Location: New Haw, South East England, KT15 3NB.
Defra Group Property (DgP) manages the provision of facilities management services across its Estate including for Defra’s executive agency; the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA). APHA uses a wide range of specialist facilities as part of its aims to safeguard animal and plant health for the benefit of people, the environment and the economy. These specialist facilities include biocontainment laboratories across the UK with the main laboratory campus being located at Weybridge.
The Defra Weybridge site is the largest facility in terms of size and complexity across the Defra network and is currently going through a process of major investment (over £1bn) and redevelopment to enhance its scientific capability. The site is at the forefront of research and diagnostic testing for animal and zoonotic diseases and leads on disease outbreak response for Defra.
The DgP team at Weybridge are comprised of subject matter experts who work to ensure the Property Estate meets Statutory requirements across the complex regulations to which it must adhere and ensures the site is safe and secure. This role will be based at the Weybridge Estate in New Haw, Surrey.
Job overview
The Weybridge site operates with an outsourced hard and soft Facilities Management (FM) contract. The Small Works Manager is responsible for ensuring robust governance, procurement oversight and successful delivery of all small works, including repairs, refurbishments, minor improvements and additional projects.
Reporting to the Head of FM and workplace services, the post holder will manage projects from initial concept through to completion, ensuring quality, compliance, and value for money while maintaining seamless operational continuity across this critical scientific estate.
Key responsibilities
Oversee the end‑to‑end lifecycle of small works projects, from concept definition through delivery and handover.
- Support stakeholders to define requirements and develop appropriate specifications.
- Co‑ordinate all delivery activities with internal stakeholders to minimize disruption to business-as-usual operations.
- Work closely with the FM contractor throughout tendering, evaluation and award processes.
- Manage a Programme of small works to ensure delivery within agreed timescales and budgets.
- Manage a Change Control Process ensuring that retired assets and new assets are notified at the point of Billing
- To contribute to the management of the financial life cycle though the CAFM system. Approving cost estimates up to the value of £10,000 and pre approving higher value works for the Head of team.
- Review FM contractor quotations to ensure they are competitive, compliant and deliver value for money.
- Verify the quality of completed works, ensuring outputs meet the required technical and operational standards.
- Track and monitor revenue and accrued financial positions, providing accurate forecasts to year-end.
- Produce regular progress reports, highlighting performance, risks and mitigations.
- Act as the operational interface between Operations, Projects, and other site stakeholders on all small works activities.
- Liaise with Projects team to ensure small works do not impact major programme delivery or critical site operations.
- Build strong working relationships across the estate to ensure alignment, transparency and effective communication.
- Produce daily and monthly performance reports on the FM provider, identifying trends and highlighting any anomalies to the FM Manager for appropriate action.
Person specification
Essential Qualifications, Skills & Experience
- Demonstrable experience as a Small Works Manager within FM, construction, or engineering environments.
- Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple small projects concurrently.
- Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to influence and build rapport.
- Proven ability to ensure quality, compliance and value for money through structured oversight and contractor management.
- Experience working in a highly regulated, scientific or operational environment.
- Knowledge of government procurement routes and FM service delivery models.
Licences
Driving Licence
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Working Together
- Managing a Quality Service
- Delivering at Pace
- Making Effective Decisions
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £46,060, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £13,343 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
- Learning and development tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
Flexi Time Policy. Our Flexi-time policy allows you to vary your hours from day to day, within the requirements of your role, to suit your needs and to offer a better work/life balance.
Leave. If you work full time at Defra you are entitled to 25 days’ leave (rising, over 5 years, to 30 days’). If you work part time it will be pro-rated.
Privilege day. You are also entitled to a privilege day off in May to mark the King’s birthday (date varies), plus time off for the 8 public holidays a year.
Career breaks. We recognise that your work-life balance can extend beyond the short-term to the longer-term, and to support this you are able to apply for career breaks. These are unpaid extended breaks from work, granted at the discretion of the department.
Volunteering leave - 3 days paid volunteering leave every year (pro-rata). Once you have passed probation.
Season ticket loan – for an interest free season ticket loan, if you have worked within the Defra for more than three months. This can be used to purchase train and bus season tickets, as well as station car parking.
Tenancy deposit loan – for an interest free loan, to assist you in meeting the deposit costs for your privately rented home.
Salary advances and loans for other circumstances – for salary advances and loans in the following circumstances: for new entrants, for the purchase of bicycles, holidays and religious holidays.
Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme – Since the closure to new entrants of the employer childcare voucher scheme, the government introduced the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. In this scheme, working parents open an online childcare account and for every £8 they pay in, the government adds £2, up to a maximum of £2,000 a year for each child or £4,000 for a disabled child. Parents then use the funds to pay for registered childcare.
Support to buy a bicycle – we run two schemes that can help you buy a bicycle for your commute:
- The Cycle to Work Scheme –you can apply for a bicycle for your commute, up to the value of £6,000, which is recovered from you through salary sacrifice, as a tax-free benefit. At the end of the repayment period, you have the option to buy the bike if you wish, saving around 30% of the original cost.
- Bike loan – if you are not eligible to apply for the Cycle to Work Scheme, you can apply for a loan of up to £1,000 towards the cost of a bike using the Bike loan scheme. This however is not a salary sacrifice scheme.
High-street and online discounts. Offers through SmartSpending™ which is accessed through the StaR platform. Accessible 24/7, you can save at hundreds of top retailers.
Maternity leave, paternity leave and shared parental leave. We offer generous maternity leave, paternity leave and shared parental leave – a total of 52 weeks leave to look after your new baby, regardless of your length of service. Most mothers are entitled to 39 weeks of paid leave, and a further 13 weeks of unpaid leave. Most partners are entitled to 15 days of paid paternity leave. Shared parental leave arrangements are in place, allowing parents to divide their leave with each other.
Professional Membership. Defra group will fund one professional membership for each permanent employee which is relevant to their role.
Eye care scheme. If you use a computer screen in connection with your job, we will pay for a regular eyesight test, and you may also be entitled to help towards purchasing new glasses, if they are needed for computer use.
The Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) is a free 24/7 confidential telephone advice service, available to all of our staff throughout the year.
Civil Service Sports Council. The opportunity to join the Civil Services Sports Council.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience.
Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.
Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.
Application Process
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Sift
Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted on the personal statement. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview. Sifting will take place w/c 7th July 2026. Interview
If successful at application stage, you will be invited to interview where you will be assessed on behaviours, experience and strengths.
Your interview will be conducted face to face.
Interviews are currently scheduled to take place w/c 13th or 22nd July 2026 but may be subject to change.
Near miss
Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions in Defra which may be at a lower grade but have a potential skills match.
Face to face interviews
Please note that Defra does not pay travel expenses for applicants from Other Government Departments (OGD) or external candidates.
Location & Travel
As part of the pre-employment process, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. The agreed contractual workplace is then the substantive and permanent place of work for the successful candidate(s).
Where the location is 'National' the successful appointee should discuss and agree an appropriate contractual location in line with both Defra’s location policy and site capacity, prior to proceeding with pre-employment processes.
The agreed amount of time spent at a workplace for this post will reflect the requirement for Civil Servants to spend at least 60% of their working time in an organisation workplace with the option to work the remaining time flexibly from home.
Working time spent at a workplace may include time spent at other organisational locations including field-based operational locations, together with supplier, customer or partner locations. This is a non-contractual agreement which is consistent with common Civil Service expectations.
Travel costs to non-contractual workplaces will be subject to departmental travel and subsistence policies. Travel costs to contractual workplaces are the responsibility of the employee.
The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.
You will need to agree your working arrangements with your new manager. Some travel may be required and occasional overnight stays.
To work from Weybridge you will require the higher level of CTC clearance. Therefore, confirmation of appointment to the advertised post will be dependent upon successful CTC clearance being confirmed as part of pre-employment checks.
For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.
Please be aware the levels of national security clearance are changing which may impact on the level needed for this role by the time of appointment. All efforts will be made to keep candidates informed of any changes and what that will mean in terms of vetting criteria. For more information please See our vetting charter.
Salary
New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. The internal roles rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.
Reserve List
A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.
Childcare Vouchers
Any move to DEFRA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website.
Visa Sponsorship Statement
Please take note that Defra does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship.
Criminal Record Check
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.
However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing [email protected] stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
Reasonable Adjustments
If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
Contact Government Recruitment Service via [email protected] as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.
Accessibility
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Internal Fraud Database Check
Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences.
This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.
A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.
This role is full time only. Applicants who wish to work an alternative pattern are welcome to apply however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window). See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.
Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window).
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.
Contact point for applicants
Job contact
Recruitment team
Further information
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: [email protected].
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: here.
