Background
Richmond and Hillcroft Adult Community College (RHACC) is one of the UK's leading providers of adult education, delivering a diverse range of academic, vocational and community learning programmes. With a strong commitment to its learners and the wider community, the college operates a significant estate that plays a central role in the educational experience it offers.
To support its continued development and long-term strategic objectives, RHACC asked Maxwell Stephens to recruit a Head of Estates: a senior appointment to lead the management of its estate, facilities and compliance functions while keeping operational standards aligned with the college's community-focused mission.
The Challenge
RHACC needed an experienced Head of Estates who could provide both strategic leadership and operational oversight across its estate portfolio. The successful candidate would have to balance day-to-day facilities management with longer-term estate planning, so that buildings, infrastructure and services continued to support students, staff and the wider community.
The remit covered:
- Strategic estates management and facilities management leadership
- Health, safety and statutory compliance
- Estates service desk management
- Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) programmes and reactive maintenance oversight
- Contractor and supplier management
- Budget management and financial control
- Estates policy development and implementation
- Capital planning and asset management
- Team leadership and development
- Customer service and stakeholder engagement
The role called for a senior estates and facilities professional able to lead a high-performing team while maintaining compliance, operational efficiency and good service across the college estate. Strong leadership capability, commercial awareness and a customer-focused approach were essential, together with the ability to develop long-term estates strategies that supported the organisation's future growth.
Head of Estates roles in education carry a particular tension. The estate has to run reliably around a teaching timetable and a community of users who did not choose the building, while capital and maintenance budgets are usually tighter than in the commercial sector. Candidates from a purely corporate background often underestimate the second half of that; candidates who have only ever run reactive maintenance often lack the first.
Our Approach
Understanding the requirement
Maxwell Stephens worked closely with RHACC's senior leadership team to build a full understanding of the role, the organisational culture and the strategic objectives behind the appointment. It was clear that the successful candidate would need to show not only strong technical estates expertise but also a genuine commitment to the college's community-focused values and educational mission.
Search
Drawing on our estates and facilities management network, we ran a targeted search for candidates with experience across estates management, education sector facilities management, health & safety leadership, asset and property management, contractor and supplier management, strategic estates planning, budget and financial management, compliance and risk management, and team leadership and service delivery. Particular emphasis went on people with a proven ability to lead an estates function while delivering operational improvements and a high standard of customer service.
Assessment
Candidates were assessed against a range of technical, leadership and behavioural competencies:
- Estates and facilities management expertise
- Health, safety and compliance knowledge
- Strategic planning and policy development capability
- Budget management and commercial awareness
- Team leadership and staff development
- Contractor and supplier management experience
- Customer service and stakeholder engagement skills
- Communication and organisational effectiveness
The process was designed to identify an individual capable of supporting both the operational demands of the estate and the long-term ambitions of the college.
The Outcome
Maxwell Stephens appointed an experienced Head of Estates who brought a strong combination of technical expertise, leadership capability and customer-focused service delivery. The successful candidate had extensive experience managing estates operations and a proven record of leading teams, developing policies and driving continuous improvement. Their strengths included:
- Extensive estates and facilities management experience
- Strong health, safety and compliance expertise
- Proven leadership of operational and technical teams
- Experience developing and implementing estates strategies
- Strong budget management and financial control capability
- Effective contractor and supplier management skills
- Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication abilities
- A proactive, service-led leadership style
Following the appointment, the Head of Estates took responsibility for the strategic and operational management of the college's estate, helping to strengthen service delivery, compliance and long-term planning.
Results Delivered
The appointment delivered benefits across the college's estates function, including:
- Stronger leadership of estates and facilities operations
- Improved responsiveness through effective service desk management
- Stronger health, safety and statutory compliance performance
- Improved contractor and supplier oversight
- Better policy development and operational governance
- Closer alignment between estates services and organisational objectives
- Improved team performance and service delivery standards
- Firmer foundations for future estate development and investment
The placement gave RHACC a Head of Estates capable of running the estate well day to day while supporting the college's long-term vision for growth, community engagement and educational success.
Why This Placement Worked
The search was framed around the college's mission as much as its buildings. Assessing for strategic planning, policy development and budget control alongside the operational disciplines meant the shortlist was made up of people who could lead an estates function rather than simply run one, and who understood what an education estate is for.
Maxwell Stephens supports colleges, universities, schools and educational organisations with specialist recruitment across estates, facilities and property management, including Head of Estates appointments, estates management, facilities management leadership, education sector facilities, health & safety compliance, asset & property management, contractor management and strategic estates leadership. If you are recruiting a senior estates leader for an education setting, get in touch with our team.