UPP - Head of Accommodation

UPP - Head of Accommodation

HEAD OF ACCOMMODATION SERVICES (UNIVERSITY OF READING)

CANDIDATE BRIEFING PACK

JANUARY 2021

UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

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Introduction to University Partnerships Programme

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Our Partnerships

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The Student Experience

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The role of Head of Accommodation Services

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Job description and person specification

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Benefits of working at UPP

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Further Information and Application Process

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UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

Introduction

We are the UK’s leading provider of on-campus residential and academic accommodation infrastructure. We have over 36,000 rooms in operation or under construction through long-term, bespoke partnerships with 15 world-leading universities. With over 1000 employees, since 1998 UPP has invested well over £3bn in the UK higher education sector and provided homes to over 400,000 students. Our unique, long-term partnership approach enables our university partners to develop their estates whilst reinvesting in their core services of teaching and research. We design, build, finance and operate (DBFO) new, on-campus residential and academic infrastructure, and complete estate transfers of existing accommodation, for concession periods ranging from 40 years to 125 years. By providing high-quality and affordable accommodation on campus we aim to deliver the very best student experience in partnership with universities.

Our Vision

To be the UK’s leading student accommodation provider working with the trust and confidence of our university partners. To deliver on this ambitious vision, we have three strategic aims: 1. To drive operational excellence throughout our Business. 2. To delight our university partners through the services we provide to them and their students. 3. To generate value for our investors to enable them to further invest in the growth of our Business. To achieve the aims, we all need to focus on six strategic priorities: 1. Student experience – to provide an easy-to-access, reliable and excellent student experience. 2. Partnership – to develop and maintain highly-effective university partnerships. 3. Our people – to develop a safe, highly-engaged, skilled and collaborative organisation. 4. Accommodation – to apply effective asset management to provide good-quality accommodation. 5. Continuous improvement – to promote a culture of continuous improvement by embracing technology, innovation and efficiencies. 6. Development – to ensure highly-effective development, design and construction capabilities.

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UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

Student Experience

Great space and services with student experience built in. Our partnerships support universities to create environments within which students can live, study and thrive. We manage the needs of more than 35,000 students every term so we never stop learning and we share our experience with our partners. We also know that every University is as unique as the thousands of students it serves and this ensures that we are never complacent, and never take a one size fits all view.

Listening, responding, adapting Students can be demanding and their needs constantly evolve.

Independent qualitative and quantitative research helps us understand the evolving needs of students and face to face focus groups, and regular surveys with our residents enable us to check and adapt our approach quickly. As specialists, the quality of our staff and their in-depth understanding of the unique environment and the people for whom we provide services, enables us to support universities, understand their aims and their strategy and together deliver tangible improvements to the student experience. Our design teams work to understand how students want to use space, and how they interact with each other, leading to seemingly small improvements to the specification of a bedroom, or major changes that impact on construction or technology. At UPP we aim to deliver great places to live, with student experience literally built in.

Long-term, stable growth

Our clearly defined strategy for growth is based on our overarching mission to be the strategic partner of choice in the delivery of infrastructure and asset management services to UK universities. Our model is focused on long-term partnerships, supporting universities in improving the quality of their physical infrastructure and services to students. In aligning the interests of both parties, our unique approach provides security in the delivery of revenues and in turn, expected returns to investors. Our strategy will: • Grow the number of partnerships we have with selected universities • Increase the number of student rooms under management • Deepen the existing relationships we enjoy with our current partners • Invest in our staff to ensure we deliver the best customer service • Develop new and innovative ways of funding infrastructure projects • Identify new revenue streams and increase the value of existing revenue streams • Develop innovative solutions for the non-residential requirements of our partners • Wrest the economic benefits of ever more effective procurement

Our University Partners

University of Reading Imperial College London

4,982 Rooms / Accommodation Office / FM Services

1,172 Rooms / FM Services

Lancaster University

4,347 Rooms / Eco-Residences / FM services 2,038 Rooms / Eco-Residences / FM Services

Leeds Beckett University Loughborough University Nottingham Trent University Oxford Brookes University

1,310 Rooms / FM Services

4,402 Rooms / Academic / Retail / FM Services

771 Rooms / FM Services

Plymouth University University of Exeter University of Kent

1,764 Rooms / Academic / FM Services 3,555 Rooms / Academic / FM Services

1,840 Rooms / Eco-Residences / Academic / FM Services

University of Nottingham

2,223 Rooms / FM Services 1,043 Rooms / FM Services 1,711 Rooms / FM Services

University of York

University of London University of Hull Swansea University

1,750 Rooms

2,472 Rooms / FM Services

Our Companies

UPP comprises three business units, with corporate services supporting each unit and the Group:

UPP Management Asset Management UPP Residential Services Residential Services UPP Projects Commercial

UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

The Role of Head of Accommodation Services

UPP has worked with the University of Reading since 2000, with a sector leading Estate Transfer of the residential estate completing in 2012. Through our 125 year partnership, we provide specialist residential management services to 4982 rooms currently. Our range of services include the provision of maintenance and housekeeping to all on campus accommodation, as well as a 24 hour helpdesk and the accommodation office function. The estate is diverse with halls dating from 1908 to the most recently built hall being completed in 2014. The UPP Reading team consists of c. 170 team members, with 9 colleagues dedicated to the allocations and marketing function. Our student facing accommodation website is at https://www.reading.ac.uk/ready-to-study/accommodation.aspx. The Head of Accommodation Services will lead the management of the Accommodation team, with the principal focus on delivery of an efficient occupancy, allocations, marketing and administration service, achieving maximum occupancy levels and high satisfaction levels across the UPP University of Reading portfolio which is made up of thirteen halls of residence based on campus. Promoting and encouraging effective relationships, communication and liaison with key stakeholders, especially between the Accommodation Team, the University’s Accommodation Contract Management team, welfare support teams and other UPP operational teams is vital to the success of the role. We are seeking an individual with demonstrable experience of leading occupancy, allocation and service delivery across a large- scale student accommodation or residential accommodation portfolio. The role calls for a customer focused individual with excellent interpersonal and communication skills and a proven track record of successful stakeholder engagement and relationship management. You will have the proven ability to lead, manage and develop customer focused teams.

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UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAMME

Job Description

Job Title

Head of Accommodation Services

Reports To

Regional Director

Location UPP Reading Business Unit Residential Services

Job Purpose Reporting to the Regional Director (Reading and Oxford), the Head of Accommodation Services for Reading is responsible for maximising the occupancy of the student accommodation portfolio, current comprising 4982 rooms. They are responsible for the management of the Accommodation team and office, with the principal focus on delivery of an efficient marketing, occupancy, allocations and administration service, achieving maximum occupancy levels at the University of Reading in line with the Service Level Agreement. Working with the support from their team, they will monitor and appraise service delivery to ensure effective systems and processes are in place to meet the agreed SLA and to promote continuous improvemen and enhance the customer experience whilst working to deliver the strategic aims of the University in respect of accommodation allocation. The Head of Accommodation Services will act as the day to day contact for the University and Contractor Representatives in respect of all accommodation sales and allocations matters. Promoting and encouraging effective relationships, communication and liaison with key stakeholders, especially between the Accommodation Team, the University’s Accommodation Contract Management team, welfare support teams and other UPP operational teams is vital to the success of the role.

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