Hr assistant jobs in Bristol, city of bristol

Job Role: Head of People

Salary: £55,080 per year

Hours: 37.5 hours per week

Contract type: Permanent

Location: Bath

Additional information:

• The role will involve occasional evening working, including attending board meetings from time to time.
• Some travel across our South West area of operations will be required as part of the role.

This vacancy will close on 18th May 2026, and shortlisted candidates will be invited to first‑stage interviews on 26th May 2026.

About Julian House:

Julian House is a charity dedicated to making a difference to the lives of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in society. We run several projects and every year we help thousands of people out of homelessness, into employment, away from domestic abuse, and more.

If you’d like a real sense of job satisfaction, great career prospects and a competitive benefits package, you could be who we’re looking for!

About the Role:

The Head of People is a pivotal role at the heart of Julian House, shaping the organisation through its most important asset, its people. As a key member of the Senior Leadership Team, reporting to the Chief Executive, you’ll lead our people strategy, culture, and workforce development, ensuring we have the capability, capacity, and values‑led culture needed to deliver our mission.

This is an exciting opportunity for a strategic and compassionate leader who understands how great people practices drive social impact. You’ll provide senior leadership across HR, recruitment, volunteering, organisational development, and culture, helping to build a high‑performing, inclusive organisation where people feel supported, empowered, and able to thrive in a demanding environment.

You’ll play a critical role in embedding Julian House’s values, strengthening leadership capability, and creating a positive workplace where staff and volunteers feel engaged, valued, and proud of the difference they make. This is a rare opportunity to lead meaningful change and help a mission‑driven charity continue to grow and succeed through its people.

Please refer to our application pack and job description for full details around the role.

What you’ll be doing:

• Lead and shape our People Strategy, ensuring it aligns with our organisational goals, values, and long‑term ambitions, and that our people are fully supported to deliver meaningful impact.
• Build leadership capability at every level, designing and embedding leadership and management development programmes that support confident, values‑led leadership across the organisation.
• Oversee recruitment, HR operations, volunteering, and people processes, working closely with the HR Manager and wider People Team to deliver high‑quality, responsive support.
• Champion robust, modern employment policies, ensuring they remain legally compliant, up to date with best practice, and reflective of Julian House’s values and culture.
• Coach and advise leaders, providing trusted guidance that builds confidence, strengthens people‑management skills, and supports teams to thrive in a demanding environment.

Please note: Job descriptions are not exhaustive, and the successful candidate may occasionally be asked to take on other duties that align with the key responsibilities outlined.

What we’re looking for:

• Significant senior‑level experience in People / HR leadership, with a proven track record of overseeing employee relations, people operations, and leading cultural and organisational change.
• Strong knowledge of HR best practice and employment law, alongside experience in organisational development, workforce wellbeing, and using people data and insights to inform decision‑making.
• Strategic and forward‑thinking, with the ability to translate vision into practical, impactful actions that support teams and strengthen organisational performance.

There are many great reasons to join our team!

• Access to our Rewards Platform, which includes an Employee Assistance Programme and Health Cash Plan
• 27 days annual leave, including an extra day off for your birthday, plus bank holidays - increasing up to 30 days after 4 years of continuous employment (pro rata for part-time staff)
• 30% staff discount at Julian House charity shop
• A generous and competitive pension scheme
• A supportive culture where staff feedback is highly valued and regular supervisions with line managers are conducted
• Great opportunities for career development and free monthly training sessions from experienced facilitators
• For all the fantastic and valuable work, you’ll be doing, you’ll be eligible for the Blue Light Card which offers amazing discounts on thousands of brands

Our Ethos

As an Equal Opportunities employer, we have an Equality and Diversity Action plan in place showing our commitment in ensuring continuous improvement in creating an inclusive culture. We also have a committed group of Inclusion & Diversity champions who meet monthly to ensure progress is being made. We invite applications from people from all backgrounds and cultures, especially minority groups that are underrepresented in the workplace. We also welcome applications from those with lived experience. We embrace flexibility and are proud to be a Disability Confident and Mindful employer, as well as an Armed Forces Covenant Supporter.

If you have any special access requirements or other support needs throughout the application process (including interview), please contact us so that we can let you know how we can support you. We accept CVs and applications in all formats.

DBS Checks

We welcome applications from people with lived experience. All applicants working with our clients will be expected to undertake an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. A criminal conviction will not necessarily prevent you from becoming an employee, the decision will depend on the type of offence and its relevance to the role. If you would like to discuss any convictions you may have, please contact the person named in the advert. All information will be dealt with according to our Data Protection Policy.

Please note: We reserve the right to close our vacancies once the perfect candidate has been found. We recommend submitting your application as soon as possible so that you don’t miss out!

Salary: £37,775 plus benefits (Our pay philosophy ensures consistency across locations and salaries. The starting salary for this opportunity plus benefits depends on location of the candidate).

The role:

We are delighted to be recruiting for a People & Culture Advisor to join our global People & Culture team here at Mary’s Meals International (MMI) on a 12-month FTC. This is a fantastic opportunity to thrive in a truly generalist role, within a diverse and dynamic global organisation.

Reporting to our People & Culture Lead and working as a key member of the People & Culture directorate, you will provide strong generalist support across the Mary’s Meals family, working across all People & Culture workstreams and providing professional HR advice and practical support for employees and managers, across a broad spectrum of HR topics and policy.

People are at the heart of everything we do at Mary’s Meals and in this key role, you will develop strong working relationships and work in partnership across our global network, to support the growth of our movement through the attraction, development, recognition, succession and retention of great talent.

Key priorities:

• Deliver high‑quality, practical HR advice and support to employees and managers across MMI and the wider global network.
• Manage and advise on a range of employee relations cases, supporting fair, consistent and values‑led outcomes.
• Support and develop HR policies, ensuring alignment with UK employment legislation and best practice.
• Champion employee wellbeing and support effective people management in a remote‑first environment.
• Contribute to People & Culture projects, performance processes, people reporting and delivery of HR training.
• Support end‑to‑end recruitment activity in partnership with the Head of Recruitment and hiring managers.

We are looking for:

• Robust experience as an HR Generalist with a positive, organised and pragmatic approach.
• Proven experience advising managers across a broad range of HR and employee relations matters.
• While the role requires strong working knowledge of UK employment law, you will work closely with colleagues across multiple countries and contexts.
• Excellent communication and relationship‑building skills, with confidence to influence and challenge constructively.
• Experience managing HR projects or complex people issues from start to finish.
• A collaborative, flexible mindset and a genuine commitment to Mary’s Meals’ mission and values.

About us:

Mary’s Meals is a global movement supported by people from all walks of life and we are focused on one goal – that every child receives a nutritious daily meal in a place of education. We continue to change the lives of over 3 million children who today will receive Mary’s Meals.

We believe in the innate goodness of people, respect the dignity of every human being and family life and believe in good stewardship of the resources entrusted to us. In line with our values, Mary’s Meals is fully committed to a culture of safeguarding. Mary’s Meals is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work and we expect all the Mary's Meals family to share this commitment and work in the best interest of the communities we serve. Our safe recruitment practices ensure that only those that are committed to our high standards join our movement.

Our Benefits:

• 34 days annual leave (pro-rated for part time working patterns) including bank holidays, increasing by 1 day each completed calendar year, to a maximum of 39 days (+ option to buy another week)
• Flexible working
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Life assurance
• Pension

Our ideal start date for this role is mid July 2026 onwards, although we are happy to discuss notice periods with the right candidate.

About SafeLives

We are SafeLives, the UK-wide charity dedicated to ending domestic abuse, for everyone and for good.    

Last year alone, 14,000 professionals received our training. Over 80,000 adults at risk of serious harm or murder and more than 100,000 children received support through dedicated multi-agency support designed by us and delivered with partners. In the last six years, over 4,000 perpetrators have been challenged and supported to change by interventions we created with partners, and that’s just the start. 

Together we can end domestic abuse. Forever. For everyone.

Role summary

This role is ideal for graduate-level or CIPD Level 3-qualified HR professional looking to apply and develop their HR knowledge in a generalist environment. As part of the People & Culture team, you will coordinate day-to-day HR processes and support the People & Culture Officer in delivering effective, efficient and professional HR services across SafeLives. In this role, you will contribute to and influence all stages of the employee lifecycle.

This role plays a key part in championing SafeLives’ values and behaviours, helping to build a culture that consistently reflects them across the organisation. As the first point of contact for day‑to‑day HR queries, the postholder will be expected to respond in a way that models and promotes our values of being Human, Rigorous, Brave and Inclusive, supporting both employees and managers to do the same.

You will work within the People & Culture team, collaborating with colleagues across SafeLives. The role offers substantial opportunities for development, professional growth, and early exposure to generalist HR practice including employee experience, people operations, data analysis, ER processes, and organisational development.

How to apply

Interviews will take place in-person in the Bristol office on Thursday 13rd April. 

Please take a look over the full job description and submit your 500-word cover letter and CV by 19th April 2026 at 11pm to be considered for our first round of interviews. We will conduct interviews as suitable candidates apply and we are ready to hire if we find the right person before the job ad closes.

 As part of our commitment to become a Disability Confident Committed employer we are happy to accept alternative applications such as video, voice note etc, should you wish to send an alternative format please contact us.