Deputy Associate Director of People/Head of Business Partnering & ER

Job overview

A fantastic opportunity has arisen to lead our new Business Partnering and Employee Relations teams. As our Deputy Associate Director of People / Head of Business Partnering & Employee Relations, you will play a pivotal role in providing high‑quality strategic and operational workforce support, ensuring people management across the Trust reflects best practice and our commitment to an exceptional staff experience.

You will lead and shape a best‑in‑class HR service, bringing a values‑driven approach rooted in compassion, fairness and continuous improvement. With a strong focus on staff engagement and wellbeing, you will champion initiatives that help colleagues feel supported, heard and able to thrive.

Working closely with the Senior People Team, you will help drive key workforce priorities that support our shared ambition of being the Best Place to Work. You will model our Oxleas values – We’re Kind, We’re Fair, We Listen and We Care – ensuring they are felt throughout the organisation and embedded in everyday interactions.

You will help strengthen a culture where every member of staff feels a genuine sense of belonging within the Oxleas family. We are proud to have received two Sunday Times Best Place to Work awards, and we continue to strive for improvement. Your leadership will be central to helping all colleagues feel that Oxleas is the best place to work, even in the most challenging times.

Main duties of the job

You will ensure our people practices provide the highest‑quality support to managers and staff across the Trust, enabling excellent care while meeting legal and statutory requirements.

We understand how challenging it can be for colleagues involved in formal HR processes. Working alongside staff who have been through these procedures, you will help reshape our approach, ensuring this is fair and supportive for everyone involved, focusing on early intervention and resolution. Your leadership will support staff and managers to address issues constructively and at the earliest opportunity.

You will drive organisational improvement, working closely with the Senior People Team to strengthen our culture, team relationships, retention and equality work. By nurturing meaningful engagement, you will contribute to a workplace where wellbeing, psychological safety, inclusion and staff experience are always prioritised.

As an authentic and compassionate leader, you will champion our Trust’s vision and values, ensuring that the advice and support offered by the People teams is values‑based and role‑modelled in daily practice.

You will take a proactive and supportive approach to developing and investing in your team, enabling them to deliver a high‑performing, responsive and engaging service. You will also provide specialist advice to managers on all aspects of People matters, ensuring a strong focus on data-driven decisions, consistency and clarity of approach.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Do you have a passion for creating values‑based, people‑focused HR teams that deliver outstanding support?

Are you experienced in both strategic and operational HR, with a broad portfolio spanning employee relations, performance, organisational development, equality, diversity and inclusion?

Do you enjoy working collaboratively to drive meaningful, continuous improvement?

If you can enhance our ability to make a significant difference to the experience at work of our diverse staff members, particularly during the most challenging times, we would love to hear from you.

We are keen to encourage applications from the widest variety of people. We welcome applications from all people, including those from a global majority background, those who live with a disability (visible or not) and those who identify as LGBTQ+.

Please refer to the Job Description and Person Specification for the main responsibilities of this role.