David Hingley

David Hingley

Head of Arts, Heritage & Culture

“A passionate advocate for a developing and thriving arts, heritage and culture sector.”
  • Executive search in the arts sector
  • Performing arts leadership recruitment
  • Heritage and culture executive recruitment
  • Executive recruitment for museums and festivals

David has worked in the arts, heritage, and culture sectors since 2010. His career is focused on creating impactful, values-driven experiences delivered by passionate and engaged teams.

David Hingley passionately believes that 'people make places'. He began his career in retail as a Store Manager at Marks and Spencer before moving to senior roles at complex cultural organisations, including Historic Royal Palaces, The Landmark Trust and Tate. In his recent role as a Senior Consultant at BOP Consulting, David has supported strategic projects across the sector, helping organisations drive meaningful change.

David is a passionate advocate for developing and leading values-led teams. He has a track record of successfully recruiting teams, supporting organisational change programmes, and delivering complex projects. He knows first-hand the difference inspiring and thoughtful leadership can make.

Past achievements include overseeing the customer service aspects of the 2014 'Poppies' installation at the Tower of London, managing the delivery of the 2012 Olympic cycling time trial at Hampton Court Palace, and delivering the accessible queue for the lying-in-state of Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II, for which he received the British Empire Medal.

Outside work, David is a Trustee of both Painshill Park Trust and the Museum of the Broads. This gives him valuable insight into governance structures and the challenges of managing historic Georgian Landscapes and vintage steamboats.

He is a keen hiker, avid reader and passable runner who spends much of his downtime pandering to the needs of his incredibly demanding dog, Milo.

David holds a Master's in Heritage Management from Birmingham University, a Bachelor's in History from the University of Wales, Swansea, and a smartphone overloaded with pictures of great days out.

David’s areas of work

Executive search in the arts sector

Arts sector leadership recruitment

Performing arts leadership recruitment

Senior roles in performing arts organisations

Heritage and culture executive recruitment

Museum and cultural venue leadership

Executive recruitment for museums and festivals

Performing venues and festival leadership

Testimonials

“I have been very impressed by the care and attention taken by David Hingley and his team. Not only have they been very efficient and provided an extensive array of potential candidates, but they have also come across as being genuinely interested in Southwell Cathedral. There was a real sense of them wanting to get it right for us. We are delighted with the person we have appointed, and I’m not sure we would have found him without the assistance of Peridot. Thank you.”

Neil Evans

Interim Dean, Southwell Minster