By Sarah Dale
27 August 2025
Tracey Field has managed some very different estates in her career. Her new book, Leading & Managing an Education Estate: A Practical Guide, is a handy go-to text drawn from her own experience.
From overseeing building houses for tigers at a safari park to discussing electrical socket placements with the future Princess of Wales, Tracey Field’s experience in estates and facilities management has taken her on a most unusual career trajectory leading her to start her own business, Tracey Field Consulting Ltd, and writing the ultimate guidebook for leaders working in the sector.
Tracey, from Seaham, started her career in a call centre for a housing association, however, she always had a tenacious spirit and a burning desire for lifelong learning. She worked part-time while studying and would use her afternoons off to shadow colleagues so she could find out more about the property and building industry.
Working, studying (she has a degree in construction management from Reading University) and bringing up four children was no easy task; however, she soon climbed the career ladder to a managerial position. She moved on to work for The Bedford Estates managing the property and maintenance at Woburn Abbey and Gardens and Woburn Safari Park after successfully passing an interview with the Duke of Bedford.
“One of my biggest projects was working on the tiger house and the bear house,” explains Tracey, who has 25 years’ experience in the built environment and facilities management spanning both public and private sectors.
“From there I moved on to a role with the Royal household managing projects at all the London palaces. It is funny to think I was at Kensington Palace talking to the future Princess of Wales, Kate, when she had just married Prince William, about where she would like electrical sockets!”
Tracey’s career has also taken her to work in the Falklands for three years as a project manager and moving on to a business improvement role, which saw her travel all over the world, including an expedition to Antarctica to learn more about sustainability.
“I was away six months at a time and then I was approached to work in Lagos in Nigeria as a superintendent, which is a surveyor/project manager role,” says Tracey, originally from Essex.
“It was a really good job and I learned so much.”
However, after three years working in Nigeria and while she was home for Christmas 2019 with her family, she suffered a bombshell breakup. So, Tracey upped sticks and moved to the North-east in February 2020. Newly divorced, she bought a house and renovated it herself, including installing a new kitchen and putting her own stamp on it.
“I love it up here,” she says. “As soon as I moved here, I felt at home. Having worked in London for years, I love going out for a walk and talking to everybody and my children and five grandchildren have joined me up here.”
She took on a new job as estates manager at a multi-academy trust, which she loved, but was struck by the thought: ‘If only there was a guidebook for estates’ which led her to her next venture.
Four years later, Tracey decided to take the leap into self-employment and launched her own company, Tracey Field Consulting Ltd, while writing her first book.
“Life is too short,” says Tracey, who is also a trustee at Ascent Academies Trust.
“I’ve been through many challenges including an unexpected back surgery nearly two years ago, I’ve experienced heartbreak and last year was another really bad year that made me think differently.
“I loved my job in the education sector but I realised I had more to give and after everything that had happened in my personal life, I needed more control in my life. When I told my children that I was going to leave my job and start my own business, they were so supportive and said I should go for it.”
Never doing things by halves, Tracey not only launched her own business in May, but she also knuckled down to write two very different books, the first of which is her go-to guide for people working in education estates.
Leading & Managing an Education Estate: A Practical Guide is a professional, practical guide for schools, trusts and organisations managing an education estate, no matter your role.
The book is divided into 19 chapters looking at all the necessary aspects of estates management, including compliance, legal duties, governance, assurance, procurement, contract management, project management, funding routes, energy management, and more.
“In both my book and with my consulting business, I offer clear, no-nonsense support you can rely on,” she adds.
“My mission is to empower organisations to achieve their goals through strategic planning and insightful analysis.”
Tracey Field Consulting Ltd offers a range of services including workshops, strategic estate planning, clerk of work and project management services, as well as quality assurance reporting, compliance and FM advice, CPD sessions, training courses and mentoring for estates teams, and setting KPIs and contract management.
Leading & Managing an Education Estate: A Practical Guide by Tracey Field is out now and available at: https://traceyfieldconsulting.com/ols/categories/leading–managing-an-education-estate
www.traceyfieldconsulting.com
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