Head of Digital Design

Virgin Active are committed to changing people's lives for the better through wellness. Our team are dedicated to delivering a unique leisure and relaxation experience throughout all our clubs. All our team members pride themselves on incorporating Virgin Active values and ensuring the highest Brand Standards into their work, so our members can experience the finest facilities and service. We take value in recruiting the very best team members who work behind the scenes to support our clubs in delivering a world class member experience.

We are looking for a Head of Digital Design to join our Digital & Technology Transformation department. Head of Design will lead the design function for Virgin Active, shaping the quality, coherence, and effectiveness of end-to-end digital experiences. You will own design as a strategic function, driving vision, capability, systems, and culture to ensure experience design measurably improves member outcomes, behaviour change, and commercial performance. You will be accountable for design across Virgin Active Group, spanning multiple markets, product domains, and stages of digital maturity.

Responsibilities

• Lead the creation of Virgin Active’s design practice by defining the standards, rituals, tools, and ways of working that shape how design operates across Digital.
• Set the vision for what great experience design looks like and embed this as shared thinking across Product, Engineering, Brand, and the wider business.
• Own the strategy and direction for the design system so it becomes a scalable set of patterns and components used consistently globally.
• Build long-term design capability through hiring standards, coaching models, progression expectations, and a culture that prizes craft excellence.
• Partner with Product, Engineering, and Brand to deliver system-level improvements that raise the quality of our digital experience at scale.
• Own the design vision, strategy, and roadmap aligned to company priorities, including investment decisions, tooling, and capability growth.
• Act as the owner and decision-maker for design in leadership, investment, and steering forums.
• Define the experience vision and design principles across core journeys so we ship experiences that feel coherent, considered, and simple for members.
• Use research, insight, and behavioural understanding to shape direction and ensure digital expression reflects the Virgin Active brand.
• Mentor and develop designers to build confidence, craft, ownership, and progression.
• Shape feedback loops and rituals that support high-quality design work and protect focus.
• Work closely with Product and Engineering to shape solutions that are feasible, scalable, and well understood before delivery begins.
• Communicate design rationale clearly to senior stakeholders so decisions are informed and momentum is maintained.
• Support delivery through prototyping, validation, and iteration so experiences improve after launch rather than only at go-live.

Experience

• Extensive experience leading design for consumer digital products at scale, with a portfolio that shows systems thinking, behaviour change, and shipped commercial impact.
• Experience guiding and raising the craft of other designers while remaining hands-on and able to set the standard in the work.
• Ability to evolve and scale the design system so that it becomes a core asset that accelerates alignment, quality, and delivery.
• Strength across interaction, visual, and systems craft with consistently high standards for clarity, coherence, and detail.
• Strong capability in research, insight, behavioural understanding, and converting insight into confident direction.
• High proficiency with Figma and contemporary design tooling.
• Comfortable using AI and emerging technology to expand exploration and decision quality.
• Ability to create clarity in complex problem spaces and align Product, Engineering, Research, and Brand partners.
• Experience influencing senior stakeholders and contributing to strategic decision making.
• Commitment to continuous learning and raising the bar for design maturity and experience quality.

Benefits

• 25 days (excluding bank holidays) annual leave, plus a Celebration Day.
• Access to The Peoples Pension, with our contributions at 3% OR Access to Scottish Widows Pension with us matching contributions up to 5%.
• Complimentary Virgin Active membership for you and a buddy, with free membership for your children too.
• Private Dental and Healthcare Insurance.
• Life Assurance 4x your salary.
• Discounts across Virgin Active.
• 20% off food and drink at our KAUAI branches located in clubs.
• Access to Salary Finance for loans and savings plans.
• BUPA employer assistance programme with 4 free counselling sessions.
• Complimentary corporate letting services through Dexters.
• Access to ePoints for online discounts to retailers.
• Discount on all Academy courses.