Overview
A bit about us….
The Sawday’s group is a pioneering family of travel brands united by a deep passion for extraordinary places to stay. Places that stir the soul, connect people to nature and community, and turn every trip into something truly memorable.
* Sawday’s offers self-catering places, B&Bs, hotels and pubs, all personally inspected.
* Canopy & Stars takes you off the beaten path with treehouses, cabins, yurts and other magical escapes.
* Paws & Stay finds unforgettable adventures for people and their dogs.
* Crown & Canopy is our expert consultancy, helping owners turn wild ideas and empty fields into extraordinary places.
We’re proud to be 52% employee-owned, with the rest held by a Charitable Trust and our founding family. We are a certified B Corp and amongst the highest scoring travel B Corps in the world. We’re also recognised for being in the top 5% in the world for caring for employees.
Sustainability and ethics are at the heart of what we do. Every employee, every team, every decision contributes to our mission to demonstrate that tourism can be done better and that it has a positive role to play in society and in protecting the environment.
This role involves working across all brands.
Your role
We’re looking for someone who will be a key part of our Leadership Team, with responsibility for all aspects of technology within the organisation. This includes setting strategy and direction, building and developing our technical team, maintaining external supplier relationships and enabling the company to gain competitive advantage through the appropriate implementation of technology. You’ll bring curiosity, enthusiasm and a willingness to get stuck in.
Job Title
Head of Engineering
Reports to
Managing Director
Responsible for
* The Platform Team (7 people)
Works with
* Leadership Team
* Heads of Marketing and other teams
* External partners and service providers
Main tasks and responsibilities
* Understand the company’s long term technology strategy and business objectives, focusing on migration out of legacy systems and into a unified, sustainable technology platform for all of our brands
* Assess and audit our existing technical ecosystem and enable the team to deliver recommended improvements and simplifications
* Ensure a high standard of digital user experience across brands
* Hold responsibility for technical innovation, system administration, legal and standards compliance, maintenance and operational security and reliability
* Uphold working practices and processes (currently Agile) to optimise the team’s production and support of mission-critical software
* Inspire a high-performing team, fostering a culture of trust, excellence and respectful collaboration
* Communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders at all levels of the company, including our board of directors
* Work both collaboratively and independently, taking initiative and making informed, data-driven commercial decisions
* Develop and maintain effective relationships with external technology service providers and partners
* Oversee IT provision for the organisation, working closely with an external partner to ensure appropriate governance is in place
* Act as the company’s Data Protection Officer and ensure compliance with GDPR
* Set and review annual budgets with Head of Finance and our Managing Director
* Provide updates, insights and recommendations to the company management and board
* Lead by example, if appropriate, with opportunities for hands-on configuration and coding, peer review and setting of standards
* Sustainability & Ethics Guardianship: contribute to our five-year strategy and annual objectives as part of decision making
Necessary skills and experience
* Significant, hands-on, full-stack development experience (JS frameworks e.g. Vue, full LAMP stacks, AWS infrastructure)
* Experience of building and developing technical teams
* Experience of technical project management
* Hands-on experience with high-volume, mission-critical systems
* Excellent communication at all levels, with the ability to work through ambiguity and to collaborate with business stakeholders
* A solid understanding of change management and experience of transformation
* At least 10 years working in technology and systems
* At least 6 years of direct management of software and technology strategy
Preferable skills and experience
* A travel or booking/ecommerce related background
Salary and benefits
* An annual salary from £65-75k, depending on experience
* 26 days holiday per year, plus bank holidays
* Flexi time and hybrid working (3 days in the office per week. You need to be within commutable distance of Bristol)
* Company pension scheme with enhanced employer contributions at 4%, and an optional salary sacrifice scheme
* An employee-owned company: after your introductory period, you will be eligible to a share of any dividends
* A special place to work: a colourful, upcycled, recycled, open plan office on Bristol’s buzzing harbourside
* DEIBA Team: a team focused on diversity & inclusion efforts for our employees and customers
* £290 per year towards staying in one of our special places
* 20% employee discount and 10% family & friends discount on UK based Canopy & Stars breaks, 15% discount on EU based breaks
* 15% employee discount and 8% family & friends discount on Paws & Stay breaks in the UK
* Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
* A volunteering day per year
* 15 wellbeing hours per year
* A ‘Climate Journey Day’ policy, which gives you the opportunity to earn up to two paid days per year to travel to and from a holiday destination using low-carbon transport
* Social and wellbeing events held throughout the year
Closing Date and Applications
* Closing date is 19th September 2025
* Please submit applications through the Jobs page on our website
Our Behaviours and Values
How we work is just as important as the success we achieve at Sawday’s. During your time with us, you will be expected to treasure, protect, and embody our behaviours and values every day.
* We celebrate quirkiness and difference
* We dance to the beat of our own drum
* We encourage curiosity and creativity
* We champion individuality and the ‘special’
* We follow head and heart
* We are solidly commercial while flexible and ‘human’
* We are empathetic, generous and supportive
* We make ethical, holistic, long-term decisions
* We do important things brilliantly
* We use business as a force for social, environmental and economic good
* We are committed to our craft and deliver with ambition and purpose
* We relish our role in sustaining a happy, healthy world
* We bring positive energy
* We foster a genuine spirit of togetherness and family
* We take pleasure in empowering and delighting others
* We are driven to learn, grow, connect and contribute
Finally, we place a strong emphasis on ethics, people and the environment. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and an inclusive company, where diverse backgrounds and perspectives are valued and where everyone can bring their full, authentic selves to work.
As a Disability Confident Employer, we offer a guaranteed interview to any disabled candidate who meets all the ‘Necessary’ skills listed above and is a commutable distance from the office.
If you need any further assistance with your application, or require the application form in a different format, please email Charlotte on charlotte@sawdays.co.uk or call 0117 204 7828.
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