Hr assistant jobs

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

• Support the development and delivery of employee engagement initiatives across Mercy Ships UK

• Partner with managers to strengthen team culture, communication and staff wellbeing

• Help coordinate learning and development opportunities that enable staff to grow and thrive

• Provide guidance and support on people-related matters, helping to build confident and capable managers

• Contribute to organisational initiatives that strengthen culture, values and employee experience

• 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:

• Experience working in a people, HR or organisational development role

• A strong interest in employee engagement, culture and learning

• The ability to support and coach managers in developing healthy teams

• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills

• A collaborative and proactive approach to supporting organisational initiatives

• 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

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.

Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C's, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found at hays.co.uk

HR Consultant
 
Location: Home Based
Salary: £41,000 per annum
Job Type: Full time
Contract Type: Permanent
 
About Us
 
Roots HR is a dynamic and growing HR consultancy specialising in providing tailored, pragmatic human resources solutions to social sector employers, including charities. We believe in the power of HR to transform the social sector, and we are looking for an experienced HR Consultant to join our small but dedicated team.
 
We are founded on the belief that social sector organisations of all sizes should have access to high quality, practical and affordable human resources services. We recognise the challenges for such organisations and develop our services to meet the needs of the social sector, in terms of culture, risk and scale. We deliver those services on a more than profit basis to meet our social purpose.
 
Our market leading COMPLY service is in high demand, and we are now seeking to grow our team with the appointment of an HR Consultant who will provide comprehensive and pragmatic HR advice, documentation, and compliance support to clients by phone, Teams / Zoom and email.
 
Position Overview
 
As an HR Consultant at Roots HR, you will have the opportunity to work closely with a diverse client base, helping them navigate HR challenges and implement best practices. You will provide expert guidance in areas such as employee relations, compliance, HR strategy, and more. This role is perfect for someone who thrives in a collaborative, client-focused environment and wants to make a significant impact on our clients' success.
 
We need an experienced practitioner who has built their career in a well-structured environment and is now looking to take their first step into the consultancy arena. You will need a high level of initiative and the confidence and flexibility to meet the demands of an external client base, together with the drive and enthusiasm to work autonomously.
 
The successful candidate will, along with other essential criteria:

• Be qualified to Chartered MCIPD level or as a minimum
• Have extensive experience of delivering robust generalist HR advice and guidance, including advising and coaching line managers and advising to a successful conclusion on a broad range of complex employee relations issues
• Social sector experience or exposure, gained through employment, volunteering or governance role(s) with extensive and broad operational delivery of robust generalist HR advice and guidance
• Have excellent communication skills and be extremely skilled in influencing at all levels
• Have excellent written skills, able to produce high-quality reports and other documentation
• Be passionate about human resources and committed to updating their knowledge on a frequent basis.

 
In return for your skills and commitment we can offer you:

• A wide range of interesting and demanding work in a sector where HR effectiveness impacts on the life of the community
• A friendly, team-oriented,supportiveand trusting work environment where you will have a good degree of personal empowerment
• Full coaching and support in consultancy skills and practices
• Partnering internally with experienced and supportive colleagues
• Career opportunities within a successful business.

 
To apply: Submit your CV and cover letter using our online system by no later than midnight on Sunday 29 March 2026.
 
Roots HR CIC is an equal opportunities employer welcoming application from all sections of the community. Continued eligibility to work in the UK is required.
 
Strictly no contact from agencies please.
 
REF-227 114

About the Role

This role sits at the heart of a complex higher-education environment, partnering closely with academic departments and professional services to navigate sector-specific people challenges. The successful candidate will bring a strong working knowledge of higher-education policies, frameworks, and governance, along with demonstrable experience leading to redundancy and organisational change processes, including managing settlement agreements.
The focus of the position will centre around workforce planning, supporting senior leaders to shape future capability, optimise organisational design, and ensure people strategies align with long-term institutional priorities.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with senior leaders to deliver proactive, strategic workforce planning across designated faculties and departments.
• Provide trusted HR advice on organisational design, resourcing models, talent planning and capability frameworks.
• Support change initiatives, including restructures and service redesign, ensuring effective consultation and communication.
• Analyse workforce data and trends to inform decision-making and future workforce requirements.
• Build strong, influential relationships with stakeholders, including managers, trade unions and internal HR teams.
• Coach and support managers on complex employee relations matters, performance management and people development.
• Contribute to wider People & Culture projects as needed to support institutional priorities.

About You

• Proven experience as an HR Business Partner within Higher Education.
• Strong background in leading redundancy processes, including settlement agreements
• Strong background in workforce planning, organisational change, or strategic transformation work.
• Confident working with senior stakeholders and able to influence at all levels.
• Sound understanding of employee relations and UK employment legislation.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced environment with the ability to hit the ground running.
• CIPD qualified (or equivalent experience).

Why Join?

This is an excellent opportunity to play a key role within a respected university, shaping how the organisation supports its people now and in the future. You'll work alongside a collaborative HR leadership team with the autonomy to make a meaningful impact.
If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV.

Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C's, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found at hays.co.uk