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Mercy Ships UK is looking for a People Engagement and Development Partner to help cultivate a thriving, supportive and purpose-driven workplace where our people can flourish.
Mercy Ships is an international charity that provides free life-changing surgeries and healthcare to people in need, using hospital ships staffed by volunteers from around the world. Behind this mission is a dedicated team of staff who enable this work to happen and we believe investing in our people is essential to achieving our impact.
This role plays a key part in shaping the employee experience at Mercy Ships UK, strengthening engagement, supporting managers and helping develop a healthy and effective organisational culture.
Working closely with leaders across the organisation, you will support initiatives that encourage staff wellbeing, development and strong collaboration, ensuring our people feel valued, connected and equipped to contribute to the mission.
Key responsibilities
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Support the development and delivery of employee engagement initiatives across Mercy Ships UK
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Partner with managers to strengthen team culture, communication and staff wellbeing
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Help coordinate learning and development opportunities that enable staff to grow and thrive
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Provide guidance and support on people-related matters, helping to build confident and capable managers
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Contribute to organisational initiatives that strengthen culture, values and employee experience
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Support internal communications and activities that foster connection, collaboration and engagement across teams
About you
You will be someone who is passionate about people and organisational culture, with the ability to build trusted relationships across teams.
You will bring:
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Experience working in a people, HR or organisational development role
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A strong interest in employee engagement, culture and learning
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The ability to support and coach managers in developing healthy teams
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Excellent communication and relationship-building skills
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A collaborative and proactive approach to supporting organisational initiatives
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Alignment with the values and mission of Mercy Ships
Why join Mercy Ships?
At Mercy Ships UK, you will be part of a team committed to making a global difference. This role offers the opportunity to help shape the environment where our people work, grow and contribute to a life-changing mission.
This role has an Occupational Requirement for the post holder to be a practicing Christian in accordance with Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010
This role has an Occupational Requirement for the post holder to be a practising
Christian in accordance with Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010
Registered Charity
21 - 50
Mercy Ships is a faith-based international development organisation that deploys hospital ships to some of the poorest countries in the world
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Your new company
We are seeking an experienced HR Change Consultant to support a major organisational change programme at a leading London university. This role will play a key part in shaping and delivering people-related change activities across academic and professional services functions.The ideal candidate will bring proven experience operating within highly unionised environments, strong knowledge of higher education structures and academic frameworks, and hands-on expertise in managing restructures and redundancy processes in a compliant, sensitive, and collaborative manner.
Your new role
- Partner with senior HR leaders, change leads and faculty/department heads to design and implement people-focused change interventions.
- Lead on end-to-end organisational change activities, including consultation planning, restructuring, selection processes, and redundancy management.
- Develop and deliver change plans, impact assessments, communications, and engagement strategies aligned to university policies and employment legislation.
- Build strong working relationships with recognised trade unions; manage formal and informal consultations, negotiate where required, and support constructive dialogue.
- Provide expert advice to senior stakeholders on academic structures, grading frameworks, career pathways, workload models and associated policy implications.
- Ensure all change activities follow best practice, employment law, and university governance processes.
- Support managers through change conversations, capability building, and HR decision-making to ensure consistent and fair outcomes.
- Analyse workforce data, organisational design proposals, and role profiles to identify risks, opportunities, and areas requiring further refinement.
- Prepare documentation including consultation packs, FAQs, meeting notes, business cases, and outcome letters.
- Support post-implementation activities such as transition planning, embedding new structures, and capturing lessons learned.
Essential Experience & Skills
- Extensive experience as an HR Change Consultant, HR Business Partner, or similar HR role delivering large-scale organisational change.
- Strong background working within unionised environments, with proven ability to navigate complex industrial relations.
- Understanding of higher education or academic settings, including academic frameworks, career pathways, and governance structures.
- Demonstrable experience managing redundancies, restructures, and consultation processes in compliance with UK employment law.
- Skilled at stakeholder management, particularly with senior leaders, academic governance groups, and employee representatives.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data, organisational design proposals, and role requirements.
- Excellent communication, facilitation, and negotiation skills.
- Ability to work at pace on multiple workstreams within a large, evolving change programme.
If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion about your career.
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