HR Advisory Manager | The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester

We are seeking an experienced and forward-thinking HR professional to lead our HR Advisory Service. As the HR Advisory Lead, you will provide expert guidance, professional leadership and operational oversight to ensure the delivery of a high-quality, proactive and inclusive HR advisory function. You will act as the point of escalation for complex HR matters, support the development of managers across the organisation, and champion a restorative, just and learning culture.

The role also oversees the Trust’s Agenda for Change (AfC) job matching process and contributes to policy development, ensuring alignment with NHS terms and conditions and employment legislation. This is an excellent opportunity for a motivated HR leader to shape service improvement, develop people capability, and make a meaningful impact across the Trust.

The successful candidate will lead and support the HR Advisory Team, ensuring consistent, high-quality HR advice. The postholder will support HR Advisory team performance, development and workload planning.

• Develop HR processes and SOPs.
• Provide expert advice on a wide range of employee relations issues.
• Lead complex casework, including disciplinary, grievance, performance and sickness.
• Deliver HR policy and process-related training to managers.
• Lead or support the review and development of HR policies in line with legislation and NHS terms and conditions.
• Support compliance with statutory, professional and right-to-work requirements.
• Oversee sickness absence monitoring, identify hotspots and support targeted interventions.
• Manage the AfC job matching process, ensuring compliance with national guidance and timely outcomes.

Leadership of the HR Advisory Team

Provide clear leadership, direction and professional support to the HR Advisory Team to ensure high quality, proactive and consistent HR advice. Line manage HR Advisors, HR Officer and HR Assistant to ensure effective performance management, development and management of workload. Regularly review the HR Advisor workload and reallocate tasks accordingly. Support the Head of Operational HR by developing and implementing HR systems, processes and procedures. Lead the continuous improvement of the HR Advisory Service, including monitoring, analysing and reporting on HR trends. Manage HR Advisory team performance against agreed metrics. Relevant authorisation of electronic change of establishment forms. Ensure processes are in place for monitoring, maintaining, and evidencing professional registration and statutory requirements for all relevant staff (including right to work). Lead the creation, maintenance and governance of SOPs across all HR Advisory Team functions to ensure consistency and quality of service delivery. Provide oversight, assurance and expert input into divisional sickness management, ensuring the team is supported to identify high risk areas and deliver targeted HR interventions.

Agenda for Change Job Evaluation

Lead and oversee the Agenda for Change job matching process for the Trust, ensuring compliance with national NHS Job Evaluation Scheme guidance. Monitor the volume, timeliness and quality of JE activity and elevate risks or delays appropriately.

Policy Development and Implementation

In partnership, lead and/or contribute to the development, review and implementation of Trust HR policies and procedures, ensuring they reflect changes in employment legislation and NHS terms and conditions, and best practice. Ensure effective communication of policies to ensure managers are implementing policies fairly and consistently.

Employee Relations

Provide expert, professional advice to managers on a wide range of employment matters, ensuring compliance with legislation, NHS terms and conditions and Trust policies. Lead on complex employee relations cases, both individual and collective, including disciplinary, grievance, positive working relationships, performance and sickness absence, ensuring timely resolution and promoting positive employee relations. Build and maintain constructive partnership relationships with trade union representatives. Support formal employee relations cases up to formal hearing and appeal stage. Devise and deliver HR policy or process-related training, where a specific need is identified or to enhance overall understanding. Promote equality, diversity and inclusion across all HR practices and policies. Maintain high standards of record keeping, ensuring accuracy, confidentiality and timely updates. Take responsibility for personal learning and development in line with appraisal and supervision processes.

This job description is not exhaustive. Undertake any other reasonable duties as required by management and commensurate with the role.