Associate Director Accommodation, Catering and Retail

Models by Jaz Martell | Photographer:
Alys Tomlinson

University of the Arts London (UAL) is a global leader in creativity, innovation and transformative education. Formed of six renowned Colleges and four Institutes, UAL continues to shape the future of art, design, fashion, communication and performing arts, supported by a diverse and vibrant community of over 20,000 students from more than 130 countries.

As UAL continues to invest significantly in its student experience, the University is now seeking to appoint an exceptional Associate Director Accommodation, Catering and Retail to provide strategic and commercial leadership across three essential student‑facing service areas.

Reporting to the Director of Estates and working as part of the Estates senior leadership team, the Associate Director will play a pivotal role in shaping and delivering high‑quality, commercially effective services that enhance the experience of students and staff across the University.

A core element of the role is responsibility for UAL’s Accommodation Strategy, ensuring alignment with the University’s wider objectives, student demographics and market trends. You will ensure the delivery of safe, supportive and high‑quality residential environments with a strong focus on duty of care and student wellbeing. The role also includes full operational responsibility for UAL‑owned halls and the oversight of external accommodation partners, ensuring accountability, performance and a consistently high standard of experience across all sites.

The Associate Director also leads UAL’s catering strategy, establishing an operating model informed by higher‑education trends and wider market insights. You will oversee both in‑house teams and contracted partners to deliver safe, healthy, appealing and value‑for‑money food and beverage services. Additionally, you will shape and implement the University’s retail strategy to support academic delivery and enhance the student experience, drawing on sales performance and customer feedback to drive improvements in service quality, satisfaction and profitability.

We are seeking a proactive and collaborative leader with demonstrable experience across the commercial services portfolio, including catering, hospitality, retail and accommodation. The successful candidate will possess exceptional communication skills, remain calm under pressure, and have a proven track record of leading, motivating and developing teams. Strong decision‑making ability, sound judgement, effective problem‑solving skills, and a commitment to continuous improvement are essential.

The role also requires high levels of commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to influence budgets, manage resources and drive contractor performance.

University of the Arts London (UAL) generates and inspires the creativity the world needs for a better future. Since 1842, our colleges have been defining creative education. With curiosity, imagination and intent we make work which creates lasting change for people and our planet. London is core to who we are, a place where we meet and share ideas with people from different backgrounds and cultures.

Our creative network influences learning, culture, industry and society on a global scale. Our academics and practitioners deliver creative education and inspire new ways of thinking through research and innovation. We work with students at every level from pre‑degree and short courses to postgraduate and online learning, enabling them to build the careers they want. Together, we are a community of makers, thinkers, pioneers and storytellers redesigning the future.

As a University, we are ranked second in the world for Art and Design. We are formed of 6 Colleges with unique histories and identities:
Camberwell College of Arts, Central Saint Martins, Chelsea College of Arts, London College of Communication, London College of Fashion and Wimbledon College of Arts. UAL also has 4 Institutes, 5 Research Centres, 1 Pre‑Degree School and 2 subsidiary companies delivering specialist activities.

We are a global University, welcoming over 22,000 students and 6,000…