Operations Officer and Committee Secretary

We are seeking someone to increase our internal human resources capacity, provide support for our Operations and Core services function, including supporting the rollout of operations led projects, and to take responsibility for servicing the committees which advise and oversee the BSA.

Job Title: Operations Officer and Committee Secretary 
Reporting to: Operations Manager and Chief Executive Officer 
Responsible for: N/A 
Based: Our Head Office is based in London, but we have an agile working policy enabling people to work at another UK location up to 4 days/week. 
Requests for permanent remote working will be considered though attendance in the London office will be required at least once per month as well as at quarterly Council (trustee) board meetings.
Terms: Full-time (35 hours per week), Permanent. Requests for part-time or flexible working will be considered. 
Salary: £29,458 - £35,357 per annum

About Us

The British Science Association (BSA) was founded in 1831 and is a registered charity.

We are creating a future where science is more relevant, representative, and connected to society.

We have ambitious goals to put people at the heart of science.

About the role

Operations (part of the Core Services Team) provides comprehensive support across Human Resources, Compliance, and Risk Management, Data Management, and Staff Engagement and supports the delivery of strategic objectives across the organisation. The role will report to the Operations Manager for operations duties.

The BSA’s Council is responsible for determining the organisation’s overall vision and strategy and ensuring good governance. Council assumes the trustee responsibilities set out by the Charity Commission regulator. They meet four times a year, usually in London with options for Council Members to attend online. Papers are prepared by BSA staff and contractors and circulated around a week in advance of the meeting. The role will report to the CEO for Council, Governance and Committee duties.

Key responsibilities

Human Resources

• Act as the primary contact for HR service requests, escalating complex issues to the Operations Manager or outsourced HR supplier as appropriate.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date HR records and employee files across all HR systems, ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.
• Monitor and coordinate completion of mandatory compliance training

Governance and Committees

• Lead the scheduling and logistics of Council and other committee meetings, including venue booking, catering, AV and calendar management.
• Support governance record-keeping, including minute-taking, updating statutory documents as directed by the Chair and Chief Executive, and maintaining Council member records such as declarations, attendance, and terms of office.
• Ensure regulatory compliance, by maintaining Charity Commission online records and, where appropriate working with the Chief Executive, and others as appropriate in preparing formal reports for submission to relevant regulators.

Data Management

• Maintain accurate and up-to-date HR records and employee files across all HR systems, ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.
• Support the Operations Manager, Internal Project Lead and teams in co-ordinating the further rollout and adoption of Salesforce and other data management systems

Compliance and Risk Management

• Policy and Documentation Management: Ensure all internal documentation (policies, staff handbook, etc.) is regularly updated and accessible on SharePoint and the company website where appropriate.
• GDPR and Data Protection: Monitor and support GDPR compliance, with a focus on data retention and secure handling of personal information.
• Compliance and Risk Logs: Assist in maintaining up-to-date compliance and risk logs, reporting issues to the Operations Manager as needed.
• Health and Safety (H&S): Support the Office Manager in coordinating staff H&S documentation and ensuring compliance with relevant regulations.
• Audit Preparation: Coordinate the collection and organisation of documents and information required for annual audits.

Staff Engagement and Additional Responsibilities

• Assist the Office Manager in planning and implementing staff social and engagement activities.
• Undertake additional tasks as reasonably required by the line manager, within the scope of the role.

The closing date for applications is midnight on Wednesday 5th November 2025.

Interviews are due to take place during the weeks starting Monday 10th November and Monday 17th November 2025 and second interviews on Tuesday 25th November 2025.

You will be informed as soon as possible after the application deadline whether you have been selected for interview.

Interested?

If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.

As part of the British Science Association’s commitment to being a Disability Confident employer, all disabled applicants who meet the ‘essential criteria’ for this vacancy will be offered an interview under our guaranteed interview scheme.

No agencies please.