Gallery manager

Closing date for applications: 21 September 2025 at 11.59pm

Salary: £46,671 per annum

We are currently recruiting a Gallery Manager to join the Operations Team at the National Gallery.

With the recent redevelopment of the Sainsbury Wing entrance, enhancements to our public realm and visitor amenities, and the creation of a new Supporters' House, Learning Centre, and upcoming Research Centre, this is a uniquely exciting time to become part of our team.

We are seeking a passionate, talented, and experienced operational manager to join our growing team of Gallery Managers. This pivotal role supports the Head of Operations in delivering a world-class visitor experience – welcoming up to 7 million visitors each year.

Supporting the Head of Operations you will manage the day-to-day aspects of safety and visitor experience to provide a consistent, seamless welcome service for up to 6 million Gallery visitors annually.

This role will require you to work on-site 5 days a week as well as regularly on weekends and evenings, on a rota basis.

If this sounds like your next career move - we would love to hear from you! Join our ambitious organisation where you can contribute your talent and skills to support our vision, we will provide you with the tools to develop your knowledge and skills.

Responsibilities

Scope of job:

• Function as the most senior, floor-based operational manager at the Gallery to ensure the omnicompetent daily Gallery operations run smoothly; ensuring the Gallery is fit for purpose before opening and during operational hours through effective safety, capacity, cleaning and queue management.
• Represent the Operations department in regular meetings with other internal Gallery teams to ensure a seamless approach to visitor experience.
• Responsible for advising on and executing Exhibitions planning of crowd control, capacity and queue management.
• Regularly liaise with external stakeholders including emergency services, TFL and other cultural organisations.
• Take responsibility for the operations of the Gallery building whilst open to the public, including back of house areas and follow up on all issues as appropriate.
  Function as the Gallery's point of contact for a range of incidents, including emergency evacuations.
• Provide direct support to the Fire, Health and Safety Risk Manager by investigating, reporting and carrying out risk assessments on a range of health and safety related issues (both front and back of house).
• Identify areas of service improvement and deliver best practice training sessions to teams across the Gallery and our front of house third party contractors.
• Act as the final point of escalation for complaints and operational concerns.
• Provide on-site cover for weekends and evenings according to your roster and on an ad-hoc basis whenever required to do so.
• Continuously demonstrate inclusive behaviours, valuing everyone's contribution, and promoting a culture of openness.

Key deliverables:

• Provide operational daily management, including oversight of activities during visits, events, and special events (e.g. VIP visits), supporting other managers to ensure that high standards of visitor experience and safety are maintained.
• Consult regularly with our Host, Operations, Security, Fire, Health and Safety, Buildings, Retail, Catering,
• Exhibitions, Commercial Services, Research Centre and Learning Centre teams to provide a seamless standard of visitor experience and care.
• Complete all necessary follow-up reports and investigations where incidents take place thoroughly and to a high standard.

Knowledge, skills and experience

• Experience coordinating operational teams, within a visitor attraction/visitor focused environment.
• Effective organisation skills, with the ability to manage various tasks whilst also responding to the daily operational requirements of the Gallery.
• The ability to demonstrate an exceptional understanding of visitor health and safety, including identifying hazards and potential issues and taking appropriate action.
• Previous experience of incident management and BCP processes.
• The ability to remain calm under pressure, responding to incidents quickly and efficiently, in a way that demonstrates sound and reliable judgement.
• A genuine desire to provide exceptional customer service and be able to inspire the same passion in others, always leading by example.
• Excellent communication skills (both verbal and written) and can quickly build positive relationships with visitors, colleagues, and stakeholders.
• Excellent attention to detail, which can be used to write a range of reports and documents.
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities and responsibilities.
• Personable able to collaborate effectively with colleagues and departments.
• Effective negotiator.

We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries.

Please state in your application that you found this role through Creative Access.