About this role
Job summary
Gloucestershire Managed Services (GMS) is seeking an experienced and ambitious Head of Estates to provide strategic and operational leadership for Estates Services at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and associated sites. This is an exciting opportunity to influence the future development, sustainability and resilience of a complex acute healthcare estate.
This senior leadership role supports the Associate Director of Estates in ensuring hospital properties are safe, operational, and compliant with statutory, regulatory and NHS requirements. You will provide visible leadership, manage a large workforce, oversee specialist contractors, and take responsibility for safety-critical systems, including heating, ventilation (HVAC), air conditioning, decontamination, medical gases, fire detection, fire safety, water, electrical LV, electrical HV, pressure systems, lift systems, air pod systems, environmental and energy management.
You will contribute to strategic estates planning, lifecycle asset management, sustainability and Net Zero initiatives, service improvement programmes, and the effective management of significant budgets, contracts and resources. Flexibility is essential, including participation in the senior manager on call rota.
Please note this job will attract GMS Terms and Conditions of Service (TCS)
Please see attached TCS for reference
Main duties of the job
- Ensure facilities remain safe, compliant, and operational in accordance with statutory, regulatory and NHS guidance.
- Lead a multi-disciplinary workforce and specialist contractors, ensuring effective performance and delivery.
- Take responsibility for safety critical hospital systems such as fire detection and alarm systems, fire safety, HVAC, lift systems, safe water, medical gases, LV and HV electrical systems, pressure systems, decontamination POD systems and other engineering infrastructure.
- Manage budgets, contracts, and resources to support high-quality, cost-effective Estates Services.
- Lead strategic estates planning, service improvement programmes, lifecycle asset management and business continuity arrangements across GMS-managed sites.
- Contribute to the senior manager on-call rota, responding to incidents and emergencies as required
- Provide estates leadership and assurance for capital projects, reviewing design proposals and ensuring compliance with statutory requirements, technical standards and operational needs.
About us
At GMS, we support frontline healthcare by keeping hospitals and healthcare facilities safe, functional, and welcoming.
This is an opportunity to play a key role in supporting patient care by ensuring critical healthcare infrastructure remains safe, resilient and fit for the future.
As part of our senior management team, you will:
- Shape the estates strategy and lead its operational deliver
- Lead a multi-disciplinary estates team across multiple sites
- Engage with a wide range of stakeholders including contractors, regulators, and internal departments.
We offer:
- Professional development opportunities and specialist estates training.
- Work-life balance with 24 days' annual leave plus 8 bank holidays (increasing with service) and an extra paid volunteering day each year.
- Pension scheme with a total contribution of 10% (4% employee, 1% tax relief, 5% GMS).
- Employee benefits, including salary sacrifice schemes, discounted travel, childcare (subject to availability), and wellbeing support.
Job description Job responsibilities
As Head of Estates, your responsibilities will include:
- Lead delivery of Estates Services across engineering, compliance, fire safety, energy, environmental management, and building maintenance.
- Ensure compliance with statutory legislation, NHS standards, NHS Health Technical Memoranda (HTMs), NHS Health Building Notes and British Standards.
- Ensure robust asset management, compliance reporting and maintenance records are maintained through CAFM systems.
- Oversee risk management processes, providing advice and implementing mitigation strategies.
- Lead estates risk management, lifecycle planning and infrastructure improvement programmes to support long-term operational resilience.
- Manage budgets, contracts, capital projects and resources to ensure cost-effective delivery.
- Deliver Estates Services that achieve agreed KPIs and SLAs.
- Provide visible and effective leadership, ensuring staff are motivated, skilled and aligned with GMS values.
- Support sustainability and decarbonisation programmes aligned to NHS Net Zero objectives.
- Liaise with Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (GHNHSFT) colleagues, regulators, and contractors to maintain high levels of service.
- Support the Associate Director of Estates in strategic planning, operational decision making, and organisational change.
- Participate fully in the senior manager on-call rota and respond effectively to emergencies or major incidents.
Person Specification
Qualifications Essential
Educated to Master's Degree level or equivalent experience Post-graduate management qualification or equivalent knowledge
Desirable
Membership of a relevant professional body/bodies e.g. CIOB, RICS, RIBA, IHEEM, CIBSE, IWFM Evidence of continuing professional development Relevant specialist estates management, sustainability or statutory compliance training
Experience Essential
Senior estates management experience within healthcare or another large complex operational environment Experience leading and developing multi-disciplinary teams Experience managing safety-critical engineering infrastructure Experience delivering estates change programmes, service improvements or capital projects
Desirable
Experience managing major contracts, procurement activity and external suppliers
Knowledge/ Skills Essential
Knowledge of statutory compliance, health & safety legislation and governance requirements applicable to Estates Services Knowledge of safety-critical engineering and building infrastructure systems Ability to provide strategic leadership, risk management and operational decision-making within a complex environment Ability to analyse complex information and communicate recommendations to senior stakeholders
Desirable
Knowledge of NHS Health Technical Memoranda (HTMs), Health Building Notes (HBNs) and healthcare estates standards
Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Employer details Employer name Gloucestershire Managed Services
Address Trustwide
Gloucestershire
GL1 3NN
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/gloucestershire-managed-services/ (Opens in a new tab)