Quantity Surveyor - Civil Engineering / NEC in Milton Keynes

We are recruiting for an experienced Quantity Surveyor to provide commercial management on a newly secured £4.5m civil engineering and highways project in Milton Keynes. Working for an established civil engineering contractor, you'll take commercial responsibility for a significant infrastructure package being delivered for a Tier 1 main contractor under an NEC4 Option B subcontract. The project is due to commence in October 2026 and will run through until approximately February/March 2028.

For a commercially strong QS with good NEC knowledge, this is an excellent opportunity to get involved at the very beginning of a project and commercially manage it through to final account.

The Project

The £4.5m package involves the delivery of earthworks, drainage, general civils and highway construction for a new-build spine road in Milton Keynes. Works include enlargement of an existing roundabout and construction of approximately 500m of new highway through a greenfield site, providing the infrastructure required to open up land for future residential development. There will also be interfaces with other contractors delivering separate structures on the development.

The Commercial Role

As Quantity Surveyor, you'll work closely with the Project Manager and wider operational team to ensure the contract is commercially controlled from the outset. With the project operating under NEC4 Option B, strong contract administration and record keeping will be fundamental. You'll need to understand what is happening operationally on the project, identify commercial risk and opportunity early and ensure contractual mechanisms are being used correctly.

Responsibilities will include:

• Commercial management of the £4.5m subcontract
• NEC4 contract administration
• Applications and valuations
• Cost/value reporting
• Forecasting and cash flow
• Measurement and remeasurement
• Subcontractor procurement
• Subcontractor account management
• Managing variations and change
• Early warnings
• Compensation events
• Maintaining accurate contractual records
• Identifying commercial risk and opportunity
• Working closely with the Project Manager
• Attending commercial and progress meetings with the Tier 1 client
• Managing subcontractor payments
• Cost control throughout delivery
• Final account preparation and negotiation

Your Background

We're looking for a Quantity Surveyor with a strong background in civil engineering, infrastructure or highways. Experience working under NEC contracts is particularly important. Ideally, you'll have worked within areas such as: Earthworks, Drainage, Highways, Roads, Infrastructure, Groundworks, Section 278 Works, Residential Infrastructure.

Previous experience working with or for Tier 1 contractors would be highly advantageous, as you'll understand the level of reporting, documentation, contractual compliance and commercial discipline expected.

You should have:

• Strong Quantity Surveying experience within civil engineering
• Good NEC3/NEC4 knowledge
• Experience managing change and compensation events
• Strong measurement skills
• Good subcontractor procurement and management experience
• Excellent cost reporting and forecasting ability
• Strong contractual awareness
• Confidence dealing directly with Tier 1 commercial teams
• Excellent record keeping and attention to detail
• A relevant Quantity Surveying qualification ideally

Why Consider This Opportunity?

This isn't a role where you'll inherit a project halfway through and spend six months trying to understand what happened before you arrived. You'll have the opportunity to become involved from mobilisation, establish the commercial controls properly and follow the project through its complete lifecycle. The contractor itself has significant experience delivering highways, earthworks, drainage and major infrastructure projects, including NEC road schemes involving substantial earthworks, new highway construction and roundabout works. With the Milton Keynes project expected to run until early 2028, this offers both project continuity and the opportunity to become part of an established commercial team beyond this particular scheme.

Competitive salary + package, dependent upon experience. If you're a Quantity Surveyor with civil engineering and NEC experience and would like to discuss the opportunity confidentially, please send me your CV or contact me directly. All applications and conversations will be treated in complete confidence.