Programme Manager (x2) – Estates and Capital Projects

The British Museum

41 hours per week (including one hour paid lunch break)
Permanent
£58,162 per annum
Application deadline: 9am on 15 September 2025

About the role

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.

The British Museum is seeking to appoint two Programme Managers (within the Estates and Capital Project department) to lead on the programme management of major capital projects within a Grade I listed building, to time and budget, whilst keeping the Museum open to millions of visitors per year and supporting the institution-wide transformation underway.

Projects range from significant Masterplan projects, including the Western Range, high-profile front-of-house projects, to building and MEP infrastructure renewal and replacement, all to a high standard. The Programme Manager will work closely with senior stakeholders to lead and manage the project teams responsible for planning and delivering capital projects.

As a globally recognised institution, the British Museum is committed to fostering diversity and inclusivity, and therefore strongly encourages applications from individuals belonging to underrepresented groups within the built environment.

About you

Significant experience of project and programme management involving multidisciplinary teams in a complex built environment;

Demonstrable experience of delivering major museum basebuild, gallery display and/or collection storage projects.

Strong experience of analysing complex information, decision making and providing expert advice on construction projects.

Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to lead and inspire teams.

About the British Museum

Founded in 1753, the British Museum’s remarkable collection spans over two million years of human history and culture. The Museum is a leading visitor attraction, and its world-famous collection includes the Rosetta Stone, Egyptian mummies, the Sutton-Hoo finds, and the Lewis Chessmen. The Museum also holds an extensive collection of prints and drawings spanning 600 years, including works by the greatest graphic artists such as Dürer, Michelangelo and Rembrandt.

You can view a selection of our impressive collection of prints and drawings in our virtual gallery.

The Museum offers a competitive benefits package including:

Generous annual leave allowance of 25 days (rising to 30 days after 10 years’ service) plus 2.5 privilege days and plus bank holidays.

Membership of the civil service defined benefit pension scheme (find out here what benefits a civil service pension provides).

Free entry to a wide range of museums and exhibitions

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

Professional and personal development opportunities

Employee Assistance Programme

Discounts on food and gift shop purchases

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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 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 new minimum salary threshold of £41,700 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 staff 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 because of 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 scheme 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 also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.

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