People Advisor (9 months FTC) (Hiring Immediately)

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced and proactive People Advisor to join our People & Culture team on a 9-month fixed-term contract. You'll play an important role in supporting managers with day-to-day people matters, providing practical employee relations advice and helping build the confidence and capability of managers and colleagues across the organisation.

This is a great opportunity for someone who enjoys coaching others, improving ways of working and creating practical solutions that make people processes simpler and more effective.

Despite big improvements in healthcare in our lifetimes, today millions of people in the UK still live in poor health as they get older. Diseases like cancer, dementia, diabetes, and heart disease affect the lives of many people in our communities. Our goal is to create a world-leading resource for health research, to improve our understanding and spot the patterns of how and why common diseases start, so treatments can begin sooner and be more effective.

Our Future Health will be the UK's largest ever health research programme, bringing people together to develop new ways to detect, prevent, and treat diseases. We are a charity, supported by the UK Government, in partnership with charities and industry. We work closely with the NHS and with public authorities across all nations and regions of the UK.

What you'll be doing:

Working closely with our People Partners and People Experience team, you'll provide hands-on support while helping develop more sustainable and effective ways of managing people matters across the organisation.

Your key responsibilities will include, but not be limited to:

• Provide practical advice and guidance to managers on a range of people matters, including performance, absence, probation, conduct, wellbeing and flexible working.
• Support informal and formal employee relations processes, managing appropriate lower and medium-complexity cases and escalating more complex matters when required.
• Coach managers to build their confidence and capability in handling people matters independently, encouraging a proactive and consistent approach.
• Work closely with the People Experience team, sharing knowledge and supporting colleagues to take greater ownership of first-line people queries and appropriate employee relations matters.
• Develop and improve practical resources, including manager toolkits, templates, guidance and FAQs, to make people processes clearer and more accessible.
• Support the design and delivery of manager training, workshops and communications to strengthen people management skills across the organisation.
• Identify recurring people queries and challenges, using insights to recommend improvements to processes and ways of working.
• Help establish clear responsibilities and escalation routes across managers, People Experience and People Partners.
• Contribute to wider People & Culture initiatives and projects, supporting continuous improvement and a positive colleague experience.
• Ensure advice and processes are consistent with UK employment legislation, organisational policies and good people practice.

Requirements

Ideally, you'll have previous experience in a People Advisor, HR Advisor or similar generalist HR role, with a practical understanding of employee relations and a genuine interest in helping others develop their skills.

We recognise that candidates may have developed relevant experience through different career paths and welcome applications from those who can demonstrate many, though not necessarily all, of the skills and experience listed below:

• Practical experience advising managers on employee relations matters, including absence, performance, probation and conduct.
• Sound working knowledge of UK employment law and its application in day-to-day people management.
• Experience supporting both informal and formal employee relations processes, with the judgement to identify and escalate risks appropriately.
• A coaching approach, with experience helping managers develop the confidence and skills to handle people matters independently.
• Experience developing or improving people policies, guidance, templates, toolkits or processes.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to explain complex people matters clearly and build trusted relationships.
• A collaborative and solutions-focused approach, with the confidence to constructively challenge and influence stakeholders.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and handle sensitive information confidentially.
• A continuous improvement mindset, with an interest in simplifying processes and creating sustainable solutions.
• Adaptability and confidence working in a changing environment. <]]>