About this role
Job summary An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced HR leader to join University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust as Head of HR Business Partnering. Working at a strategic level, you will lead our HR Business Partnering service, influence workforce transformation and organisational development, and play a key role in delivering our People Strategy. If you are a CIPD-qualified HR professional with significant senior leadership experience and a passion for creating inclusive, high-performing workplaces, we'd love to hear from you. Interviews will be held on 29th September 2026.
***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as 'Priority' and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***
Main duties of the job
Reporting to the Deputy Chief People Officer, you will lead a team of HR Business Partners and workforce professionals, providing expert strategic workforce advice to Executive Directors, senior leaders and corporate committees.
You will:
Lead the HR Business Partnering function across the Trust. Drive the workforce elements of major transformation and service redesign programmes. Partner with senior leaders to develop workforce plans aligned to organisational priorities. Champion staff experience, health and wellbeing, equality, diversity and inclusion, and engagement initiatives. Lead workforce policy development, ensuring compliance with employment legislation and NHS best practice. Support organisational development and cultural change programmes that enable our workforce to thrive. Contribute strategically to Trust-wide decision making as a member of the Extended Leadership Team. For an informal discussion about this opportunity, please contact the Deputy Chief People Officer.
About us
We are a people business - where every member of staff matters and can make a difference. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Joining University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust means becoming part of a team of dedicated staff, who are committed to leading the way through innovation, clinical excellence and great customer care. The Trust has great opportunities for career development in a highly progressive working environment. We offer all of this in a vibrant, modern city with a historic reputation for adventure. PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY. If you have any issues with applying online and need additional support including reasonable adjustments with the application process please contact the recruitment manager for this post who will put you in touch with the recruitment team. We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants around less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. Please contact the recruiting manager to discuss this prior to your application submission. We commit to giving this full consideration in each case. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply for our roles, as diversity strengthens our teams. It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.
Job description Job responsibilities
1. Manage the HRBP & Advice team ensuring best practice advice is given
2. Ensure that HR Business Partners act as coach, internal consultant and challenge Directorate Leadership Teams to ensure delivery of all aspects of the UHP People Strategy including measurable improvements on staff engagement, health and wellbeing, equality, diversity and inclusion and recruitment and retention.
3. Work in partnership with the Organisational Development team to improve skills of line managers in managing HR related issues including earlier and more mediated resolutions to conflict in the workplace and the use of coaching.
4. Take lead responsibility for ensuring new employment legislation is interpreted and communicated appropriately.
5. Coach and mentor members of the HR team, creating a culture of ongoing reflection and development.
6. Provide professional and strategic HR advice and manage and develop the Strategic and Operational
7. Act as the Trust's senior professional lead for HR Business Partnering, providing authoritative workforce advice to Executive Directors, senior leaders and corporate committees on highly complex workforce and organisational development matters.
8. Human Resources service acting as a source of specialist knowledge on professional issues.
9. Provide information and expert advice and support to Directorates across the organisation in order to facilitate the development and management of staff and the modernisation of services, ensuring that they are consistent with national Best Practice initiatives and legislation and agreed local and national Human Resources, Workforce Planning and Workforce Development strategies.
10. Responsible for the management and monitoring of budgets associated with the HR Business Partnering function.
11. Support the development of a robust workforce planning cycle which sees the development of workforce plans which are integral to business plans and form part of the annual business planning cycle and any new service developments
12. Ensure the BPs are working strategically with the divisional management teams, making KPIs visible to support timely completion
13. Interpret the UHP People Strategy in terms of workforce plans and relative to each Directorate and lead the HR Business Partner service in the implementation of those workforce plans.
14. Interpret the implications of the UHP People Strategy, UHP Strategy, NHS People Plan and other relevant strategies for UHP and its services and develop programmes of work which will support the transformation of services in line with those strategies, including news ways of working and roles.
15. Lead the workforce aspects of major organisational transformation, service redesign and change programmes, ensuring workforce implications are identified, managed and successfully implemented.
16. Lead on Trust-wide initiatives designed to ensure UHP has the workforce it needs to deliver its services now and into the future in line with the UHP Strategy.
17. Lead the development and implementation of workforce redesign programmes, including skill mix reviews, role redesign, organisational development interventions and new workforce models to improve organisational effectiveness and productivity.
18. Proactively seek to understand readiness for change plans across the directorates and develop and lead initiatives to ensure successful implementation with key stakeholders, including engaging and consulting with trade unions.
19. To support all Freedom of Information and Subject Access requests in relation to Human Resources matters, ensuring that they are responded to appropriately within specific legal timeframes.
20. Work closely with the wider HR directorate and support collaborative working
21. Work closely with the Head of Employee Relations and ensure KPIs are met and interventions in place to meet targets where required
Lead the development, implementation and review of Trust-wide workforce and employment policies, ensuring compliance with legislation, NHS guidance and organisational objectives.
22. Determine and recommend workforce policy responses to new legislation, NHS guidance and emerging workforce issues, influencing organisational direction and decision-making.
23. To research, update and develop HR policies in line with best practice and relevant employment legislation for implementation across the organisation.
24. To keep abreast of employment law issues and forthcoming legislation including identifying and rectifying any impact on the business and organisation wide policies and procedures.
25. To design, plan and deliver formal, informal and ad hoc specialised training or ad-hoc presentations on a range of HR policies as and when required to managers at all levels within the Trust.
26. Ensure that the HR Business Partnering service contributes to the delivery of the culture/engagement, EDI and health and wellbeing aspects of the UHP People Strategy and that these are successfully embedded within the organisation through the work of the HR Business Partnering Service
27. Ensure that the HR Business Partner service constantly champions appropriate leadership behaviours to ensure an engaged workforce and that health and wellbeing of their staff is a key focus for our leaders.
28. Line manage HR Business Partners to ensure that the team is motivated, engaged and productive, adding value to the organisation and its people.
29. Provide visible strategic leadership for the HR Business Partnering function across the organisation.
30. Represent the People Directorate at Trust governance forums, major transformation programmes and regional workforce networks.
31. Develop strategic partnerships with system partners across the Integrated Care System to influence workforce strategy and service delivery.
32. Deputise for the Deputy Chief People Officer as required in relation to workforce strategy and organisational development matters.
33. Exercise significant professional autonomy when making workforce decisions and determining appropriate workforce interventions.
For further details please see the attached JD & PS
Person Specification
Knowledge & Experience Essential
oDemonstrable Data management and reporting experience including advanced querying and reporting against large relational database management systems oDemonstrable experience of working at a strategic HR level oDemonstrable experience of working in the NHS
Qualifications Essential
oMasters level qualification in Human Resources Management or equivalent experience oChartered CIPD membership or equivalent experience oProven evidence of continuing professional development Abilities
Desirable
oPRINCE2 Practitioner qualification or equivalent oQuality Improvement methodologies oCoaching and mediation Skills
Aptitude & Abilities Essential
oAdvanced IT skills, including high level of proficiency in Excel and Access and PowerPoint oAdvanced influencing/negotiating/presentation skills oAble to analyse and interpret complex, disparate and multi stranded information, drawing conclusions and themes and then presenting these in a coherent and easily understood format
Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Employer details Employer name University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
Address Derriford Hospital
Derriford Road, Crownhill
Plymouth
PL6 8DH
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.plymouthhospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)