Senior Bid Manager

As the UK's leading Social Enterprise, we move lives forward every day by building, managing and supporting thriving Communities. From new homes, social housing and student accommodation to leisure, education and Community initiatives, our work makes a positive difference to millions of People across the UK. And that takes People who care about doing the right thing. People who are ambitious, ready to grow and motivated to make a difference through the work they do. 

We're looking for Colleagues who bring energy, curiosity and ownership. People who enjoy being challenged, support those around them and want to keep raising the bar. Because when we perform at our best, we create more opportunities to invest in our Customers, our Communities and each other. 

Experience matters, but it's only part of the story. If you share our values and want to build a career where your work has real impact, we'd love to hear from you. 

 As part of Places for People Group, PfP Students are experts in providing facilities management solutions for university campus buildings and student accommodation. Our service is focused on our partnership approach with our clients and the student experience.   

More about the role 

As our Senior Bid Manager, you'll play a key role in driving business growth by leading the end-to-end tender and bid process for PfP Students. Working closely with the Head of Business Development and key stakeholders across the business, you'll develop compelling, high-quality submissions that differentiate our offering and support the delivery of our growth strategy. 

You'll manage multiple bids simultaneously, identify new opportunities through procurement portals and sector intelligence, and ensure all submissions meet client requirements, company standards and branding guidelines. You'll also lead bid reviews and debriefs, monitor bid performance, maintain an up-to-date tender pipeline and help shape future bidding strategies through continuous improvement and market insight. You may also provide leadership to temporary bid writers during periods of high activity. 

This is a national role and you would be expected to attend meetings on client sites as required.  

At Places for People we are committed to a safe working environment so a basic DBS check is mandatory.  

Essential criteria 

• Proven experience operating at Bid Manager level within a competitive tendering environment, with a track record of successfully managing bid submissions.
• Strong knowledge of public sector procurement processes and local government procurement portals.
• Demonstrable experience managing multiple complex bids and tender opportunities simultaneously.
• Experience building and maintaining effective stakeholder relationships across a large organisation, including influencing senior stakeholders.
• Experience within Property/ Student Accommodation is preferred though not essential.  

More about you 

You'll be an experienced bid professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment and enjoys taking ownership of complex opportunities from identification through to submission. You're highly organised, able to manage competing priorities and have a strong eye for detail. 

You'll be confident presenting proposals and influencing stakeholders at all levels, both internally and externally. Experience within facilities management, property management or a related sector would be beneficial, as would experience working across large, matrix organisations. You'll be comfortable challenging constructively, using insight and evidence to shape winning solutions, and you'll have strong written skills supported by the ability to use a range of IT systems and bid management tools.  

What you'll get 

We know rewarding work deserves rewarding benefits. That's why, alongside a competitive salary, you'll have access to a package designed to support you at work and beyond. 

You'll receive: 

• Pension with matched contributions up to 7%
• Bonus scheme for colleagues at 2%
• 35 days holiday (including bank holidays) with the option to buy or sell days
• Healthcare cashback plan for everyday medical costs, with private GP and health support services available
• Comprehensive wellbeing support including counselling, flu jabs, our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and access to our Wellbeing Hub, supporting your mental, physical and financial wellbeing
• Access to Our Place Rewards, offering discounts and savings on groceries, travel, shopping, home products and other lifestyle purchases
• Ongoing training, professional qualifications, internal development programmes and career progression opportunities
• Recognition programmes including Star Awards and Colleague Awards, celebrating achievements and recognising great work
• Strong focus on inclusion, wellbeing and colleague engagement
• Free membership to Places Gyms
• Life Assurance to provide financial security for your loved ones, alongside access to will writing services to help you plan for the future with confidence 

What's next?

If you meet the criteria and are ready to make the next step in your career then click apply. You will be redirected to our careers site where you can discover more about the role, read a full job description and apply directly to us.

As part of our commitment to diversity and inclusion, we offer a guaranteed interview to candidates who are disabled, neurodiverse, or have served in the Armed Forces, provided they meet the essential criteria for the role. If you would like to be considered under this scheme, please indicate this in your application. We are dedicated to creating a supportive and accessible recruitment process for all.

We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application or interview experience, please let us know. We're happy to work with you to ensure you have the opportunity to perform at your best.

If you are a Places for People customer and you're looking for support with your application, please contact our skills and employment team on skillsemployment@placesforpeople.co.uk.

We understand the importance of a supportive and inclusive work culture so please talk to us at interview about flexibility you may need. We can't promise to give you exactly what you want, but we promise not to judge you for asking. For this role we are open to discussing the possibility of reduced hours, flexible start and finish times or compressed hours.  

If you are a recruitment agency please note we operate a PSL and do not take cold calls 

Safeguarding

At Places for People, safeguarding is everyone's responsibility. We are committed to creating safe communities for our customers and colleagues by protecting children, young people, and adults at risk from harm, abuse, and neglect. 

We follow robust safeguarding policies and procedures, ensuring all employees, volunteers, and contractors uphold the highest standards of safeguarding and accountability. Our recruitment process includes pre-employment checks, including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks where applicable, to promote a safe and secure working environment. 

By joining Places for People, you are expected to contribute to our safeguarding culture, following our policies and reporting concerns to protect those in our communities