Habs School - Director of Estates and Operations

Habs School - Director of Estates and Operations

Director of Estates and Operations

Candidate Information Pack

About us We are Habs, a strong, happy and supportive community, committed to the pursuit of excellence in education. We give talented and ambitious young people the opportunities they need to succeed in life. Our academic performance speaks for itself, but we know that great exam results are just the beginning. A Habs education prepares young people for fulfilment in a world that demands flexibility, creativity, resilience and critical thought. Habs Girls and Boys step into that world with confidence, ready to shape the future and open to a lifetime of new experiences. Our horizons are wide. We are a diverse community and we nurture a global perspective and a deep sense of responsibility for the world in which our pupils will lead and succeed. The schools are co-located on a 100-acre campus in the greenbelt of North London/South Hertfordshire with approx. 2,600 students from aged 4-18 and over 500 staff on site. These are two of the largest independent day school in the country. They are busy and dynamic schools, with a wide-ranging estates and operations team, supporting the daily school life.

The Habs Family

Pre-Prep School

Prep School

Junior Girls School

Senior Girls School

Senior Boys School

Exceptional facilities

The Medburn Centre, a state-of-the-art sports complex, provides a staggering range of facilities including half-Olympic-size pool, indoor rock walls, fitness suite and squash courts, enabling every pupil to discover their own sporting passion. The Medburn Centre also houses Joe's, our very own university style cafe.

Habs is situated in an idyllic, 100-acre campus in Elstree, Hertfordshire, just outside London. From our purpose-built TW Taylor Music School to the professional cricket squares and floodlit astro-turf, pitches for hockey, tennis and football from our open, contemporary library to the fully-equipped stage with a 15-foot flytower; from the Willow Dome and Solai Woodland Trail to the Prep's outdoor classroom, Habs offers the very best teaching and learning facilities.

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I’d never played squash before I came to Habs but now it’s my first-choice sport. I was really proud to be able to play in the Lower School competition this year. YEAR 8 PUPIL

Our Future At Habs we are constantly looking for opportunities to reach new heights in providing for our pupils’ changing needs. The school is committed to providing outstanding education. In 2016, the completion of the Medburn Centre enhanced our already excellent sports facilities, helping to ensure that every pupil can pursue their fitness goals. We have just completed a state-of-the art academic hub in the Senior School. It will offer innovative accommodation for English, Maths, Modern Languages, Economics and Theology and Philosophy, as well as a sensational new Drama Studio. The next exciting phase of development on campus will be bringing our Pre-Prep School, which is currently based in St Albans, to the Elstree site, whilst maintaining its separate private space. We will be constructing a bespoke, eco-friendly Pre prep building. We are looking to respect and respond to the environment and have developed from the concept of ‘learn, nurture, grow’. We also launched an exciting 10-year strategy, which is available to read. Our plans do not stop here. The evolution of Habs is a continuing journey to excellence.

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We provide the best so that our pupils are inspired to be their best. State-of-the-art surroundings nurture their interests and excite new ones, continuing and creating afresh the Habs traditions of achievement and innovation.

GUS LOCK HEADMASTER

OUR VALUES Values are what we hold dear as a school, the core beliefs that we stand for.

We set our sights high in terms of what we want to achieve as individuals and as a community, in and outside the classroom, aspiring to achieve our full potential in whatever we put our minds to.

Ambition

We believe in the courage to face challenge, embrace opportunity and step out of our comfort zones to grow and become our best selves, whilst also having courage in our conviction, remaining true to our moral compass and what we believe is the right thing to do.

Courage

We are driven by an unending desire to learn and improve. We believe that growth comes from not standing still, but having an open and enquiring mind to anything we face.

Curiosity

Since we were founded, we have had an inherent responsibility to our diverse internal and wider community and continue to dedicate ourselves to nurturing and supporting each other to be our best selves.

Community

The Role

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the Director of Finance and Resources and a Supportive Governing Body. In this high-profile role, the postholder will be responsible for managing the estates of both Schools, as well as ensuring the smooth running of daily operations of the Schools to meet the educational strategy of the two Heads.

The Director of Estates and Operations will be responsible for all aspects of the Schools’ estates, facilities and operations working across the two schools on the 100 acre Elstree campus. Reporting to the COO the successful candidate will be expected to develop and deliver the strategic plans for its estates, and operations providing the highest standards of leadership and management for the department. They will have first-class organizational skills and be a capable and effective user of IT. The successful candidate will be creative and innovative, capable of driving change and be able to capture efficiencies whilst ensuring the highest quality of delivery coupled with strong customer service. The Director will also lead the commercial strategy so an individual who is commercially minded would be advantageous. The role is key to supporting the two Heads to deliver their educational strategy by ensuring the daily operations of the schools run smoothly and safely and that the Schools’ facilities are presented to the highest standard for use by students, staff, parents and external hirers. Key deliverables:

Strategic Management

• Lead the development and delivery of the Estates and Facilities Strategy, including commercial activity. • Prepare written reports for trustees/governors and senior leaders regarding the Estates strategy and development plans and other matters including to the Estates and Infrastructure Committee. • Ensure that the Schools’ priorities and policies relating to the Estate department are leading- edge. • Be responsible for strategic risk management relating to the Estates department and the property portfolio.

Leadership

• Provide inspiring leadership to motivate, develop and support the Estates, facilities and operational teams • Ensure that the necessary skills and competency levels are in place, developed or acquired within each team

• Ensure the department has a strong culture of customer service. • Review and improve the organisation of the department including the current working procedures and practices, management of records and related matters. • Overall management of staff and sub-contractors involved in a broad range of key functions including the management of catering, cleaning, estates, grounds, facilities, lettings and the Schools’ coach operations • Oversight of the effective management of contractors and contracts ensuring service delivery, value for money and compliance requirements. Where appropriate agree contracts including Key Performance Indicators. • Effectively manage regulatory compliance for the Schools’ estate and operations, ensuring health and safety standards are met. • Develop and implement processes and continuing improvement strategies that develop staff, services, and quality, promoting efficient and effective use of resources. Service Delivery • Promote customer focused and responsive reactive maintenance services that are cost effective and of a high quality. • Conduct or instruct condition surveys, as required, and develop annual, planned preventative and long-term maintenance programmes for all buildings and facilities. • Ensure an appropriate management system to assist with planned maintenance and inspections/testing, the maintenance request/fault reporting system, and stock purchase/ control. • Ensure a routine maintenance programme for the estate is prepared and implemented including programming of relevant condition surveys • Ensure the grounds meet the needs of the Schools’ strategy for sports and broader use.

Budget Management

• Have ultimate oversight of Estates and Operations budget capital expenditure and revenue expenditure including the annual repairs and maintenance budget (in liaison with the COO and Director of Finance and Resources). • Have budgetary control of the operational departments, ensuring that all departments are actively engaged in the annual financial planning cycle, and have a good understanding of budgets, forecasts, and variances. • Identify and implement efficiency savings across all operational departments within your control. • Management of the coach, catering, cleaning and gardening contracts to ensure they are operating at the required service levels and offer value for money.

Environmental Sustainability

• Lead on the development and implementation of the schools’ environmental sustainability strategy. • Lead on the Schools’ environmental impact and energy consumption targets. • Manage the utilities account and ensure the Schools’ are receiving value for money.

Letting and Events

• Develop and implement a commercial strategy for the Schools. • Oversight of the management of events and lettings of all facilities, both within the schools’ and to the wider local community. • Promote the commercial and community use of the Schools’ facilities in line with the Schools’ lettings strategy and partnership programme. • Develop effective mechanisms to gather feedback from users, as part of a system of continuous improvement.

Person Specification

• Experience of facilities and estates management ideally with a professional qualification in estates or facilities management • High levels of numeracy and literacy • Experience of financial management and budgeting • Project management experience (in respect of properties), with the ability to prioritise multiple tasks and have a proactive approach to ensure deadlines are met. A formal project management qualification would be desirable. • Excellent relationship building skills with internal and external stakeholders. • Planning– able to accurately scope out length and difficulty of tasks and projects. Sets objectives and goals. Measures performance against goals. • Effective client liaison skills; working with external partners/supplier – local companies, fulfilment partners, and suppliers. • Proven ability to liaise, co-ordinate and disseminate quality information across a range of disciplines. • People management – a leader and team player, with the skills to get the most out of the people who work with you, and for you. • A client-focused approach to operational strategy and service delivery with the ability to engage with and influence business strategy; anticipating and determining the direction and priorities of strategic thinking in a complex environment with competing demands • Strong commercial understanding with the ability to mange complex contracts. Strong understanding of supplier management and procurement processes.

Application Process To arrange a confidential conversation, please contact our retained advisors Hayley Mintern or Melanie Pye at MRG.

Hayley Mintern [email protected] 07530 680 184

Melanie Pye [email protected] 07530 734 568 Applications should consist of a comprehensive CV.

The closing date is Sunday 28th August 2022 Informal interviews will w/c 5th September Formal interviews will be w/c 12th September The Management Recruitment Group has been retained, as our exclusive advisor for this appointment and any third party or direct applications will be forwarded to them. Habs is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of its pupils and expects all employees to share this commitment. All employees must be willing to undergo child protection training and screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service.