Estates Services Manager

Job summary

Are you a natural communicator who finds it easy to build great relationships?

Would you enjoy a varied role where you’d spend your working day both indoors and outdoors?

Would you like to take the next step in advancing your career in Government Property?

If so, we would love to hear from you!

This is an excellent opportunity to develop your career within the property profession in a varied role where no two days are the same.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here

• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday

• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at DVLA.

Job description

We are looking for a motivated and proactive individual to join DVLA’s Estates Services team in a key role supporting the management of hard facilities services across our estate. This is a varied and fast-paced position requiring strong organisational skills, initiative, and a flexible approach.

As the Estates Services Manager you will be responsible for supporting the hard facility management services that are delivered across the expansive DVLA estate.

This involves daily monitoring of the helpdesk to ensure business critical work orders are escalated appropriately to senior managers and service partners are liaised with. You will also be instrumental in the billables approval process, and a large part of the role involves carrying out internal audits of the buildings, grounds, and external structures.

This variety of responsibilities means every day could look different, providing a fresh challenge as well as the trust to work autonomously to ensure delivery of set goals.

As DVLA estates are spread across multiple sites (Morriston, Fforestfach, Swansea Vale) a full, valid UK driving licence is essential.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Co-ordinating and carrying out regular monitoring/audit activities of services provided by the hard services provider and in-house service teams for DVLA buildings in accordance with the established KPI scheme and reporting areas of poor performance and non-compliance.
• Ensuring faults are reported via a help desk and monitor progress to ensure that they are resolved within the agreed SLA’s.
• Daily monitoring the CAFM system to ensure that work orders raised are correctly logged in accordance with KPI descriptors and time scales. Proactively carrying out regular and planned inspections across the estate.
• Working effectively with service partners to ensure that appropriate standards are being met and escalating any issues of poor service via the agreed process and actively seek to resolve.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

Essential qualifications/licences:

• A full valid UK driving licence

You will be required to provide evidence that you hold any essential licenses at some point during the recruitment process. If you cannot provide evidence, your application will be withdrawn.

If the qualifications or memberships listed below are not already held, you must be willing to work towards obtaining one or more of them, as appropriate to your background and the requirements of the role.

• Professional qualification of IWFM level 4.
• Recognised qualification in either Mechanical, Electrical or Construction.
• Professional membership of CICSE, CIOB or IWFM.

Required experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Working with multiple stakeholders to deliver day-to-day services while effectively managing customer expectations.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to adapt delivery to suit a range of audiences.
• Working in a fast-paced environment, with strong organisational and time management skills and the ability to prioritise work to achieve set goals.

We’re looking for someone who’s proactive and quick to respond to changes. You should have good analytical skills and be comfortable working with data. Strong IT skills are important, especially with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Additional Information

We welcome applications from candidates who can speak Welsh and English. Welsh language skills would be useful in this role, but it is not an assessment criterion so it won’t put you at any disadvantage during recruitment if you aren’t a Welsh speaker. Please note that the assessment process will be held in English.

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 35 hours per week

This role is not suitable for hybrid working and will require the successful candidate to work solely from their designated workplace (the location cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, from other offices/work locations/visiting stakeholders.

If you have a question about hybrid working, part time/job share hours, flexible working, travelling for work, or require a reasonable adjustment, please contact the Vacancy Holder during the recruitment process to avoid possible disappointment later in the process should your working arrangements not be compatible with the requirements of the role (see below for contact details).

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker Licence sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship. Candidates must ensure they have the appropriate rights to work in the UK before application.

Licences

Full valid UK Driving Licence

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,485, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency contributes £8,831 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Find out more about the benefits of working at DfT and its agencies.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

How to apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's skills and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV and personal statement

Stage 2: Interview

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (750-word count). Please provide evidence of your Experience of the following:
  • Working with multiple stakeholders to deliver day-to-day services while effectively managing customer expectations.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to adapt delivery to suit a range of audiences.
  • Working in a fast-paced environment, with strong organisational and time management skills and the ability to prioritise work to achieve set goals.

The sift will take place week commencing Monday 2nd February 2026.

Stage 2: Interview

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – Communicating and Influencing, Working Together, Managing a Quality Service
• Experience – Working in a fast-paced environment, with strong organisational and time management skills and the ability to prioritise work to achieve set goals.
• Strengths

The interviews will take place from Tuesday 17th February 2026.

This interview will be conducted in person at our Morriston, Swansea office. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site.

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

We will also hold a 6-month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for. You can read more about our reserve lists here.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email DRGComms@dft.gov.uk for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit theHow We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All External applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public.

Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture.

If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Simon Evans
• Email : simon.evans@dvla.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website Here

Attachments

Role Profile Opens in new window (pdf, 224kB)Proffil Swydd Opens in new window (pdf, 249kB)