Head of People

EFL; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working (min 3 days in the офис

Enhanced family leave policies

Professional CPD development

25 days annual leave + 8 bank holidays

Private Health Insurance

Income Protection

Death in Service

Match tickets

Club shop discount

Job summary

Queens Park Rangers is seeking a Head of People to lead the People team in a hybrid London office environment. The role is hands-on, advising the CEO and senior managers, drafting contracts, modernising processes and managing player visas.

You will own year-round people processes, support recruitment and onboarding, and work with external lawyers for complex ER cases. A background in UK employment law and GDPR is highly valued.

Qualifications

• Experience as the lead HR person in an organisation, ideally as a Head of People or Head of HR, including managing and developing others.
• Good UK employment law knowledge; capable of drafting contracts and running complex disciplinary processes.
• Experience of UK GDPR and handling complex DSARs.
• Comfortable advising senior leaders and constructively challenging them.
• Strong writing and discretion with sensitive matters.
• Experience with Microsoft 365, HR systems and data-driven decision making.
• Bonus: UK visa/sponsor licence experience, CIPD Level 7, safeguarding, or work with a large casual workforce or in professional sport.

Responsibilities

• Be the go-to People adviser for our CEO, senior managers and line managers across the Club and the Trust
• Lead and develop our People Coordinator
• Handle complex employee relations cases from start to finish, including staff and player disciplinaries and grievances, and lead restructures and TUPE transfers
• Draft and negotiate contracts for staff, senior leaders and football staff, including First Team coaching contracts under EFL and FA rules
• Look after our sponsor licence and manage player and staff visas in-house
• Handle DSARs in-house and, together with our Finance Director, manage our relationship with our external data protection consultancy
• Own our year-round people processes: appraisals, the annual casual contract cycle for around 550 casual workers, all-staff events and our Culture Code
• With our People Coordinator, prepare the monthly payroll inputs and make all changes in our systems, ready for our Head of Payroll to run payroll
• Support managers with recruitment and make sure new starters are onboarded smoothly
• Keep our policies, systems and processes up to date and easy to use, and use data to make informed decisions

Skills

Lead HR person in an organisation

UK employment law knowledge

UK GDPR handling

Advising senior leaders

Microsoft 365/HR systems

Data-driven decision making

Sponsor licence/visa experience (bonus

Job description

QPR has been part of West London since 1882. Today we’re around 160 permanent staff and 550 casual workers across the Club and QPR in the Community Trust, working together to win matches.

We’re looking for a Head of People to lead our People team. It’s a hands-on role with real variety: one day you’re advising the CEO or senior managers, the next you’re drafting a contract, modernising People processes or sorting out a player’s visa. Most of our specialist HR work is done in-house, so you’ll have real ownership and make an impact from day one.

What you’ll do

• Be the go-to People adviser for our CEO, senior managers and line managers across the Club and the Trust
• Lead and develop our People Coordinator
• Handle complex employee relations cases from start to finish, including staff and player disciplinaries and grievances, and lead restructures and TUPE transfers, working with our external lawyers where needed
• Draft and negotiate contracts for staff, senior leaders and football staff, including First Team coaching contracts under EFL and FA rules
• Look after our sponsor licence and manage player and staff visas in-house
• Handle DSARs in-house and, together with our Finance Director, manage our relationship with our external data protection consultancy
• Own our year-round people processes: appraisals, the annual casual contract cycle for around 550 casual workers, all-staff events and our Culture Code
• With our People Coordinator, prepare the monthly payroll inputs and make all changes in our systems, ready for our Head of Payroll to run payroll
• Support managers with recruitment and make sure new starters are onboarded smoothly
• Keep our policies, systems and processes up to date and easy to use, and use data to make informed decisions

About The Candidate

What you’ll bring

• Experience as the lead HR person in an organisation, ideally as a Head of People or Head of HR, including managing and developing others
• Good, practical UK employment law knowledge: you’re comfortable drafting a contract and running a complex disciplinary without needing a lawyer for every step
• Experience of UK GDPR and handling complex DSARs
• Comfortable advising senior leaders and, when needed, constructively challenging them
• Sound judgement and discretion with sensitive and confidential matters
• Clear writing, whether it’s a contract, a policy or an all-staff update
• Comfortable using Microsoft 365, HR systems and data to make informed decisions
• It’s a bonus, but not essential, if you also have UK visa or sponsor licence experience, CIPD Level 7 (or equivalent experience), safeguarding experience, or you’ve worked with a large casual workforce or in professional sport.

About The Club

What we can offer you

• Hybrid working (minimum of 3 days in the office)
• Enhanced family leave policies
• Support for your professional development through our CPD process
• 25 days annual leave + 8 bank holidays
• Private Health Insurance, Income Protection and Death in Service (once you pass probation)
• Match tickets and club shop discount
• Discounts at local restaurants and bars
• The chance to shape and modernise how a professional football club looks after its people

Not ticking every box?

That’s OK. We know many great candidates hold back from applying unless they meet every single requirement. If this role excites you and you think you could do it well, we’d still love to hear from you. You don’t need a background in football to bring some fresh perspective.

Safeguarding and inclusion

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk, and expect everyone who works here to share this commitment. All offers of employment for this role are subject to background checks.

We want our team to reflect the diverse West London community we’re part of, and we welcome applications from everyone, whatever your age, disability, ethnicity, gender, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. If you need any adjustments during the recruitment process, such as extra time, a different interview format or an accessible venue, just let us know.