Area Support Assistant - Milton Keynes/Bedfordshire

Overview

We’d all like amazing work to do, and real work-life balance. That’s waiting for you at Sainsbury’s. We’re the first to say we do HR differently here. For a start, we work as business partners and specialists. That’s whether we’re making sure that nearly 180,000 colleagues are paid on time, or that our strategy is helping us attract the right people, put them in the right place, and unlock their talent. This is a fast-moving business and our policies and rewards keep up too. That’s why we’re as flexible as we can be about where and when you work. We’re also flexible about your future. There’s always room to move up or across, if that’s what you want. We really value different perspectives so there’s no one opinion, no single path, and yours is important. What’s certain is that you’ll be joining one of the happiest, most engaged teams in the business.

Role

This is a part time role – working 20 hours per week – Candidates must be able to commute to Milton Keynes/Bedfordshire where the position is based.

Why join us

Joining Sainsbury\’s as an Area Support Assistant – Milton Keynes/Bedfordshire means becoming an integral part of a dynamic and customer-focused team dedicated to providing exceptional service and support to our colleagues and customers. With a strong emphasis on operational excellence and continuous improvement, you will have the opportunity to showcase your administrative skills, attention to detail, and proactive approach while contributing to the success and efficiency of our retail operations. Working in a collaborative and supportive environment, you will have the chance to grow professionally, learn new skills, and make a positive impact within your designated area.

What You\\\’ll Do

As an Area Support Assistant at Sainsbury\’s, you will play a crucial role in providing accurate and efficient administration support to the Area Manager’s, ensuring the smooth running of the area administration and effective communication with customers and colleagues. Your responsibilities will include managing diary schedules, organising meetings and functions, handling correspondence, facilitating travel arrangements, and supporting talent and capability requirements within the area. By demonstrating confidentiality, initiative, and strong communication skills, you will contribute to operational excellence and help create a positive and productive work environment for the Area Manager’s and their teams.

Who You Are

As an Area Support Assistant at Sainsbury\’s, you are a highly organised and proactive individual with a strong focus on providing exceptional administrative support to the Area Manager’s and ensuring smooth operations within the area. With a keen attention to detail, excellent communication skills, and the ability to work independently, you play a crucial role in managing diary schedules, coordinating meetings, handling customer and colleague queries, and facilitating talent and capability requirements to support the overall objectives and goals of the area. Your integrity, confidentiality, and commitment to operational excellence contribute to a positive and efficient working environment, demonstrating sound judgement and decision-making skills in your daily responsibilities.

Essential Criteria

• Digital Collaboration & Productivity Tools Proficient in Microsoft Office, Teams, and Copilot, using these tools to create documents, manage communications, streamline workflows, and enhance productivity across remote and in-person teams.
• Meeting Facilitation & Presentation Skills Experienced in hosting and presenting during team meetings, ensuring clear agendas, engaging delivery, and effective follow-up actions in both virtual and face-to-face settings.
• Team Leadership & Communication Skilled in leading, organising, and motivating teams across locations, with strong communication abilities that foster collaboration and accountability.
• Organisation & Strategic Planning Highly organised with a structured approach to planning, capable of managing multiple priorities and aligning team efforts with business goals and timelines.
• Task & Deadline Management Proven ability to keep teams and tasks on track, using tools and processes to monitor progress, resolve blockers, and ensure timely delivery of outcomes.
• Must have a full driving license

Benefits

We are committed to being a truly inclusive retailer so you’ll be welcomed whoever you are and wherever you work. Around here, there’s always the chance to try something new — whether that’s as part of an evolving team or somewhere else across the business – and we take development seriously and promise to support you. We also recognise and celebrate colleagues when they go the extra mile and, where possible, offer flexible working. When you join our team, we’ll also offer you an amazing range of benefits. Here are some of them:

Starting off with colleague discount, you\’ll be able to save 10% on your shopping online and instore at Sainsbury\’s, Argos, TU and Habitat, and we regularly increase the discount to 15% at points during the year. We\’ve also got you covered for your future with our pensions scheme and life cover. You\’ll also be able to share in our success as you may be eligible for a performance-related bonus of up to 5% of salary (which may vary for Nectar360), depending on how we perform.

Your wellbeing is important to us too. You\’ll receive an annual holiday allowance and you can buy up to an additional week\’s holiday. We also offer other benefits that will help your money go further such as season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, health cash plans, salary advance (where you can access some of your pay before pay day) as well access to a great range of discounts from hundreds of other retailers. And if you ever need it there is also an employee assistance programme.

Moments that matter are as important to us as they are to you which is why we give up to 26 weeks’ pay for maternity or adoption leave and up to 4 weeks’ pay for paternity leave.

Please see www.sainsburys.jobs for a range of our benefits (note, length of service and eligibility criteria may apply).