.
• Have a detailed understanding of building services, including their design, operation and maintenance, together with strong knowledge of statutory compliance, building regulations, health and safety and fire safety requirements.
• Knowledge of working with Grade I or Grade II listed buildings and experience managing third-party facilities management suppliers and contracts.
• You will be a confident and collaborative leader, able to manage outsourced teams, build effective stakeholder relationships and influence senior colleagues.
• You will be able to communicate complex technical matters clearly, take ownership of problems and manage competing priorities independently in a fast-moving environment.

Key areas of responsibility

• Act as the Museum’s technical services expert, providing advice on building services, statutory compliance, maintenance, operational risks and the technical requirements of infrastructure and capital projects.
• Ensure effective planned preventative and reactive maintenance across the estate, including the identification of critical infrastructure and the monitoring of statutory inspections and remedial works.
• Manage the performance of the hard facilities management supplier through service levels, key performance indicators, audits, customer feedback and NEC4 contractual communications, using CEMAR where required.
• Review technical proposals, project briefs and scopes of work to ensure they are technically sound, compliant, strategically aligned and provide value for money; oversee the technical approval and handover of completed projects.
• Lead and support the development of technical services through effective line management, continuous improvement, sustainability initiatives, energy management and an appropriate response to emergencies and urgent operational issues.

The Masterplan

The British Museum is undertaking its biggest transformation since its founding nearly 300 years ago. This physical and intellectual transformation includes large scale building and gallery transformation, new ways of connecting with audiences and different ways of working. As we look towards this exciting future, we remain guided by the words of our founder Hans Sloane - who dreamed of a museum connecting all arts and sciences, which would be accessible to everyone, everywhere.

Benefits

At the British Museum, we believe our people are at the heart of everything we do and have designed a benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary. Our full list of benefits can be found here , but we’ve outlined some highlights below:

• Free exhibition entry for you and guests, exclusive private views, ICOM and reciprocal museum access.
• Civil Service Pension Scheme defined benefit with considerable employer contribution.
• 25 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays and 2.5 privilege days (and +5 days after 10 years).
• Discounts at onsite catering, Museum shops and local Bloomsbury partners.
• Social and wellbeing perks including Staff parties, social clubs, CSSC sports and leisure, and support from the Civil Service Retirement Fellowship.
• Learning and development through courses, mentoring and Athena as well as support for professional qualifications.
• Enhanced parental leave including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave.
• Support for carers through Employers for Carers.

Values

Our values drive everything we do, from how we handle our objects to how we work in our team to fostering a culture where everyone feels heard and empowered:

• Care Deeply
• Embrace the Unknown
• Spark Curiosity
• Value Many Voices

These are a core part of how we recruit. Throughout the application, interview and selection process, we look for examples of how candidates demonstrate these behaviours in their own work and experiences. We encourage you to familiarise yourself with our values and reflect them in your application.

Additional information

If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of to support you with your application, please provide details to [e-mail] .

Right to Work

The British Museum holds a Skilled Worker sponsor licence. Applicants are responsible for determining whether the advertised salary and role meet current UKVI sponsorship requirements and for ensuring they have, or can obtain, the appropriate right to work in the UK. The Museum cannot provide immigration advice, and eligibility should be checked before submitting an application.

Internal Applicants

We welcome internal applicants regardless of background, department or length of service but encourage you to let your manager know before applying.

The Museum also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.