Head of HR in Bristol

The Brownsword Group have created arguably the most iconic collection of historic countryside and city centre hotels, all wonderful properties set within beautiful grounds and cities, all with their own stories to share. Generosity, quality and welcoming hospitality is what they do very well. Being exceptional hoteliers has been the core of the operation, creating a successful hospitality business.

We are seeking an Interim Group Head of HR to join our leadership team and provide hands-on, end-to-end HR leadership across our UK hotel portfolio, on a rolling 3 month contract (with the realistic possibility of this being extended), whilst we recruit for the permanent role. There is also the possibility that we would consider an interim candidate progressing to fill the permanent vacancy. Reporting to the CEO and line managing the Group HR Administrator & Advisor, this is a senior, highly visible interim role, ideal for an experienced HR generalist who thrives in fast-paced, people-centric environments and is confident balancing strategy with operational delivery.

We are flexible on the location of this interim role, with some hybrid/remote working taking place, depending on the successful candidate's location. Regular travel (at least once a week) will be required to our Central Bath Office, and across all of our hotels, on a planned and reactive basis (you will need your own transport for travel; we will cover your travel expenses and you can stay at the properties you visit).

Whilst we anticipate the interim role to be full-time, 5 days per week, we are open to discussions to take into account people's personal situations, and we may accommodate anything between 3 and 5 working days per week, depending on the successful candidate's circumstances.

You will take full ownership of the HR function across 11 hotels in the UK and our Bath central office, supporting approximately 450 employees across a diverse range of roles. This is not a purely strategic role – you will be hands on, visible in the business, and actively involved in day-to-day HR activity while also guiding and influencing at leadership level.

Key responsibilities include:

• Acting as the senior HR leader for the group, partnering closely with the Central Support and hotel management teams
• Providing pragmatic, commercial HR advice across all areas of the employee lifecycle
• Leading on employee relations, including complex high risk cases, performance management, disciplinaries and grievances
• Overseeing all areas recruitment, retention and workforce planning, including directly recruiting for key positions in the group.
• Driving engagement, culture and people initiatives aligned to business objectives
• Ensuring compliance with UK employment law and best practice across all sites
• Reviewing, improving and embedding HR policies, processes and systems
• Supporting change initiatives, organisational development and leadership capability
• Managing, training and coaching hotel management and senior central leadership and acting as a trusted advisor to managers across the group
• Continually developing our group learning framework, managing learning material that is accessible to all levels of the business and provide clear pathways for learning and progression for all roles.
• Be responsible for the on-going management and successful development of the group's people systems, including Harri (ATS), Fourth (WFM), Mapal (LMS) and Perkbox (Reward and Benefits)
• Produce regular reports and updates on the HR function for the group, giving practical guidance and support where there are areas for development.
• Be part of the wider central leadership team, helping to support with business initiatives and challenges across the hotel group.

About You

You will be a seasoned HR professional with proven experience operating at a senior level, ideally within multi-site hospitality. You will bring:

• Significant experience in a senior HR generalist role, ideally at Head of HR or equivalent level
• Strong interim or change-led experience, with the ability to quickly build credibility and momentum
• Deep, practical knowledge of UK employment law and employee relations
• A confident, approachable and down-to-earth style with the character to influence senior stakeholders
• A genuinely hands-on approach – comfortable dealing with strategic priorities, projects as well as reactive HR
• A collaborative, pragmatic mindset with a strong commercial focus
• Strong tech and data skills, confident with online digital systems, with experience in managing people platforms to success.
• Capability to travel for work regularly, including overnight stays (at our hotels) when needed.
• Self-confidence, energy, enthusiasm, with great attention to detail and excellent written communication.

To say thank you, we have many perks:

• Company laptop and phone
• Hybrid working for this interim role
• Working from a newly developed office in Central Bath with regular team get-togethers
• Treat yourself once in a while with lots of retail and hospitality perks through our Perkbox platform.
• Excellent discounts across our family of hotels – you will be entitled to 25% off food & beverage in our hotels plus we offer an amazing staff rate of £25 B&B per person across the group & your friends and family get special rates too.
• We understand it's OK not to be OK, so we offer an externally run confidential helpline for any support you require about anything you might need as part of our Employee Assistance Programme.
• Everyone can learn and develop - our development pathways are unique to us and are the best in the business.
• We provide lots of opportunities for you to develop yourself and your own specific skillset, in your own time.
• We like to say a special thank you for every year you are with us - our milestone awards include Champagne, afternoon tea, or dinner for you and someone special. When you reach the big milestones, you receive extra special gifts on top like longer hotel stays, extra days off and a unique gift especially chosen for you.

We bring a family of hotels together under one roof, ready to welcome guests with open arms, warm hearts and experiences that are simply memorable. Each of our hotels are unique, individual, and quirky in personality. Quality is fundamental to everything we do, and it is the simple things that matter. We believe everyone should feel included, special and welcome, and that applies to our team and our guests.

We have very unique hotels in very special locations, from the award-winning Gidleigh Park in Devon, the 900-year-old Amberley Castle to our cool city centre Abode Chester hotel set across from Chester Racecourse.