Learning and Development Business Partner in Oxford

Oxford City Council is entering one of the most exciting and significant periods of change in its recent history. Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) will reshape how councils across Oxfordshire work together, creating new ways of delivering services and new opportunities for our people. With this change comes the need to support our managers and staff so they feel confident, informed and ready for the future. As our Learning and Development Business Partner, you will play a central part in helping the organisation prepare for this journey. This is a role for someone who loves working with people, believes in unlocking potential and enjoys creating learning that genuinely makes a difference.

About the Role

The Learning and Development Business Partner will design and deliver high-quality learning that strengthens:

• Leadership capability – so managers feel confident leading with clarity, compassion and consistency.
• Employee readiness – helping staff understand what LGR might mean for them and supporting them to plan their own careers.
• Team resilience – helping colleagues stay positive, well and connected during times of change.
• Organisational culture – reinforcing the behaviours and values that help us work well together through uncertainty.
• Future skills and talent – developing people so we can continue delivering excellent services now and into the new organisations created by LGR.

Put simply: Your purpose is to help our people feel ready and supported during a major moment of organisational transformation.

Responsibilities

Strategic Partnership and advice

• Build effective working relationships with the Corporate Leadership Team and Business Leads to understand priorities and risks around capability to deliver LGR.
• Evaluate leadership capability, culture and readiness for change across the organisation and develop solutions to meet organisational needs.
• Translate organisational strategic objectives into targeted learning and development activity.

Change readiness and leadership development

• Design and coordinate an LGR-related leadership and management development programme focused on leading through transition and uncertainty.
• Diagnose priority development needs and commission or deliver learning solutions aligned to the LGR roadmap.

Manager capability, engagement and communication

• Deliver practical learning and guidance to develop manager skills and competence to build effective communication and engagement across the organisation to support employees during change and maintain performance and motivation.
• Develop accessible resources that promote consistent messaging and positive employee experience in partnership with our internal communications team.

Workforce planning and talent development

• Contribute L&D insight to workforce, succession and talent planning linked to LGR.
• Coordinate a Change Champion approach to support local engagement, feedback and behaviour change.
• Provide skills development and resources to support workforce planning and talent development, reviewing effectiveness as LGR progresses.

Learning, delivery and evaluation

• Design and deliver high-quality, blended learning for colleagues at all levels to prepare people for change and new opportunities for learning, development and promotion.
• Commission and manage external learning provisions where specialist support is required.
• Evaluate impact and use insight to improve delivery.
• Produce and deliver reports to Corporate Leadership Team on impact and learning take up.

Wellbeing and personal effectiveness

• Embed resilience, wellbeing and inclusive practice into relevant learning activities to support colleagues through change and meet a diverse range of needs.