HR Support Officer

Benefits: Salary: £32,654- £37,035 per annum, Grade 4. Hours: Full Time - 37 hours per week. Location: Service Headquarters, Calcot, Reading. Office Based Role to start. Option to work from home one day a week on completion of successful probation period. Excellent annual leave allowance of 28 days, flexible working, onsite gym, parking facilities and a Local Government Pension Scheme are available.

About the role: At Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service, our teams make working here a great experience. We are passionate about employee wellbeing, development, and training. In HR, we play a vital role in helping our teams succeed by working in partnership with the Service to create a welcoming and inclusive culture that supports our People Strategy. The post holder will ensure an efficient and effective HR operation and payroll service and provide strong customer focused advice to HR queries and casework, based on Service Policies, Legislation and Case Law.

About you: We are seeking a proactive and motivated individual who is able to take initiative and manage conflicting deadlines. You will have excellent communication and interpersonal skills and will be able to apply these to all levels of the organisation. You will have a high level of experience of supporting all aspects of HR activity including the management of employee lifecycle, providing advice and guidance on employee relations.

Key Responsibilities and Deliverables:

• Ensure day-to-day and frontline HR queries are dealt with in a timely manner, working closely with the wider HR Team.
• Undertake and support staff recruitment, onboarding, redeployment and retention processes in accordance with RBFRS’s policies and procedures.
• Make improvements to HR initiatives, working with the wider HR Team and additional teams across the service.
• Create and maintain accurate and up-to-date employee records, held within both the manual and electronic HR and payroll systems.
• The role will provide support and advice to managers on a range of queries and HR cases in accordance with the RBFRS’s policies and procedures including all starters and leavers and contractual processes.

Key role requirements (knowledge, skills and experience):

• 2 years of experience working within Human Resources.
• CIPD Level 5 or working towards.
• Computer literate e.g. Ability to produce mail merge letters, use Databases, intermediate in Excel and experience of all applications within Microsoft Office.
• A Good understanding of current employment legislation.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to organise and prioritise work.
• Accuracy and good attention to detail.
• Self-motivated and enthusiastic with a willingness to face new challenges.

Application and selection process: The successful candidate will demonstrate and promote behaviours in line with the Job Profile/Person Specification and our Behaviour Competency Framework as attached. The Behavioural Competency Framework allows us to easily identify the behaviours that drive successful performance and enables us to deliver an effective service. The behaviours detailed within the job profile will be assessed throughout the selection process.

If you are interested in applying for this position, click Apply Now. Appointment is conditional upon undertaking a Standard Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Rechecks will be required in line with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Recruitment of Ex-Offenders Policy.

For further details about the role or to simply discuss any adaptations or adjustments we can make to assist you in your application or with our recruitment process please contact Samar Campbell HR Adviser at (url removed) to arrange an informal discussion.

Please note we do not accept applications via Agencies or CVs without an accompanying application form. Closing date for applications is 23:59 hours 23 March 2025. It is anticipated that the assessment/interview process will run week commencing 31 March 2025. Anticipated start date: April/May 2025. The interview will consist of a competency and behavioural based interview and a role-based task.

Please note that it is your personal responsibility to check whether by applying/accepting this position it would result in any Annual Allowance implications. A breach in the Annual Allowance threshold could result in a Tax charge.

Our Commitments: Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service values your individuality, your diversity and your dignity. All are welcome here. Inclusion, diversity and equality are principles which guide our decisions and will be visible throughout the Service, and we will continually work to improve in these areas. We are committed to creating an inclusive culture of dignity and trust where everyone feels safe and comfortable to bring their whole self to work.

Simply: The communities we serve are varied and diverse, we should be too. Applications are welcome for job-share or part time arrangements please enquire on application. All applications are considered on merit alone. We are a Disability Confident Leader – if you meet the essential criteria of the role, you will be guaranteed an interview if you choose to opt into the Offer of an Interview Scheme (formerly known as the Guaranteed Interview Scheme).

To find out more: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and all employees must share this commitment.