East Surrey College Deputy Facilities Manager

Client Overview

East Surrey College is a leading Further Education institution committed to providing high-quality learning environments for students, staff and visitors. A safe, compliant and efficiently managed estate underpins the college’s ability to deliver strong educational outcomes.

To strengthen its Facilities and Estates function, East Surrey College engaged Maxwell Stephens to recruit a Deputy Facilities Manager: someone to support the Head of Facilities in the operational management of the campus, ensuring statutory compliance, service standards and the effective delivery of facilities management services across the estate. The appointment was critical to day-to-day operations, and carried leadership responsibility across facilities, compliance and health & safety activities.

The Challenge

The college needed a Deputy Facilities Manager who combined operational facilities management expertise with strong leadership and compliance knowledge, and who could help maintain a safe, secure and high-performing learning environment. Key areas of responsibility included:

• Facilities and estates management
• Health, safety and statutory compliance
• Team leadership and supervision
• Contractor and supplier management
• Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) oversight
• Reactive maintenance coordination
• Security management and CCTV oversight
• Fire safety and emergency preparedness
• Risk assessments and safeguarding support
• Budget and resource management
• Inventory and stock control
• Continuous improvement and digital transformation initiatives

The role called for someone able to balance strategic support with hands-on operational delivery while leading Premises Officers and facilities personnel. Strong knowledge of compliance, safeguarding and health & safety legislation was essential, as was the ability to deputise for the Head of Facilities when required.

Deputy roles in education estates are harder to fill than their grade suggests. The person has to be credible on the ground with the premises team and credible in the office when standing in for the Head of Facilities, and in a college setting safeguarding sits alongside the usual compliance obligations. Candidates who are strong on all three fronts are not common.

Our Approach

Understanding the Requirement

Maxwell Stephens worked closely with East Surrey College to build a detailed understanding of the role, the operational challenges and the culture of the organisation. The successful candidate would need to demonstrate strong facilities management capability, leadership skills and a genuine commitment to supporting educational environments.

Specialist Search

Drawing on our extensive facilities management and education sector network, we conducted a targeted search for candidates with experience across facilities management, educational estates, health & safety compliance, contractor management, premises and site operations, security and fire safety, maintenance management, team leadership and operational facilities support. Particular emphasis was placed on people who had worked within educational or similarly regulated environments, where safety, compliance and service delivery are paramount.

Candidate Assessment

Candidates were assessed against a comprehensive range of technical, operational and leadership competencies:

• Facilities and estates management expertise
• Health, safety and safeguarding knowledge
• Contractor and supplier management capability
• Team supervision and people management experience
• Compliance and risk management awareness
• Emergency response and incident management
• Budget and resource management skills
• Problem-solving and operational decision-making ability

The assessment focused on identifying an individual capable of supporting both the day-to-day requirements of the estate and the college’s long-term facilities objectives.

The Outcome

Maxwell Stephens placed an experienced Deputy Facilities Manager with a strong background in facilities operations, compliance management and team leadership, bringing the technical expertise and leadership capability needed to support the effective management of the college estate. Key strengths included:

• Extensive facilities management experience
• Strong health, safety and compliance knowledge
• Proven leadership and team management capability
• Experience managing contractors and maintenance programmes
• A strong understanding of security and fire safety systems
• Effective budget and resource management skills
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication
• A proactive, service-focused approach

Following their appointment, the Deputy Facilities Manager integrated quickly into the Facilities team and took on responsibility for supporting operational performance across the college estate.

Results Delivered

East Surrey College now has a Deputy Facilities Manager capable of supporting operational performance while helping to drive continuous improvement across the estate.

Why This Placement Worked

Deputy facilities appointments succeed when the brief is honest about both halves of the job. This search assessed candidates on the operational detail — PPM, reactive maintenance, security, fire safety — and on the judgement needed to deputise, lead a premises team and hold safeguarding and compliance responsibilities in an educational setting. Recruiting for the whole role, rather than the easier half, is what produced the fit.

Maxwell Stephens supports schools, colleges, universities and educational organisations with specialist recruitment across facilities management, estates management, health & safety compliance, contractor management, premises operations and strategic facilities leadership, from deputy facilities managers upwards. If you are recruiting a similar role, get in touch with our team.