Programme Director: Masterplan and Transformation

The British Museum is proud to be one of the world’s most visited museums. In 2024, its home in Camden received 6.5 million visitors, more than any other museum in the UK. The Museum has deep and wide-ranging partnerships with museums, schools and communities in every corner of the UK and on every continent.

Against this backdrop, the British Museum is now undergoing an extraordinary transformation, both physical and intellectual. We have built a new state of the art research centre in Reading, begun work on a new energy centre that will help us in our drive to become net zero, and we have just appointed world-renowned architect Lina Ghotmeh to rejuvenate and redevelop our Western Range – accounting for over a third of our galleries.

This will be the biggest building project the Museum has undertaken since the Victorian era - indeed it will be one of the biggest and most exciting cultural renovations in the world. And that makes it a uniquely exciting time to join the Museum.

And while the physical transformation will be spectacular in its own right, it is done in the service of a wider intellectual transformation. Alongside redesigning our galleries, and rethinking how we display the collection, we are documenting and digitising our entire collection and expanding our national and international loans programme. Taken together we are determined to make our collection the most accessible, used and enjoyed of any in the world.

We are seeking a Programme Director: Masterplan and Transformation to help us realise this vision. Your ability to operate at this level will be underpinned by substantial experience delivering highly successful building and cultural transformational masterplans.

We are especially keen to welcome applications from those with ambitious vision who want to make a significant contribution to this prestigious international institution as it moves into a new era.

You will be an inspirational, inclusive and collaborative leader with experience of leading and motivating teams. You will have achieved outstanding results and be able to demonstrate a resourceful and flexible approach when faced with obstacles.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic oversight of all aspects of the Masterplan; culture change, design concept and briefing to construction, handover, opening and aftercare.
Ensure appropriate governance across all projects is maintained.
Develop, manage, maintain and clearly communicate the programme, delivery plan and budget for the museum-wide programme of projects.
Develop business cases for all projects and monitor delivery, incorporating social and economic impact assessments.

Benefits

The Museum offers a competitive benefits package including:

Generous annual leave allowance of 25 days (rising to 30 days after long service) plus 2.5 privilege days and bank holidays
Membership of the civil service pension scheme (find out here exactly what benefits a civil service pension provides)
Free entry to a wide range of museums and exhibitions all over the world
Participation in private and public Museum activities, including talks by leading curators from around the world and behind-the-scenes opportunities to learn how museums care for and manage their extraordinary collections
Interest-free travel, bicycle and rental deposit loans
Wide range of training and professional and personal development opportunities
Employee Assistance Programme, wellbeing initiatives and family friendly leave
Subsidised staff canteen and discounts on gift shop purchases

Additional details

For more information about this role, please see the job description.

If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of in order to support you with your application, please provide details to [email protected].

We have a legal responsibility to ensure that employees have the right to work in the UK. If you currently do not hold the right to work in the UK, we can only sponsor a limited number of roles that meet eligibility criteria. To offer a sponsorship, the job role you apply needs to be in the list of eligible occupations: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skilled-worker-visa-eligible-occupations. Additionally (with some limited exceptions), the role will need to meet the minimum salary threshold of £38,700 or the going rate for the job, whichever is the highest. You can find more information here: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa/your-job

The British Museum is committed to promoting equality of opportunity for all employees and job applicants. We aim to create a working environment in which all individuals can make best use of their skills, free from unlawful discrimination or harassment. We value the benefits that a diverse workforce brings to a Museum which represents world culture. The Museum is committed to ensuring that no job applicant suffers unlawful discrimination because of any protected characteristics. Our recruitment procedures aim to ensure that individuals are treated in line with their relevant knowledge, skills and experience.

We specifically encourage applications from candidates from ethnic minority groups who are underrepresented within our senior roles.

We offer a flexible way of working that allows our employees to work remotely in a way that suits them and the organisation. We welcome questions and conversations at interview stage about how flexible working could work for you.

The Museum adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.

Museum Website: https://bmrecruit.ciphr-irecruit.com//templates/CIPHR/jobdetail_8084.aspx