Technical Manager
(Midlands and East of England)
Recruitment Pack
The Premier League Stadium Fund is fully funded by the Premier League and delivered and administered by the Football Foundation.
Introduction
Thank you so much for taking the time to find out more about the Premier League Stadium Fund, delivered by the Football Foundation.
The Premier League Stadium Fund awards capital grants to clubs to support improvement of their stadium facilities for players, supporters and officials. Funding is available to clubs who play in Steps 1 to 6 of the National League System, Tiers 1 to 4 of the Women’s Football Pyramid and clubs promoted into the English Football League.
The Premier League Stadium Fund is fully funded by the Premier League, but is delivered and administered by the Football Foundation, an organisation I am very proud to lead. The Technical Manager will be jointly employed by the Premier League Stadium Fund and the Football Foundation, so its therefore important that you understand the wider context in terms of what we do and how we go about it.
The purpose of the Football Foundation (Foundation) is to transform individual lives and communities by providing people with a great place to play. That’s an inspiring thought – but behind it sits a great team. The Foundation is an independent charity, but has at its heart a collaboration between the Premier League, The Football Association and Sport England. Our role is to facilitate their joint investment into community sports facilities. We do this through partnership working – being part of a team is really important to us.
Becoming part of our team will give you the chance to be part of a supportive and inclusive team that strives to work hard and plays fair to achieve its goals.
I hope you take the time to apply.
Robert Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer
The Premier League Stadium Fund
Since 2000…
5,000+ Grants Awarded £200m+ Investment 1,000+ Clubs Supported
The Premier League Stadium Fund provides financial support to clubs throughout the football pyramid. As well as continuing to fund ground-grading requirements, the Premier League Stadium Fund includes a Club Development Fund to help clubs grow and enhance sustainability.
The Premier League Stadium Fund awards capital grants to clubs to support improvement of their stadium facilities for players, supporters and officials. Funding is available to clubs who play in Steps 1 to 6 of the National League System, Tiers 1 to 4 of the Women’s Football Pyramid and clubs promoted into the English Football League.
The Premier League Stadium Fund provides funding via several different opportunities:
• Stadium Fund
Our core funding is available for clubs to help undertake stadium improvement works and ensure compliance with the requirements of The FA’s Stadium Accreditation Criteria.
• Club DevelopmentFund
Funding is available for both ‘on the pitch’ and ‘off the pitch’ projects which will help clubs develop links with their local communities and increase sustainability.
• LED Floodlight Fund
Insight suggests that a significant number of existing floodlight systems will require replacement in the next few years, and therefore we launched a new fund in 2023 to help tackle this issue, which will help clubs become more sustainable.
• Women’s Infrastructure Fund
Providing funding to ensure stadiums can become more inclusive environments, and respond to the needs of the growing Women’s game.
From August 2023, the Premier League Stadium Fund assumed responsibility for the collection of ground grading data for the National League System, at Step 1 to 6.
The Stadium Accreditation Programme - which was co-designed and developed by the Premier League Stadium Fund and The FA – visited the stadiums of 980 Clubs that had been allocated across 45 Leagues of the NLS for the 2023/24 season, and independently assessed it using our new digital tool, StadiumPower.
These visits culminated in a recommendation to The FA on whether the stadium met the level required for each step of the pyramid as set out in the Stadium Accreditation Criteria, and if not, what works were required to be carried out to ensure compliance.
Each stadium will continue to be visited during the 2024/25 season until 100% compliance is achieved, and then will continue to be reassessed every three years thereafter – or sooner if the stadium has been subject to construction work, or the Club is promoted to a higher level of the pyramid.
It is anticipated that the Premier League Stadium Fund will also assume responsibility for the collection of data for the Women’s Football Pyramid during the 2024/25 season – which relies heavily on the stadiums of National League System clubs - and will have been 65% completed already.
The role of the Technical Manager can be broken down into two parts
Stadium Accreditation
The role is to help establish and embed the new Stadium Accreditation Programme from a technical perspective as part of a new team of five dedicated Technical Managers that will now be working on the programme. This will involve helping to establish new ways of working following the initial assessment of approximately 1,000 stadiums across England and Wales. Stadium Accreditation will become an integral part of all Premier League Stadium Fund grant applications going forward.
The Technical Manager will have responsibility for a set of leagues and clubs within their geographic area. They will be tasked with working closely with them to not only ensure their compliance with the Stadium Accreditation Programme, but delivering against the objectives outlined within the new Premier League Stadium Fund Facilities Strategy.
Grant Management
The Technical Manager will be responsible for the scrutiny of the technical/construction aspects of Premier League Stadium Fund grant applications and ensure the successful completion of new and improved stadium facilities. The role will provide professional advice and guidance to applicants to assist with the development of capital projects, within the National League System (NLS) and Women’s Football Pyramid (WFP).
Initially the Technical Manager will be required to work in conjunction with their allocated set of clubs to ensure that solutions can be found to address the findings of the Stadium Accreditation Programme, and that the procurement of these facilities provides best value. They will also be required to carry out a technical assessment of any grant applications that are made by those clubs, and present funding reports for approval. Finally, and following a positive funding decision, the Technical Manager will help to oversee the construction process to ensure that the build is completed to programme.
Stadium Accreditation Programme (Technical)
1. Operate as a passionate supporter, helping to establish new technical processes for the Stadium Accreditation Programme, ensuring they meet the needs of the PLSF, The FA and other external stakeholders.
2. Provide expert technical guidance, support and training to clubs and leagues that are part of the Stadium Accreditation Programme, in accordance with agreed criteria and best practice.
3. Carry out Stadium Accreditation Programme technical assessments, ensuring that StadiumPower is used correctly to provide an efficient process that meets the needs of clubs, leagues, The FA, and other stakeholders across the game.
4. Help to develop a quality control system for the Stadium Accreditation technical assessment process, ensuring consistency is achieved across the country.
5. Provide insight and guidance to the Director of PLSF and The FA from the information collected from the Stadium Accreditation Programme to help shape future strategy and criteria.
6. Undertake re-assessments as necessary as part of the appeals process that is established by The FA.
Key responsibilities
Grant Management
1. Assist and advise clubs through the PLSF application process, making sure that as passionate supporters, we support the game in any way we can, and that applicants can access funding as easily as possible.
2. In conjunction with Grant Assessment Managers, assess and critique PLSF applications, and compile Grant Assessment Reports which concisely articulate the merits and risks, and provide decision-makers with the key information to quickly make robust investment decisions.
3. Participate in a peer review of PLSF Stadium Improvement Panel (SIP) applications, to ensure that they are in ultimate condition before presentation to decision-makers.
4. Present applications to the PLSF SIP, and respond to queries in an insightful, considered and constructive fashion.
5. Communicate the outcome of funding decisions to applicants – positive or negative – and clearly articulate the next steps in each instance.
6. Lead the management of all capital projects following funding approval to the point of construction completion and facility opening.
7. Discharge any applicable conditions of the grant related to technical matters, including co-ordination with solicitors to ensure that required grant security is achieved.
8. Undertake inspections during construction and at the point of completion as necessary, reporting on progress, quality, and compliance with the original design.
9. Manage the grant payment process for all capital projects, ensuring that payments are made in a timely manner, in accordance with grant terms and conditions and any risk of impropriety is minimised.
10. Record key application information within the Foundation Grant Management System and StadiumPower, so that a clear and auditable record of the application and technical assessment is recorded
11. Play your part in working together and building a united team.
The role will also be required to:
1 Provide expert support, guidance and advice to Clubs that are developing new stadiums, to ensure that the design meets necessary requirements.
2 Work with the Data, Insight, and Technology teams to develop new application forms, dashboards and processes to ensure that applicants can access funding as easily as possible.
3 Identify case studies and stories that can be used by the Marcomms team to develop into PLSF content for social media channels and reports.
4 Attend The FA’s Committees as required.
5 Undertake any other reasonable management request, including duties as can be reasonably expected to ensure the smooth running and efficiency of the PLSF team, and wider organisation.
6 Carry out duties and responsibilities of the post at all times in accordance with Foundation policies and principles.
7 Ensure compliance with data protection in all matters.
8 Uphold the Four Corners of the Football Foundation.
9 Demonstrate a commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.
Essential criteria for the role
1. Educated to degree standard (or an equivalent professional qualification) in a construction related field, or with relevant experience in a related occupation.
2. An expertise in construction processes, including an astute understanding of the associated risks and hazards involved.
3. Experience of delivering facilities from inception to completion, including agreeing scope, optimising design, procuring to achieve best-value, and overseeing successful construction to time, budget and in accordance with the agreed specification.
4. Experience of analysing drawings, specifications, and related documentation, attending building sites, and conducting on site assessments/inspections.
5. An understanding of construction procurement mechanisms, including frameworks.
6. A track record of building and maintaining highly effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
7. Experience producing detailed and robust reports for decision-makers.
8. Familiarity with presenting to panels or committees, and the ability to generate confidence in proposals/arguments.
9. Experience working with site and facility representatives (including volunteers), to support and develop their knowledge and understanding of facility development through mentoring, or by providing on-the-job training.
10. Experience of coordinating work remotely via email, video conferencing and phone.
11. You must hold a current and valid driving licence, have access to a vehicle that complies with road traffic law, is in a safe and roadworthy condition, and is fit for purpose. The vehicle must also be insured for you to use for business use.
Desirable criteria for the role
1. A comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the design of sports facilities (ideally including football facilities) such as artificial, hybrid and natural pitches, changing pavilions and stadia.
2. A knowledge of tenure arrangements, including mechanisms for securing investment.
3. Knowledge of the regulations and requirements of the EFL, FA National League System and FA Women’s Pyramid, related to stadia development and ground-grading.
4. Experience of participating in peer-review exercises to ensure consistency and continuity of approach across a portfolio of projects.
5. Experience of inputting into new processes or improving established processes.
The skills and abilities applicants will need:
1. Adapting your approach to build credibility with stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds at local and regional level, along with the ability to inspire and engage others.
2. High-level written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to provide advice to various key stakeholders, aligning with strategic objectives.
3. Juggling a wide range of activities, prioritising your own workload, dealing with conflicting demands and meeting tight deadlines.
4. Being agile, flexible, and open to new ways of doing things, including new technologies. Innovating and modifying the way you work so the Premier League Stadium Fund and the Stadium Accreditation programme continues to improve.
5. Confidence in dealing with conflict, with the ability to handle challenging situations calmly and professionally, helping to settle differences through your negotiating ability.
6. Providing respectful challenge and constructive feedback to colleagues. Receiving the same in a receptive, open-minded manner.
7. A star performer, striving for excellence and committed to self-development to support the growth of the business and requirements of the role.
8. Making tough decisions and communicating these with diplomacy.
9. Naturally collegiate and communicable in approach; a united team player, supporting the wider team to deliver the greatest impact wherever it’s needed the most, while being able to work independently.
10. Analysing complex situations, with a keen attention to detail, whilst simultaneously simplifying for the benefit of others – making sure we’re easy to deal with.
11. A passionate supporter, strong and visible passion and commitment to inspiring activity, the values of the Foundation and delivery of its strategic objectives.
12. IT literate, including Digital Apps and MS Office tools.
13. Willingness to travel extensively, to stadiums across the country, as necessary, including regular travel to the Foundation office in London.
Application offer – salary & benefits
• The salary band for this role is £37,000 to £45,000 per annum (dependent on experience).
• You will initially be entitled to 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays. The Foundation also offer a generous pension scheme (8% employer contribution), free healthcare provision, a monthly gym subsidy, interest-free season ticket loan, death in service benefit and access to selected match tickets.
• We are committed to helping our team members maintain a healthy work-life balance, so offer flexible working hours around core hours to help achieve that.
Location
The role will be home-based, but geographically will be required to cover clubs and leagues based in the Midlands and the East of England.
Regular travel to clubs’ stadiums will be required, as well as occasional travel in to our office at Wembley Stadium in London.
THE FOOTBALL FOUNDATION
ABOUT THE FOOTBALL FOUNDATION
Whilst the Premier League Stadium Fund Technical Manager will be responsible for the successful delivery of the Fund, they will be jointly employed by the Football Foundation, and therefore it’s important that you understand the wider context – in terms of what we do and how we go about our work.
The Football Foundation’s purpose is to transform individual lives and communities by providing people with a great place to play. That’s an inspiring thought – but behind it sits a great team. The Foundation is an independent charity but has at its heart a collaboration between the Premier League, The Football Association and Sport England. Our role is to facilitate their joint investment into community sports facilities. We do this through partnership working – being part of a team is really important to us.
OUR FOUR CORNERS
We unlock the power of pitches. We transform lives and strengthen communities.
Whatever position we play in, we always strive for excellence.
We support each other and work together to deliver the greatest impact wherever it’s needed the most. Nothing brings people together like sport and teamwork is at the heart of what we do.
WE REFER TO OUR COMPANY VALUES AS OUR FOUR CORNERS AND THESE FORM A CENTRAL PART OF OUR WORKING CULTURE. WHEN APPLYING FOR ROLES WE ENCOURAGE APPLICANTS TO BE AWARE OF OUR FOUR CORNERS AS WE WILL FRAME SOME OF OUR INTERVIEW QUESTIONS AROUND THESE.
We support the game in any way we can. We make sure applicants access funding as easily as possible. We work with partners to deliver outstanding football facilities. We transform lives and communities on behalf of our Funding Partners.
Being inclusive and understanding diversity allows us to tackle inequalities through everything we do. We play fair regardless of gender, race, ability or place, from the star performers we recruit, to the way we work, from the facilities we fund, to the people who play on them.
THE FOOTBALL FOUNDATION’S EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY COMMITMENT
We genuinely believe that by having a diverse workforce, we will be more productive, make better decisions and gain a better understanding of the communities we serve. In 2023, we proudly launched ‘Together for Football’ our EDI strategy. This strategy outlines our ambitions and commitments to increasing our diversity, and the tactics we plan to use to help make the Foundation more inclusive. The initiatives and actions we have committed to are designed to help us better serve communities across England.
At the Foundation we want inclusion to be an everyday reality. For this to be the case, we need all our teammates to play their part in bringing our commitments and values to life. We are looking for applicants who share our passion for inclusion and who will support our aim of ‘unlocking the power of the pitch, to transform lives and communities’.
We encourage people from all communities and backgrounds to apply for our jobs. We are particularly interested to hear from individuals belonging to under-represented groups including diverse ethnic communities, individuals with a disability, and those from the LGBTQI+ community. Our aim is to ensure our processes are equitable for candidates with disabilities, and we are committed to considering all possible adjustments to our recruitment process.
Please get in touch to discuss any adjustments you may need: jobs@footballfoundation.org.uk
Our aim is to invest in and develop facilities which feel safe, welcoming, inclusive; facilities that attract diverse communities and promote a sense of belonging.
Application process
To apply, please follow the steps outlined below:
1. Please send the following to jobs@footballfoundation.org.uk
• CV
• Cover letter (no more than one side of A4) highlighting your motivation for the post and indicating how your skills and experience meet the criteria for the role.
Closing date for applications: Sunday, 21st July, 23:59
Interviews are currently scheduled for:
29th and 30th July 2024
We encourage candidates to apply as soon as possible, as we may close the advert and application window once we have received sufficient applications.
We thank all applicants for taking the time to apply, however, due to the high number of applications received for most roles, we only contact candidates if they are shortlisted for interview. If you do not hear from us within two weeks of the closing date, you should assume your application has not been successful.
We aim to provide feedback to shortlisted candidates who are unsuccessful at interview. However, due to the volume of applications received for most roles, we will unfortunately not provide feedback to those candidates who are not shortlisted for interview.
Application process
Selection
All applications received will be short listed against the role requirements and person specification. Those most closely matching our requirements will be invited to take part in an interview.
Checks and references
If you are successful in your application, we will ask you to provide us with the contact details of two organisations that we can apply for an employment reference; one of which must be your current/most recent employer. Please be aware that we aim to have all references in place before new team members commence employment with us.
Successful candidates will also be required to undertake an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check prior to commencing employment with us.
Under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, you are required to provide evidence of your right to work in the UK. If called for an interview, you will be advised of the documents that you will need to provide, which, if you are offered employment, will be checked to ensure we comply with current legislation.
Information provided as part of your application will be used for the recruitment process. Any data about you will be held securely with access restricted to those involved in dealing with your application and in the recruitment process.
If you are successful in your application, the information you provide during the application process will be retained by us as part of your employee file for the duration of your employment, plus 6 years following the end of your employment.
If you are unsuccessful at any stage of the process, we will retain your personal information for a period of six months after we have communicated to you our decision about whether to appoint you to work.
Please see the full Privacy Notice for job applicants on the Careers page of our website for more information about how and why your personal data will be used, namely for the purposes of the recruitment exercise, plus your rights in relation to your data.
