Head of Tour Delivery and Logistics in Brighton

Experience Education is a unique collection of brands including Skibound, Travelbound, Edwin Doran, Masterclass, World Challenge and JCA Adventure, leading the way in global educational travel across the UK, Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East. We’re on a mission to create the most inspiring experiences for our guests, with memories that last for a lifetime!

The Head of Tour Delivery & Logistics owns the end‑to‑end delivery of all tours once sold, ensuring trips are planned, resourced, and delivered safely, efficiently, and to agreed quality standards. The role leads the logistics engine of the business, including forward planning, supplier readiness, scheduling, contingency management, and on‑tour support, acting as the senior escalation point for delivery issues and working closely with Product, Health & Safety, Commercial, and Sales teams to ensure consistent, compliant execution across all destinations.

What you’ll be involved in:

• Oversee the planning, scheduling and ensuring teams are executing all logistical elements in line with confirmation process and quality checks.
• Lead forward‑planning initiatives to ensure the business is fully prepared for seasonal peaks, long‑term growth, and resource needs.
• Continually review operational policies to drive consistency, safety, and efficiency across all tours.
• Drive contingency planning to prepare for disruptions such as weather events, supplier failure, transport delays etc and strive for continuous improvement.
• Develop and execute the operational SOPs and controls.
• Lead operational response to disruptions, complaints & non-serious incidents.
• Manage the rota and performance of the on‑call / out‑of‑hours team, ensuring 24/7 operational coverage during travel periods.
• Ensure the out‑of‑hours support team has clear protocols, documentation, and authority levels.

Customer Experience & Operational Support:

• Act as senior escalation point for operational issues, emergencies, or complex customer needs.
• Lead post‑tour debriefs, capturing lessons learned and implementing ongoing improvements.
• Lead and mentor the operations managers, including coordinators, logistics staff, and support personnel.
• Build a high‑performance culture with clear KPIs, accountability, and professional development.
• Monitor strict deposit processes for groups ensuring enforcement of timely payments of final balances and supplier commitment.
• Work closely with finance to control operational expenditure, forecast costs, and maintain budget discipline.
• Partner with the Commercial Manager to ensure operational decisions are commercially informed, balancing cost control, supplier performance, and customer outcomes to protect margin and support sustainable growth.
• Build strong relationships with key suppliers including accommodation providers, transport providers, and activity / excursion partners.
• Monitor due diligence to ensure supplier adherence to performance of delivery.

Safety, Compliance & Risk Management:

• Oversee emergency and incident management procedures, ensuring the on‑call team is trained and prepared.
• Escalate serious incidents to H&S and Department Head.
• Ensure operational compliance with statutory and industry requirements including STF, LOtC, ABTA, ATOL, and safeguarding obligations.
• Actively contribute to the review and continual improvement of risk assessments for all tours & destinations.

What we are looking for:

• Senior operational experience within travel, education, logistics, events, or a similarly complex environment.
• Strong leadership and team management skills.
• Experience with large‑scale logistics operations and supplier management.
• Understanding of finance processes, and operational controls.
• Proven track record in risk management, contingency planning, and incident response.
• Ability to manage high‑pressure situations with calmness and clarity.
• Experience in the school travel sector or working with young people.
• Knowledge of industry safety and compliance frameworks (STF, ABTA, ATOL).
• Experience managing 24/7 operational teams or on‑call environments.

Personal Qualities:

• Highly organised, proactive, and able to anticipate challenges before they arise.
• Excellent communicator who builds trust with various stakeholders.
• Resilient, adaptable, and comfortable making decisions in dynamic and sometimes urgent situations.
• Customer‑centric mindset with a passion for delivering safe and meaningful experiences for young people.

What We Offer:

• A strategic leadership role within a mission‑driven organisation.
• The opportunity to shape and grow the operational function.
• A collaborative environment that values innovation, safety, and quality.

Some of the benefits:

• Hybrid working pattern between our office and home (2 days at home, 3 in the office).
• Opportunities to travel overseas on familiarisation trips.
• 25 days of annual leave plus public holidays and a bonus day off for your birthday; we also have a tenure based annual leave benefit, up to a maximum of an additional 5 days depending on length of service.
• Various employee discounts and offers, including discounted trips with our brands.

Diversity and inclusion:

We believe that people are happier and perform best when they are able to be their true selves and that diverse teams deliver better results. We are committed to building an inclusive culture and embracing diversity in all its dimensions. This includes inspiring change through increasing awareness of unconscious bias.