People Advisor - Birmingham

Location: Birmingham-based (Hybrid – 2 days per week in Birmingham Office)

This role does not offer eligibility for visa sponsorship.

This role offers a starting salary within Nacro’s pay structure of £34,421, per annum with expected progression to £35,454, per annum within the first year, subject to meeting clear criteria and performance standards, with further pay progression available in the future. Nacro’s pay framework provides transparent progression points and supports ongoing professional development and career growth.

At Nacro, we believe that everyone deserves a good education, a safe and secure place to live, the right to be heard, and the chance to start again, with support from someone on their side.

That’s why our housing, education, justice, and health and wellbeing services work alongside people to give them the support and skills they need to succeed. And it’s why we fight for their voices to be heard and campaign together to create lasting change.

We see your future, whatever the past.

"Do you want to make a difference to people’s lives and want to work for an organisation that will invest in your personal development?"

About the role:

Are you an experienced HR professional looking for an opportunity to make a real difference through effective people advice and employee relations support?

As a People Advisor, you will provide practical, timely and high-quality advice to managers and employees across Nacro, with a particular focus on proactively managing employee relations casework.

You will support managers to navigate a broad range of people matters, including disciplinary, grievance, absence, performance, probation and flexible working, ensuring cases are managed fairly, consistently and in line with Nacro's policies, employment law and values.

This is a hands‑on advisory role where you will take ownership of an allocated caseload, agreeing clear actions and timescales with managers, monitoring progress, identifying potential risks and providing constructive challenge where required. While you will provide advice and guidance throughout the process, managers will remain accountable for managing their employees and making employment decisions.

You will also play an important role in building manager capability, helping colleagues develop their confidence in managing people issues effectively and supporting a positive employee experience across Nacro.

What you’ll be doing:

• Provide clear, practical and timely HR advice and guidance to managers and employees across a range of people policies and employee relations matters.
• Proactively manage an allocated employee relations caseload, ensuring cases progress fairly, consistently and without avoidable delay.
• Advise and support managers with disciplinary, grievance, absence, performance, probation and flexible working matters.
• Support managers and employees through absence and health-related processes, including Occupational Health referrals and reasonable adjustments.
• Advise managers on the application of Nacro's policies, employment law and good people‑management practice.
• Support formal consultation processes and meetings, including preparing managers, providing advice and maintaining appropriate documentation.
• Help managers identify, assess and manage people-related risks, including supporting employee risk assessments and suspension risk assessments.
• Establish clear case plans, agreeing actions, responsibilities and realistic timescales with managers and maintaining oversight throughout the case.
• Review documentation and provide advice on fair and proportionate options and next steps.
• Recognise complex, sensitive or high‑risk matters and escalates appropriately.
• Maintain accurate, timely and confidential case records and documentation.
• Identify themes and learning from casework and contribute to improvements in policies, processes, guidance and manager capability.
• Contribute to wider People and Organisation Development projects and activities.

You will bring with you:

• Good HR generalist experience across the employee lifecycle.
• Up‑to‑date knowledge of UK employment law, HR policy and good people‑management practice.
• The ability to apply employment law and policy to individual circumstances, identify risks and provide practical recommendations.
• Experience of producing clear written advice, case documentation and maintaining accurate and confidential records.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage a busy caseload, prioritising competing demands effectively.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to communicate sensitively and adapt your approach to different audiences.
• The confidence to provide constructive challenge while building trusted relationships with managers and colleagues.
• Good professional judgement and an understanding of when to seek guidance or escalation matters.
• A commitment to providing an efficient, accurate and high‑quality service.
• A CIPD Level 5 qualification, or equivalent knowledge and capability gained through relevant practical experience, is required.
• Experience of organisational change or consultation processes, using HR systems and case data, or working with trade union representatives or employee companions would be advantageous.

At Nacro, we believe in the power of a diverse and inclusive team. We are a Ban the Box employer and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, including those with criminal records. Convictions are not discussed during the application process and will only be considered later if relevant to the role, assessed fairly, proportionately and confidentially. For advice, contact our confidential Criminal Record Support Service on 0300 123 1999 or helpline@nacro.org.uk .