UHS Estates Limited (UEL) is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity to work with us.
Main duties of the job
We're seeking graduates who want to work in a values driven, fast paced and evolving workplace to join our Graduate Management Training Scheme, set to begin in September 2025. This is an opportunity to kickstart your career working with one of the UK's largest and most respected NHS Trusts, gaining invaluable experience in the design, construction and estates and facilities management sector.
UHS Estates Limited (UEL) is a wholly owned subsidiary of University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust (UHS). The Trust itself serves 1.9 million patients within the Southampton and Hampshire area and provides specialist services to almost 4 million people in central Southern England and the Channel Islands. UEL's graduate programme offers broad exposure to a complex NHS organisational structure with a qualification to support a management position within UEL after the successful conclusion of the scheme.
Our Estates graduates work in Engineering, Facilities Management and Capital Development (EFCD) roles with exposure to departments which serve our patients. EFCD within our Trust involves you solving problems, spending some of your time on site with your colleagues and being actively involved in all aspects of planning and delivery of a first-class Estates service.
About us
As a wholly owned subsidiary of UHS, UELis responsible for the design and construction of new buildings, and the ongoing provision of services, including estates maintenance, soft facilities management and the management of equipment, consumables and materials, in support of one of the largest acute teaching Trusts in England.
Specific details and flexible working options can be discussed during the interview process. UEL employees can access a range of NHS discounts, are entitled to a minimum of 35 days paid holiday (pro rata), and we offer a generous pension scheme.
Southampton is an attractive place to live and work, situated on the south coast with an international airport and direct trains to London. The New Forest National Park and beaches of the Jurassic coast are also right on our doorstep. The city offers living costs 20% lower than London and 14 schools rated outstanding by Ofsted.
Our previous graduates have praised our development approach and the wealth of opportunities available to them, alongside the vast networking possibilities.
Scope of the role
At UEL, we believe in creating opportunities for growth, as we know that developing our people is key to supporting world-class care. That's why a career here is an exciting and evolving journey with endless opportunities to learn and thrive.
Our two-year Graduate Programme involves various placements withinour EFCD department, learning how it works as well as understanding how the wider hospital functions, and the two are co-dependent.
During this time you will gain hands-on experience within the NHS, developing essential competencies, including:
- Leadership skills
- Communication and collaboration within a complex organisation
- Operational and performance management
- Financial management
- Strategic planning
- Staff management
- Change management, project management, and service improvement
You'll receive mentorship from a senior leader at UEL who will guide you through the programme. In addition to the work-based experience, you will also complete a formal Estates management qualification and leadership programme with one of our national training partners.
Essential application criteria
- You will have, or be predicted to achieve, a 2:2 or higher in a degree subject relevant to Estates, Facilities and Capital Development.
- You will demonstrate UELs core values of Working Together, Patients First, and Always Improving
Apprenticeship criteria
These roles are funded by the Government Apprenticeship Scheme and do not offer visa sponsorship. To be eligible, you must meet the following criteria:
- You should have been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least the past 3 years
- You must have permission from the UK government to live in the UK (for non-educational purposes) or hold pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
Additional Information
Key dates for our Graduate Recruitment and Assessment Programme:
- Application deadline: 10 March 2025 (Please attach your CV and provide evidence of how you demonstrate our values)
- Online testing deadline: 2 April 2025
- Pre-screening interview deadline: 18 April 2025
- Virtual Assessment Centre: 2 May 2025
- Final Interview Panel and UEL visit: 7 May 2025
- Programme Start Date: w/c 1 September 2025
Person specification
Qualifications, Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Degree in Engineering or Surveying
- Working on and towards continued professional development and professional registration in field
- Accurate with high attention to detail
- Experience of working to demanding timetables and exacting standards
- Excellent communication skills ability to communicate with staff at all levels and external bodies
- To be dependable, reliable, flexible with a willingness to learn, maintain high standards of confidentiality
- Ability to effectively prioritise own workload
- Ability to always remain calm and professional
- Excellent written and presentation skills
- Committed to continuing professional development
- Able to analyse problems and develop solutions
Desirable
- Experience of working in an Estates /Property environment
- Operational experience drawing and design systems, (i.e., MICAD and CAD)
- Experience of managing complex property transactions
- Experience of leading successful projects on time and within budgets
Skills & Competencies
Essential
- Ability to learn and assimilate information quickly
- Attention to detail
- Budget management
- Diplomacy
- Database management
- Microsoft Office skills
- Organisational skills
- Project management
- Self-motivated
- Working under pressure
- Problem solving
- Negotiation skills
- Communication
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
