Head of Programme Delivery

We’re looking for a Head of Programme Delivery to lead the development and approach for landscape-scale delivery at the Trust, focussing on outcomes for nature, climate and people. This is an exciting time to join the Trust, to make a real impact leading high-profile, high-impact and complex programmes.

What it's like to work here:We’re bigger than you think, we’re more complicated than we appear and we’re larger scale than you’d imagine. We’ve got passionate people in all our teams, and we’ve got so much more we want to achieve. We’re for ever, for everyone and we really mean that. We don’t want to stop at 5.7 million members and we want everyone to feel welcome and enjoy access to our places.

We care for the places we look after forever, and this means taking the long view. So one of our highest priorities is to make a practical difference in combatting climate change - at our places, in how we run our business and beyond our boundaries by engaging people. To succeed in our growing strategic ambitions for nature recovery and climate impact we need to do much more landscape-scale work and focus on building and maintaining partnerships with organisations and people that share our values and want to join us in big, ambitious joint endeavours.

Your contractual location will be our head office in Swindon, however there will be an opportunity to explore and agree hybrid working arrangements which strike the right balance for you and the Trust. The role will involve travel to our head office to meet with stakeholders and to carry out work.

What you'll be doing:This role would suit someone who can successfully broker, engage and maintain external partnership relationships, identifying the most influential partners for the National Trust’s agenda and to position the Trust as a credible player in creating positive change. You’ll lead for the creation of new relationships with national stakeholders, including environmental sector partners, national and local government, major funders and investors, and the private sector.

You’ll provide leadership for programmes by energetically driving the formulation of the vision, developing a programme organisation and a structure capable of delivering real outcomes, whilst ensuring brilliant monitoring and assurance. This is high profile work, and highly visible at senior Director and Executive Team levels.

There is an existing stable of exciting programmes to pick up and lead, including our growing Riverlands Programme, in partnership with the Environment Agency, to the fast-paced and high-impact Green Recovery Challenge Fund work across selected property portfolios (a £multi-million Defra-funded set of interventions driving climate and nature outcomes). You’ll also be a key player in supporting property groups with significant headroom for climate and nature outcomes to deliver pioneering landscape-scale delivery.

You will have a small but highly capable core team, and the work involves the direct line management of these people, and a likely growing cadre of relevant Senior Project Managers assigned to the programme and other high level technical expertise. The success of the role will be most keenly felt in how you manage ‘in the matrix’, galvanising those outside your line to be involved and to deliver for and with you.
- Who we're looking forYou will have experience of successfully delivering complex end to end project / programme management including defining resources, leading multi-million £ procurement, securing project teams and matrix management, across multiple projects/programmes.
- Ideally, you will hold a recognised project (ChPP /AMP PPQ or PMQ) or programme management (MSP) qualification, and at the very least be able to demonstrate tangible success in setting up and then delivering complex projects and programmes and show evidence of ongoing CPD in your career to date
- You will have a track record in facilitating knowledge transfer - both individually and across an organisation and have experience mentoring others in the project and programme management profession
- You will possess excellent communication, problem solving and influencing skills and be managing complex and contentious external stakeholder relationships.

The packageThe National Trust has the motto ‘For everyone, for ever’ at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.
- Flexible working whenever possible
- Free parking at most locations
- Free entry to our properties for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
- Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary

Requirements :Compliance.Eligibility to Work in the UK