Sport, Leisure and Libraries Manager

Sport, Leisure and Libraries Manager

Royal Borough of Greenwich, Department of Communities, Environment and Central
The Woolwich Centre
Salary: £52,194 (PO5) | 1-year fixed-term contract

Closing date: 17th July 2026
Candidate selection: 29th July 2026
Interviews: 5th to 11th August 2026

Royal Greenwich is a borough of contrasts and ambition, our purpose is to deliver services that reflect and grow with the communities we serve.

Are you ready to lead at the heart of one of London's most ambitious sport, leisure and library services?

Would you like to join a dedicated, committed and fast paced team at a moment of genuine transformation?

This may be the role for you.

We're looking for an experienced Sport, Leisure and Libraries Manager to join us at this pivotal moment:

We've recently opened Woolwich Waves, our new flagship leisure facility with an unrivalled facility mix, and we're refreshing our Playing Pitch Strategy through to 2036. We're contributing to major place-based planning frameworks, including the Thamesmead Masterplan and Infrastructure Delivery Plan, and beginning the conversation about a long-term replacement for Thamesmere Leisure Centre, all while working with partners across the GLA, Sport England, Kent Cricket, the ECB, the LTA, the RFU, England Hockey, the London FA, the Football Foundation, Mencap, Arts Council England and the NHS to make Greenwich a more active, healthier and better-connected borough.

Right now, our most live and formative piece of work is the refresh of our Physical Activity and Sport Strategy for 2026 and beyond, in partnership with Public Health, and the successful candidate will contribute materially to shaping that strategy, working alongside colleagues across the borough to set the direction for sport and physical activity in Royal Greenwich for years to come.

About Royal Greenwich

Royal Greenwich is a place of contrasts and ambition, historic and modern, established and growing, with one of the youngest and most diverse populations in London, and we're committed to building services that reflect and respond to those communities, with sport, leisure and libraries playing a central role in that ambition, supporting health, learning, social connection and pride of place across the borough.

About the contract

This role is offered on a 1-year fixed-term basis to backfill an internal acting-up arrangement, an opportunity to deliver high-impact work within a defined period and contribute to a service in genuine transformation.

About the role

Reporting to the Head of Sport, Leisure and Libraries, you'll act as the Council's senior client manager for our leisure management contract, contribute to the strategic oversight of our library service, lead service modernisation across sport, leisure and libraries, and play a key role in shaping our capital programme and partnerships. You'll work alongside a high-performing team, deputise for the Head of Service when required, and contribute to a service that touches the lives of hundreds of thousands of Greenwich residents every year, where your work will make a visible and lasting difference.

What you'll be doing

Contract and performance

• Acting as senior client manager for the GLL leisure contract, ensuring strong performance, robust service monitoring, financial integrity and value for money
• Leading on service modernisation, savings programmes and contract reviews to improve outcomes for residents
• Contributing to the strategic oversight of our library service
• Reporting on progress to the HoS, Directors, and Members

Strategy and place

• Contributing materially to the refresh of the Physical Activity and Sport Strategy in partnership with Public Health, and to operational delivery of the refreshed Playing Pitch Strategy and a new Libraries Strategy
• Supporting the borough's place-based work, including representing sport, leisure and library infrastructure needs within the Thamesmead Infrastructure Delivery Plan and other major regeneration frameworks

Capital, partnerships and leadership

• Working with internal and external partners on capital projects, including Section 106 and CIL-funded schemes
• Representing the service at internal and external forums and deputising for the Head of Service when required

Who you are

You'll bring substantial experience of leisure and facility management, with a strong track record of:

• Managing complex external contracts and driving performance improvement
• Working with strategic partners across sport, physical activity and wellbeing, including NGBs, Sport England, Arts Council England, the NHS and the GLA
• Contributing to or developing strategies and action plans in sport, physical activity or related fields
• Communicating with confidence at all levels, from operational delivery to Member and senior leadership audiences
• Operating at pace with multiple workstreams, tight deadlines and competing priorities

A background in leisure, sport, libraries or a related public service area is essential. Knowledge of local government procurement and contract management is highly desirable, as is report writing (decision reports) and interpreting complex information into briefings for Directors and Members.

If you don't match every essential criterion but bring relevant experience and skills from adjacent fields, we'd still love to hear from you.

What we offer

• A meaningful role at the heart of one of London's most ambitious sport, leisure and library services
• The role is based at the Woolwich Centre, with regular visits to our 7 leisure centres and 12 libraries, with scope for some remote working and working from home
• Local Government Pension Scheme, a secure pension for later life
• Generous annual leave entitlement, so you can rest, recharge and balance life beyond work
• Access to discounted GLL leisure facilities and a range of staff benefits to help you stay active and well
• Learning and development support to help you grow in role and progress in your career

For an informal discussion, please contact Asad at Asad.Sajid@royalgreenwich.gov.uk or 0208 921 6637

Reasonable adjustments

We want to remove any barriers candidates might face during the recruitment process, so if you have a disability and would like the advert in an alternative format, or would like to talk about how we can adjust the interview process to best support you, please contact Asad on the details above.

A note on AI

We're happy for candidates to use AI tools to help shape their thinking, but supporting statements must reflect your own experience and perspective, and you may be asked about them in detail during the selection process.

Diversity Statement: Royal Borough of Greenwich values the diversity of its community and aims to have a workforce that reflects this. We therefore encourage applications from all sections of the community.

Advert Close: All vacancies close at midnight unless otherwise stated.

Early Advert Close: Royal Borough of Greenwich reserves the right to close any job advert earlier than the advertised closing date where there is reason to do so (for example high volume of applications).

How Applications are Scored: Each application is scored according to how well the supporting statements addresses each point on the Person Specification for the role. Candidates will be short-listed for interview on the extent to which they meet the specific points within the Person Specification. The Person Specification is supplied with the job advert. When completing your application, please use the supporting statements section to tell us how you meet each of the points on the Person Specification. We need to have this information in order to consider your application.

Salary: Salaries advertised are for a standard working week of 35 hours unless otherwise stated. Please use this 'Salary Calculator to help you calculate a pro rata salary.

Our Staff Values: Our Staff Values are important to us. Candidates will be continuously assessed against our staff values throughout the recruitment process. Where candidates demonstrate views and behaviours that do not meet the standards of our staff values, we reserve the right to reject their application/ registration.