Senior Human Resources Business Partner

Join Network Rail - Where People and Connections Matter. At Network Rail, we’re dedicated to keeping passengers and freight moving safely and efficiently across the country. We believe that our people are at the heart of what we do, and every role plays a vital part in building a better, more connected railway. We’re committed to creating a diverse, inclusive workplace that reflects the communities we serve. We value flexibility and understand the importance of a healthy work‑life balance.

The railway industry is undergoing a once‑in‑a‑generation transformation as we move towards Great British Railways (GBR). Across the network, publicly owned train operators and Network Rail are coming together to form integrated leadership teams focused on driving up performance, improving the customer experience, and growing revenue. Network Rail’s Kent Route is the first in the UK to integrate with SETrains, creating a single, unified business unit: SETrains (SER). This is your opportunity to help shape what the future of a truly integrated railway looks like.

As a Senior HR Business Partner you will bring insight, curiosity, and confidence, working collaboratively with HR colleagues in SER and Network Rail. You’ll work closely with senior leaders in your business area to deliver a people plan that strengthens performance, builds capability, and supports a culture where everyone feels they belong. Based at London Blackfriars, with regular time across the route, you’ll take ownership of the People Plan for your business area using data, customer insight and strong relationships to focus on what matters most. You’ll have the autonomy to make a real difference, backed by a collaborative HR team that shares your commitment to doing the right thing.

We offer hybrid working (3 days on site), heavily subsidised season tickets, and up to 75% leisure travel for you and your family.

About the Role

• Partner with senior leaders to shape and deliver a joined‑up People Plan that improves performance, capability, and engagement across your business area.
• Turn HR and operational data into action.
• Use people analytics (e.g., trends in absence, attrition, succession risk, demographics, engagement) to prioritise interventions, set targets, and evidence impact.
• Champion EDI – embed EDI in every people decision, shaping inclusive hiring, progression, development, and employee experience.
• Lead on complex ER matters and escalations, providing calm, expert guidance.
• Act as a change agent, designing and delivering people solutions that enable safe, efficient operations, including organisational redesign, consultation, redundancy and TUPE where required.
• Lead on strategic workforce planning to ensure our people, skills and capability align with the needs of a safe, reliable and customer‑focused railway.
• Build robust pipelines, succession plans and development pathways.
• Coach leaders to grow capability and retain critical skills.
• Work across Centres of Expertise, HR Shared Services and fellow HRBPs to improve policies, services and the employee journey end‑to‑end.

Key Responsibilities

• Owning a data‑driven People Plan for your portfolio, aligned to business goals and safety obligations.
• Using people analytics and customer insight to spot trends, prioritise action and evidence ROI (e.g., performance, productivity, engagement, diversity).
• Leading and advising on complex ER casework and escalations (e.g., grievances, disciplinaries, absence, performance), ensuring procedural fairness and consistency.
• Building constructive trade union relationships and negotiating solutions in partnership with the ER team.
• Leading on strategic workforce planning across SER (Kent).
• Designing and implementing change programmes (restructures, consultation, redundancy) with appropriate risk management and stakeholder buy‑in.
• Coaching senior leaders to lift people management capability and embed inclusive, high‑performance behaviours.
• Partnering with Centres of Expertise to enhance policy, reward, L&D and talent processes that remove barriers and improve outcomes for under‑represented groups.
• Working with HR Shared Services to streamline processes and continuously improve employee experience.

Essential Qualifications & Experience

• Proven HRBP experience partnering senior leaders in a complex, unionised environment.
• Strong ER expertise with a track record resolving escalated, complex cases.
• Advanced data literacy (comfortable with HRIS/people analytics dashboards) and the ability to translate insight into action.
• Demonstrable experience delivering inclusive people outcomes and improving representation, progression and belonging.
• Strategic workforce planning expertise.
• Credible coach and influencer with excellent communication and stakeholder skills.
• Deep technical HR knowledge and CIPD qualification (or equivalent experience).
• Experience leading organisational change (e.g., redesign, consultation, redundancy, TUPE).

Desired Qualifications & Benefits

• MCIPD / postgraduate HR qualification.
• Familiarity with project management approaches for complex, cross‑functional change.
• Hybrid: 3 days per week on site (London Blackfriars and across the route).
• Travel: heavily subsidised season tickets and up to 75% leisure travel for you and your family.

How to Apply

Please submit your CV and a short statement outlining how your experience across the essential skills above delivered measurable results.

Salary and Benefits

Salary: £55,596 to £65,966 plus £3,270 location allowance. 75% off rail travel for you and your partner. Public sector boosted pension. Private healthcare. Annual performance‑based bonus.

Closing Date

11th January 2026 – Late applications will not be accepted.

Recruitment Process

Once you have applied, our Recruitment Specialist will look at your CV. If your experience matches what we’re looking for, you’ll be invited to an interview.

You can visit Evenbreaks Career Hive for advice on accessibility support if you’re unsure of the options available. Should you require any reasonable adjustments/modifications, please add a note to your application.

Additional Information

All offers of employment are conditional upon satisfactory completion of pre‑employment checks. Some of our roles require face‑to‑face Drugs & Alcohol testing. Further details will be shared with you as part of your formal offer.