Year Out Placement – Design Manager – Start date September 2026, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ipswich and Norwich

Overview

Locations: Cambridge, Ipswich & Norwich (Eastern Counties) & Chelmsford

Project Based/Office Based, with flexibility for occasional remote working

We have opportunities to join our award-winning Year-Out Programme starting in September 2026.

About Morgan Sindall
Morgan Sindall Construction is an Investors in People Platinum employer providing national construction services to private and public sector customers across a range of markets. Together, we create great results for our customers, partners and people. We are one of the UK’S most successful Tier 1 contractors. As a progressive and ambitious company, our employees benefit from a safe and rewarding working environment.

We are seeking Year-Out Design Management students to join our Business Units in the East of England. We have placements available in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk & Suffolk (Eastern and Essex.

You will be primarily focused within the Design Management function, but also take part in rotations in some of the following areas;

• Digital Construction & Sustainability
• Preconstruction & Programming
• Commercial
• Safety, Health & Environment
• Site Management

You’ll gain valuable experience by working on real projects alongside graduates and experienced professionals. We will encourage Year-out placements to document their Year-out through case studies and gathering evidence to demonstrate competencies within Design Management and wider construction experience.

What are we looking for?

We are looking for people who are genuinely interested in our company and have a passion for Design Management within construction. Our most successful students have a positive attitude, want to learn, link disciplines and the next natural step in construction through working well with others.

You should share our passion for the project at hand and enjoy working in an inclusive and hardworking team environment. At Morgan Sindall Construction our employees work collectively, encouraging and challenging each other to succeed. Across our business we treat everyone equally and have developed a community where voices are heard, and respected.

What can we offer you?

Working in our Construction East Business Units, you will be part of a growing and dynamic team of people who are passionate about what they do and enjoy the challenge and pace of work in a hardworking and fun construction environment. No day will be the same and we challenge each other to deliver what’s right for our customers.

Our culture is so important to us and defines the way we go about our business. We are inclusive, supportive and team focused and take pride in the longstanding and committed relationships we have with our supply chain partners.

If you are interested in furthering your career in an inclusive and supportive environment, apply to us today.

Equality Statement

Morgan Sindall Construction seeks to recruit the best person for each of our roles, based on merit alone and free from bias. We’re committed to treating all our job applicants fairly and with respect, irrespective of their background, disability, or any other protected characteristic.

We recruit individuals who embody our core values of professionalism, expertise and trust which has given us a fantastic variety of people and cultures across our organisation.

We celebrate our diverse teams who make Morgan Sindall Construction the inclusive, collaborative and rewarding place it is to work. We hire the best in the industry, provide them the support to achieve their goals and challenge them to make a real impact on our business. If you want to join an organisation that truly sees and harnesses what makes you unique, apply to us today.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

Our aim is to create a workplace built on acceptance, respect, and inclusion, where everyone feels that they belong and can make a meaningful contribution. We encourage applicants regardless of religion, ethnicity, nationality, disability status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, family, or parental status.  Morgan Sindall Construction is an equal opportunities employer and has been accredited with the Positive About Disabled People ‘Two Ticks’ accreditation. We are also an Investors in People company.

Morgan Sindall is unable to employ anyone who does not have the legal right to live and work in the UK. In the recruitment process all applicants are required to provide the necessary right to work information and documentation.

Recruitment Process

3 stage application process:

1. Apply online – Apply early as we recruit on a first come first serve basis, once all of our positions are full we close applications.

1. In-Person interview with the recruiting line manager who will be responsible for you during your Year-Out time at Morgan Sindall.

1. Successful applicants are notified! No Assessment Centres!!!

Applications open in September 2025 Year Out Employment will close 28th November 2025 ahead of interviews being held in December 2025.

Design Management Year-Out – Role Profile:

The minimum expectations of you as a Design Management Trainee are outlined in the role profile below along with your accountabilities. This is designed to give you a clear overview of your responsibilities and the role you play in your team.

Purpose:

To develop an understanding of all Design functions and processes. To develop awareness of Morgan Sindall Construction project delivery in relation to design management, risk management and added value to the business.

Position typically reports to:

1. Head of Design Management for all functional issues, and
2. Design/Senior Design Manager for project specific issues.

Design Progress and Reviews

1. Have an understanding and feed into the project design strategy and information required schedule (IRS)/design programme.
2. Develop the ability to prioritise activities to ensure tasks are completed in line with the programme.
3. Demonstrate the ability to review and understand design and constructions status drawings from both consultants and supply chain, learning to review various forms of design information, whilst checking our contractual obligations, highlighting potential risks and looking to identify opportunities to maximize return.
4. Be familiar with the Morgan Sindall suite of design documents retained on iMS and their format / content and demonstrate the ability to write up / feed into a Design Responsibility Matrix (DRM) and consultant scope documents
5. Develop an understanding of the impact of change and how that impacts other areas of design (knock on effects), sustainability, risk and procurement.

Consultant Performance

1. Be familiar with the Morgan Sindall consultant feedback KPI forms, and input into the development of these.
2. Develop relationship with the consultant team in order to discuss performance and provide feedback (both positive and negative) in co-oridnation with project Design Management lead.

People:

1. Demonstrate a willingness to undertake new and different tasks and be open to and receptive to feedback.
2. Have respect to the thoughts / opinions of all other disciplines, supply chain, customers and public, also recognise the goals and drivers of each.
3. When within site management rotation, spend an average of two hours out on site every day to improve your understanding of construction technology / methodology.
4. Responsible for the timely completion of Appraisd and Training Manuals.
5. Actively engage with peers, subcontractors and external partners.

BIM:

1. Develop an understanding of the BIM requirements for the project and how the process can influence the design
2. Learn and develop knowledge to utilise Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC) to view and navigate the BIM models to highlight clashes, risks and present information to various parties.
3. Attend and input into BIM meetings and learn the terminology required to feel confident to discuss and challenge design consultants proposals.

Contract and Change:

1. Have an ability to check the contractual requirements and engage with the design team and subcontractors to ensure they are meeting this requirement.
2. Have a general awareness of how to write Contractors Proposals and understand their importance in the Contract.
3. Highlight to the team any changes identified within the design to inform the internal Change Tracker in PCSA and Post-Contract stage.
4. Develop the knowledge to feed into monthly contractor reports for both the client and internal business reviews.
5. Develop an understanding of how change has a ripple effect to other areas including buildability, procurement and sustainability.

Knowledge

1. Awareness and understanding of Building Regulations and relevant legislation around design.
2. Awareness and understanding of building techniques, sequencing and logistics.
3. Basic understanding of construction details and common forms of building
4. Basic understanding of different project programmes used on sites.
5. Have a basic understanding of design management methods and tools and be familiar with consultant roles.
6. Basic awareness of different contract types used within construction.

Skills

1. Effective interpersonal and organisation skills
2. Motivated to manage and drive own development
3. Ability to work within a team and participate in all required activities
4. Well-developed communication and influencing skills
5. Identify opportunities to improve design approach to project delivery

IMPORTANT: Before applying for this role, please make sure you have the right to work in the country where the role is based. Unless it clearly stipulates within in the job advert above that the hiring company is looking to or able to sponsor applicants it is deemed that the hiring employer will only consider applications from those able to comply with and work in the country where the role is based.