Senior Head of Estates Operations

📍 Location: Swansea (Hybrid)

💷 Salary: £69,501 - A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

🕒 Contract Type: Permanent – Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time

About the role

This is a senior leadership role responsible for overseeing estates operations across the DVLA, ensuring the delivery of safe, sustainable and customer-focused workplace services whilst also sitting within the DVLA’s wider Senior Leadership Team. Leading teams, suppliers and key stakeholders, the postholder will drive service excellence, continuous improvement and operational efficiency. The role spans Hard and Soft FM, Project Management, Travel and Security services, helping to shape the future workplace and deliver an exceptional environment for colleagues, visitors and partners.

Key Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Lead a team of workplace specialists who are responsible for estates contract management (hard and soft services) and project delivery across the DVLA.
• Working with the Head of Health & Safety to ensure a fully compliant approach to all estates related activities and projects to maintain a fully compliant estate.
• Instigate and deliver an improved culture of customer service throughout the Estates Management team, ensuring a continuous improvement, culture development and a positive approach to change across all Department’s operations and activities.
• Ensuring all Estates strategic contracts deliver to the standards set, and provide innovation and added value, enabling quality services across the estate.

Benefits

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary.
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

About you

• Demonstrate significant experience of leading and developing high-performing teams, managing operational activities across a complex estate or facilities management environment, and delivering results through others while fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement and customer service excellence.

• Provide evidence of successfully managing complex Hard and Soft Facilities Management contracts, supplier relationships and service providers, using performance data and stakeholder feedback to drive operational improvements, whilst leading large-scale service transitions, mobilisation programmes or organisational change initiatives.

• Demonstrate experience of developing and implementing estates or workplace strategies, building effective relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, and influencing senior leaders, contractors and partner organisations to achieve business objectives.

• Provide examples of ensuring compliance with Health & Safety, security, data protection and statutory requirements within a complex operational environment, while leading organisational change, developing capability within teams and supporting the delivery of long-term strategic objectives.

📅 Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 13th September 2026