HR Business Partner
Location: Wolverton
Salary: Up to £55,000
Working Pattern: Full-time, Permanent
Hybrid Working: 5 days on-site during onboarding, then 3 days in the office and 2 days working from home
The Situation
A well-established rail services business is entering a period of significant growth, with plans to recruit approximately 100 additional employees this year to support increasing customer demand and operational expansion.
With a workforce already exceeding 450 employees and continued recruitment activity across both permanent and contract positions, the HR team is operating in a fast-paced environment where employee relations, workforce planning, onboarding, and organisational development are more important than ever.
To support this growth, the business is looking for an experienced HR Business Partner who can help drive operational excellence, provide expert guidance to managers, and support the delivery of a proactive people strategy during an exciting period of expansion.
The Opportunity
This is a highly visible and influential role within a growing organisation where you’ll work closely with senior leaders and managers to ensure the people agenda supports wider business objectives.
Reporting directly to the Head of HR, you’ll become a trusted advisor across the business, providing expert HR support while helping to develop leadership capability, improve employee engagement, and drive key HR initiatives.
You’ll join a collaborative and stable HR team, taking ownership of a broad range of HR activities while supporting and mentoring junior HR colleagues. This role offers an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys variety, thrives in a fast-moving environment, and wants to make a genuine impact within a growing organisation.
Key Responsibilities
Business Partnering
- Build effective relationships with managers and leaders across the business.
- Provide practical, commercially focused HR advice and guidance on all people matters.
- Support the delivery of business objectives through effective people management practices.
- Partner with managers to address workforce challenges and identify opportunities for improvement.
- Support organisational change, restructures, and business improvement initiatives where required.
Workforce Planning & Forecasting
- Support workforce planning activities to ensure the business has the right resources and skills to meet operational requirements.
- Work with managers to identify current and future recruitment needs.
- Monitor headcount, turnover, vacancy levels, and workforce trends.
- Support succession planning and talent development initiatives.
Leadership Coaching & Support
- Coach and support managers in employee relations, attendance management, performance management, and employee engagement.
- Develop management capability through guidance, coaching, and practical HR support.
Employee Relations
- Manage a range of Employee Relations cases including disciplinary, grievance, absence, capability, and performance management matters.
- Provide legally compliant and commercially focused advice to managers.
- Conduct investigations and support formal hearings and appeals.
- Ensure policies and procedures are applied fairly and consistently.
KPI Delivery
- Support the achievement of key people KPIs, including:
- Recruitment and hiring targets
- Retention and turnover reduction
- Absence management
- Performance management outcomes
- Employee engagement initiatives
- Work with managers to implement action plans where targets are not being met.
- Track and report on KPI performance and progress.
Recruitment & Talent
- Support end-to-end recruitment activities and workforce planning requirements.
- Partner with hiring managers and recruiters to attract and retain high-quality talent.
- Support onboarding and employee induction processes.
- Assist with talent development and internal progression initiatives.
HR Team Support
- Manage and support HR Administrators.
- Act as an escalation point for more complex HR queries and cases.
- Contribute to continuous improvement of HR processes and service delivery.
Essential Criteria
- Proven experience in an HR Business Partner or Senior HR Advisor role.
- Strong hands-on experience managing Employee Relations casework within a fast-paced environment.
- Sound knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice.
- CIPD Level 5 qualification as a minimum.
- At least five years’ experience working within HR.
- Confident communicator with the ability to influence and challenge stakeholders at all levels.
- Experience coaching managers on employee relations, absence management, performance management and employee engagement.
- Demonstrable experience taking ownership of HR initiatives and delivering successful outcomes.
- Up-to-date knowledge of employment legislation and HR best practice.
- Ability to build credibility quickly and establish trusted working relationships across the business.
Desirable Criteria
- Experience working within a unionised environment.
- Experience supporting operational, engineering, manufacturing, rail, logistics or site-based workforces.
- Exposure to organisational change, restructuring or TUPE activities.
- Previous experience managing, supporting or mentoring HR team members.
- Experience within a high-growth organisation undergoing significant recruitment and operational expansion.
Why Apply?
- Join a business experiencing substantial growth and investment.
- Opportunity to influence HR strategy and business performance.
- Broad, varied role with genuine autonomy and visibility.
- Supportive leadership team and stable HR function.
- Hybrid working available following initial onboarding period.
- Competitive salary and benefits package.
If you’re an experienced HR professional looking for a role where you can make a visible impact, build strong stakeholder relationships, and help shape the future of a growing business, we’d love to hear from you.