Head - Acquisitions

Working in the South Acquisitions Team with Assistant Director for South, this role plays a critical part in leading the Team. You will be joining a highly experienced, skilled and successful team who are focussed on unlocking difficult and undelivered sites.

The team works closely with colleagues in all parts of Homes England to intervene in the market when required and secure land through acquisition. Many of the sites being secured are challenging sites with either delivery problems or planning constraints. This is an exciting role to lead the team in the South East of England in acquiring numerous development sites

We are currently working across a number of projects and acquisitions ranging from 80 homes to over 13,000 homes, with all sites having the potential to deliver over 30,000 homes collectively.

An example of some of our recent acquisitions.

Carrow Works Norwich

The home of the former Colemans Mustard Factory and Robinsons Squash Factory this brownfield site has been acquired as part of the regeneration of East Norwich.

Former Northeye Prison Bexhill

This former redundant prison and army base sits in the countryside close to Bexhill and although allocated has a number of challenges such as ecology, drainage and access.

Hill Top Farm Folkestone

Acquired and purchased with a short window to help support the delivery of a new large settlement.

Our mission is to accelerate and unlock the delivery of high-quality homes, whilst also supporting economic growth through regeneration and placemaking. This is a rare chance to work for an organisation which is uniquely positioned to shape the future of place-based housing delivery and regeneration. Working with internal and external stakeholders, you will support our experienced team in driving delivery on complex sites.

We are looking for someone to join our team who is a confident leader and understands land buying and the South East housing market. We are seeking individuals who are passionate about unlocking and delivering complex sites and know the barriers faced in delivering them.

You will enjoy working as part of multi-disciplinary team in a fast-paced environment drawing on your skills and experience. Youll have a strong understanding of the development delivery process, land assembly, design, planning and funding.

Youll have the ability to review and absorb information on complex projects, undertake analysis and produce reports for internal and external stakeholders.

Youll have worked in environments and on projects where attention to detail is of paramount importance, but also where you can take a strategic approach.

Delivering on a mission as bold as ours isnt always easy. You will be resilient and comfortable managing stakeholders at a senior level and your discussions will always be shaped by a good understanding of the commercial and operational impact of what we do as an Acquisition Team. You will enjoy working in an innovative, fun and engaging way and be able to negotiate and persuade.

As an experienced land acquisition and delivery professional, youll understand how to manage colleagues and be able to demonstrate you can work with others as part of a team in a collaborative, inclusive way.

Key Skills & Experience

Land Acquisition You will need a proven track record in identifying and acquiring sites in your previous roles.

Working in partnership you will be used to working successfully with the full range of partners and stakeholders involved in the development process and understand their needs and priorities.

Development Experience - Experience of working on large scale or complex development projects, with an understanding of the factors that drive strategic development and planning.

Development Appraisals & Cash Flows We spend a lot of time reviewing viabilities and appraisals as well as creating our own viabilities and business plans. A knowledge of Argus Appraisal system is helpful but not essential.

Funding Knowledge Knowledge of the economics and funding of major infrastructure to support large scale housing developments. Experience of infrastructure / development funding would be an advantage, but it is not essential.

Report / Paper Writing Preparing reports and papers for internal and external readership is a core part of the role. Preparation and presentation of papers to Peer Reviewers and Approval Boards to support the Acquisition is a requirement of the role. Some of the reports produced by our team may include briefing papers for our CEO, Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), Secretary of State in addition to internal decision-making boards.

Leading teams - Experience of managing, guiding and inspiring direct reportees.

Essential: Degree level qualification or equivalent experience as a: Chartered Surveyor (MRICS), Town Planner (RTPI), Housebuilder, Urban Regeneration specialist or experience in Development Finance.

As a Head of Acquisitions, you will be asked to support on a number of projects that require various property development skills and knowledge. We appreciate you may not have all the skills/experience listed in the job description.