Education Design Management Lead

Overview

Join to apply for the Education Design Management Lead role at BAM UK & Ireland. This position reports to the Regional Director and supports regional education teams and the framework team. The role oversees design management discipline, drives consistency, innovation, and efficiency across multi‑project design delivery, and ensures compliance with client requirements, design standards, and governance processes.

Responsibilities

• Demonstrate design management leadership qualities in a team environment and manage design processes in construction frameworks.
• Work with BAM’s digital team to champion our digital platform solution, transforming quality, time, and cost in the educational sector, especially for DFE schools. Lead how we share and host platform information with teams and consultants (Yellow Book).
• Embrace and promote DFMA and MMC to support design and delivery of BAM’s schools kit of parts/standardised approach.
• Develop and maintain design management plans aligned with framework objectives.
• Support the development and introduction of a Framework/Design Panel for procurement of design partners, building relationships, agreeing T&Cs and fee levels, and undertaking performance reviews.
• Implement design assurance processes and quality checks across the framework.
• Apply skills in risk management, contract derogations, value addition, and continuous improvement.
• Identify opportunities to improve design in safety, buildability, quality, defect reduction, and best‑value solutions; capture these in PITT and ITT responses.
• Work with regional project teams to support early engagement and pre‑construction activities, leading design development from RIBA2 and supporting contractor proposals for compliance with DFE output requirements and BAM’s standards.
• Embed the BAM Platform (kit of parts/standardised approach) across digital groups and families, ensuring compliance with ISO 19650 and DFE’s DEIRs; develop a standard performance specification and carbon strategy.
• Drive innovation and continuous improvement in standardised design solutions; act as guardian for the platform approach, meeting future embodied carbon targets and addressing feedback.
• Support project teams in developing consistent approaches to design programmes and information deliverables (DRM, MIDP) aligned with framework deliverables.
• Apply Building Safety Act, Principal Designer for Building Regulations, and CDM 2015 responsibilities, supporting regional teams in implementing processes and procedures.
• Mentor project design managers and multidisciplinary design teams.
• Act as a design interface with client representatives, stakeholders, and delivery partners, maintaining a professional approach with clients, sub‑contractors, and suppliers.

Qualifications

• Demonstrable experience working on schools and with the DFE as a client.
• Strong leadership and management skills with a collaborative, can‑do approach.
• Ability to lead large, dispersed design teams and influence senior stakeholders.
• Enthusiastic team player, able to listen, understand, engage, motivate, and make decisions when required.
• Desire to constantly learn, improve, and share knowledge and experience.
• Thorough understanding of design and construction processes and their interface.
• Good commercial understanding of contracts, procurement routes, and risk management.
• Good collaborative planning skills.
• Thorough understanding of digital techniques, with a desire to drive improvements via digital construction.
• Excellent communication skills, both personal and formal reporting.
• Recognised degree qualification or equivalent; CIOB, RIBA, or equivalent professional membership is preferable.

Benefits

• Wide range of family friendly policies.
• 8 % matched pension contributions.
• Life assurance.
• 26 days holiday.
• Personal and professional development.

Application Process

BAM is committed to ensuring a fully inclusive recruitment and onboarding process. If at any time you feel you may need reasonable adjustments, do not hesitate to speak with our team, and we will do our best to support you. Join us in Making Possible.

About BAM

Building a sustainable tomorrow. That’s our mission and our promise at BAM. It’s how we engineer vital infrastructure and construct high‑quality buildings as one of the largest construction companies in Europe.

We strive to create an environment where everybody feels welcome and valued. We employ the best talent regardless of social background, race, colour, religion, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability or other characteristics.