Head of Front of House and Operations

Location

Chelsea Theatre, 7 World’s End Place, London SW10 0DR

Reports to

Chief Executive Officer

Hours

Full-time, 40 hours over 5 days (with flexibility required around event and hire schedules, including evenings and weekends)

About Chelsea Theatre

Chelsea Theatre is both a community centre and a theatre, offering a safe space with free activities for local residents by day and creative events attended by diverse Londoners by night.

Open Monday to Saturday, the venue includes a café, bar and terrace, rehearsal studios, meeting and exhibition spaces, and a 130-seat theatre used both for our own activities and available to hire.

Our vision is for Chelsea Theatre to be a powerhouse for developing local creative talent.

Our purpose is to provide a vibrant community hub that improves the wellbeing of residents and brings affordable live performance to the World’s End and Chelsea.

We are based in the World’s End, an area of social housing with some of the highest levels of deprivation in London.

The team supports vulnerable people in challenging circumstances to take part in social activities from knitting to yoga to African dance.

Role Purpose

The Head of Front of House and Operations leads Chelsea Theatre’s day-to-day visitor, event and building operations.

The role ensures high standards for audiences, community users, hirers and staff; manages front-of-house and technical teams; oversees the event schedule and bar; and leads facilities, maintenance and health and safety.

It combines visible operational leadership with effective planning, compliance, budget control and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities

• 1. Team & People Management
• Line-manage the Front of House (FOH) team and Lead Technician, setting clear standards and supporting performance and development.
• Plan and manage FOH rotas for public opening, performances, hires, events and café/bar activity; work with the Lead Technician to arrange technical freelance cover and timely event handovers.
• Lead recruitment, induction and training for FOH casual staff and relevant operational roles.
• Build a positive team culture focused on excellent service and Chelsea Theatre’s mission and values.
• 2. Event Schedule
• Own and coordinate the event schedule across performances, community activity, hires and café/bar events.
• Ensure each event is operationally ready, with appropriate risk assessments and contractual and health and safety requirements met.
• 3. Front-of-House & Visitor Experience
• Maintain welcoming, accessible, clean, safe and efficient front-of-house spaces, including the lobby, café/bar, terrace, foyer, toilets, cloakrooms and circulation areas.
• Oversee the visitor journey from arrival to departure, including welcome, hospitality, accessibility, signage, wayfinding and feedback.
• Keep FOH signage, screens, visitor communications and event information clear, inclusive and up to date, working with Marketing.
• Ensure the FOH team can use the CRM and box office system (Seven Rooms) to find hirer information and process in-person bookings and payments.
• 4. Facilities, Maintenance & Operational Management
• Lead day-to-day facilities management, keeping all public, staff, performance, hire and back-of-house spaces safe, secure, clean, accessible and operational.
• Manage the cleaning contract with our cleaning contractor, including schedules, service changes and cleaning-product orders.
• Plan preventative and reactive maintenance, prioritising faults and repairs to minimise disruption.
• Appoint, brief and manage contractors and specialist suppliers, including plumbers and electricians; oversee site access and confirm satisfactory completion.
• Maintain facilities records, service schedules, inspection logs, warranties, contractor documents and current statutory certificates.
• Manage the facilities and maintenance budget: plan expenditure, obtain quotes, approve costs within delegated authority, monitor spend, process invoices and report forecasts.
• 5. Health & Safety
• Lead day-to-day health and safety arrangements, working with the CEO, staff and advisers to meet legal duties and organisational policies.
• Maintain risk assessments, safe systems of work and emergency procedures, including fire safety, evacuation, accessibility, first aid and incident response.
• Coordinate inspections, testing, servicing and remedial actions; keep compliance records and elevate significant risks promptly.
• Ensure accidents, incidents, hazards and near misses are recorded, investigated and followed up, with learning and corrective action implemented.
• Provide appropriate health and safety induction, information, training and supervision for staff, casual workers, volunteers and contractors, and promote a proactive safety culture through regular operational checks.
• 6. Bar Management
• Lead compliant, efficient bar operations and ensure a Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) is in place.
• Act as DPS, or work closely with the DPS, to ensure licensing compliance and staff training in responsible alcohol service and health and safety.
• Work with Bar Supervisors to manage stock, ordering and suppliers, ensuring value for money and accurate records.
• Oversee bar cash handling and reconciliation, and ensure the product range, presentation and service meet visitor and event needs.
• 7. Collaboration with Café
• Coordinate with the café team on opening and closing, visitor flow, staffing, event catering and hospitality.
• Ensure the café offer supports Chelsea Theatre’s visitor-experience standards.
• Use visitor feedback and key performance indicators to improve service, accessibility and commercial performance.
• Apply relevant sector best practice and champion innovation and a visitor-centred culture.

Person Specification

Essential experience & skills

• Significant front-of-house, visitor-experience or public-venue leadership, including recruiting, developing and scheduling casual teams, with a commitment to accessible and inclusive service.
• Experience of café/bar or hospitality operations, including relevant licensing responsibilities.
• Strong facilities and health and safety experience, including maintenance, contractors, risk assessment, fire and emergency arrangements, accessibility and statutory compliance.
• Excellent interpersonal, organisational and judgement skills: able to collaborate across teams, manage external stakeholders, prioritise competing demands and follow work through to completion.
• Sound budget-management skills, including assessing quotes, controlling costs and reporting against budget.
• Personal Licence holder.
• Venue-hire experience, including contracts, risk and event logistics.
• Experience in a nonprofit or cultural organisation with community and commercial activity; understanding of sustainable operations and relevant CRM, box-office or room-booking systems.

This on-site role includes evenings, weekends and the Duty Manager rota.

Chelsea Theatre is accessible and committed to equality, diversity and inclusion; under-represented applicants are welcome.

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