Premises Manager - High-Achieving Secondary Academy in South London (Lewisham)

Start Date: September 2026

Contract: Full-time, Permanent (Year-Round)

Salary: Paid to scale (Inner London Support Framework)

A high-achieving Secondary Academy in the London Borough of Lewisham is seeking a professional, highly analytical, and exceptionally organised Premises Manager to take operational ownership of the school’s physical estate, statutory compliance, and health and safety systems. This is a critical leadership position within the school's support infrastructure, perfectly suited for an experienced estates manager or facilities professional who excels at handling complex asset tracking logs, coordinating specialized contractor networks, and optimizing building efficiency parameters.

The successful candidate will manage the day-to-day maintenance, safety operations, and strategic upgrades of a modern, multi-building campus. Key responsibilities include:

• Managing the internal caretaking and cleaning teams
• Overseeing the building management systems (BMS)
• Tracking utility consumption metrics
• Executing a rigid planned preventative maintenance (PPM) schedule
• Ensuring flawless execution of statutory compliance testing, including fire alarm diagnostics, emergency lighting logs, legionella flushing cycles, and lift safety accreditations

You will serve as the school's principal authority on health and safety (HASAWA framework), writing detailed risk assessments and managing COSHH registers. Absolute professionalism, calm problem-solving capabilities, and crisp communication skills are required, as you will balance reactive maintenance tickets with long-term capital expenditure tracking and strict local authority audit compliance.

The academy is looking for a proactive, reliable professional with deep data literacy in utilizing digital facilities helpdesk software and tracking compliance logs. Strong interpersonal skills and a collaborative management style are essential to leading a successful premises team within a fast-paced capital education framework.

This is an 11 to 18 well-established Academy in Lewisham with a powerful reputation for academic progress, technological innovation, and student welfare. The school serves a vibrant, diverse South London community and boasts a highly modern, architectural site with advanced science labs and high-spec creative arts hubs. The estate is meticulously maintained, and the premises team is treated as a highly valued, core pillar of the wider school faculty. Staff benefit from a highly supportive professional culture, visible and approachable senior leadership, an excellent facilities budget, and funded pathways for advanced safety certifications (such as IOSH or NEBOSH training).

Requirements

• Proven experience in facilities management, estate coordination, or a senior site manager role within an educational or large-scale public sector setting
• Deep working knowledge of current health and safety legislation, COSHH regulations, and statutory building compliance frameworks (IOSH/NEBOSH highly desirable)
• Strong IT and data management capabilities, with confidence utilizing digital facilities dashboards and asset software
• Professional, objective, and proactive approach to team leadership and contractor management
• A background in a specialized trade (plumbing, electrical, carpentry) or building fabric repair is highly advantageous

Application

To apply, please send your comprehensive CV as soon as possible.