Senior Development Manager

50356_1770049315
  • Negotiable
  • Birmingham, West Midlands

Senior Development Manager | Major Regeneration & Mixed‑Use Projects

Birmingham, with regional travel across the Midlands

A rare opportunity for an experienced Senior Development Manager to join a high‑performing Midlands team at a leading UK regeneration and development company. The region has grown rapidly over the past 2-3 years and now delivers some of the most ambitious, complex and high‑profile regeneration schemes in the country.

This role offers true cradle‑to‑grave responsibility, significant autonomy, and exposure to long‑term projects that will define major Midlands towns and cities for decades.

Why This Role Is Unique:

You'll join a growing Birmingham team, operating with the autonomy of a regional business under a decentralised structure. You'll lead some of the UK's most exciting regeneration projects, including a major town‑centre regeneration, a multi‑phase city project requiring extensive stakeholder alignment and a high-profile masterplan offering unmatched long‑term opportunity.

Full lifecycle development: identification → appraisal → legal agreements → planning → delivery → disposal.

Financially secure pipeline with funding committed upfront.

This is a role for someone who thrives in complexity, can anticipate issues before they arise, and enjoys navigating public‑sector partnerships and multi‑party legal agreements.

The Role:

As Senior Development Manager, you will lead major mixed‑use and regeneration projects from inception through to delivery. Working alongside an internal Project Manager, you will form a project partnership, while also managing external consultants, local authority stakeholders, and commercial partners.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Lead the full development lifecycle - from site identification and feasibility through to delivery.
  • Negotiate and conclude complex legal agreements (funding, development, disposals, lettings).
  • Secure planning consents and statutory approvals.
  • Prepare and manage development appraisals and business‑case modelling.
  • Build, lead and motivate multidiscipline project teams.
  • Develop strong relationships with public‑sector partners, JV stakeholders, funders and advisors.
  • Provide clear financial reporting, board papers, forecasts and progress updates.
  • Ensure ESG principles, sustainability and social value are embedded across projects.
  • Represent the organisation professionally, identifying new opportunities aligned to strategy.

What We're Looking For:

This role requires a Development Manager who is commercially sharp, politically astute, and comfortable leading complex schemes involving multiple parties.

Essential Experience:

  • Proven track record delivering large‑scale development or regeneration projects.
  • Strong experience negotiating and managing complex legal agreements.
  • Ability to lead development appraisals, viability assessments and financial modelling.
  • Experience securing planning and statutory consents.
  • Ability to work within complex public‑sector frameworks and navigate multi‑stakeholder environments.
  • Strong commercial acumen with the ability to anticipate challenges.

Working Style & Culture:

  • 4 days a week in the Birmingham office - strong emphasis on collaboration.
  • Highly autonomous environment where regions operate independently.
  • Access to major, long‑term projects with genuine impact on local communities.
  • Supportive team culture with growth planned across the East Midlands next year.

Package & Benefits:

  • Competitive salary
  • Car allowance + fuel allowance
  • Up to 50% annual bonus
  • Family healthcare
  • Matched pension (up to 6%)
  • Life assurance + additional corporate benefits

Interested:

If you have the experience and ambition to lead transformative regeneration projects and want to join a growing, well‑resourced regional team, we'd love to hear from you.

At Gleeson Recruitment Group, we embrace inclusivity and welcome applicants of all backgrounds, experiences, and abilities. We are proud to be a disability confident employer.

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Lucy Wynn
Lucy Wynn Associate Director

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