HR Advisor / Employee Relations (ER) Advisor

Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Job summary

Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Milton Keynes is seeking an HR Advisor/Employee Relations Advisor on a fixed-term basis to support a busy HR division, focusing on investigations and case management within Employee Relations.

You will operate within HR Business Partnering, delivering investigations from intake to hearings with Case Managers, and driving a fair and just culture through guidance, training and policy development.

Qualifications

• Experience conducting HR investigations (conduct, performance, right to work, grievance).
• Strong knowledge of Employment Law and HR best practice.
• Ability to provide coaching and training to managers on policies and procedures.

Responsibilities

• Deliver an operational HR service to the Trust in Employee Relations and related projects.
• Undertake and manage commissioned employment investigations from start to hearings with case managers.
• Provide policy guidance, training and coaching to managers and teams.

Skills

Investigation and casework

HR advisory

Employment law knowledge

Communication skills

Coaching leadership

Education

Associate CIPD level

Degree level or equivalent

Tools

HR databases

Job description

Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

HR Advisor / Employee Relations (ER) Advisor

The closing date is 05 November 2026

HR Advisor / Employee Relations (ER) Advisor

Department: HR Business Partnering

Band 6 £39,959 - £48,117 per annum pro rata

Fixed-term contract until 30 April 2027

Hours: Full-time 37.5 hours per week, all MKUH roles will be considered for flexible working

Are you looking for new challenges? Your expertise is wanted!

Are you ready to transfer your talents and knowledge to MKUH? You will be filling one of 3 positions that have become vacant due to growth within the HR division. Your new journey is about to be written.

Your employee relations experience, good organisational skills & natural curiosity to get to the core of investigating and advising on HR/ER issues will be a true asset.

You will be joining a team where colleagues provide support & encouragement, you will have to ask and lean into the diverse range of knowledge & experience of your team members. Utilising your experience gained from working autonomously in a complex, multi-disciplinary & culturally diverse organization, your input will be a real game changer where you will provide support in the following areas to mention a few:

• Sickness Absence Management
• Performance Management
• Probationary Period

Your degree or equivalent experience, Associate Level CIPD qualification, working knowledge of current Employment Law & Human Resource Best Practice will be invaluable to the team.

Interview date: 12 November 2026

Main duties of the job

The post-holder is required to work as part of the Human Resources Team and will be responsible for delivering an operational HR service to the Trust in conjunction with the ER Business Partner ; the post holder is also responsible for corporate projects and strategic elements of the role as determined on an ongoing basis by the Head of Employee Relations & Business Partnering.

The post-holder is responsible for undertaking commissioned employment investigations which are principally as a result of, but not limited to, conduct, performance, right to work, fraud, and grievance matters. As the investigating officer and autonomous HR practitioner, the post-holder will be responsible for all parts of the investigation from receipt of the allegation or concern, through to making representations at hearings and tribunals as necessary. Representation at hearings would be conducted in conjunction with Case Managers. The aim is to ensure that all processes are undertaken in a way that supports a fair and just culture.

About us

Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, is a University Teaching Hospital committed to advancing patient care through cutting-edge research and education. With a \"Good\" rating from the CQC and significant investment underway, this is an exciting time to join our team and grow your career.

As a medium sized general hospital, we provide a full range of general medical and surgical services, including a busy Emergency Department, Maternity, and Paediatrics. As the population of our city and surrounding areas continues to grow rapidly, we are expanding and enhancing our facilities to meet rising demand and improve access to care for all our communities.

We are also proud to offer a growing portfolio of specialist services. In January 2025 we opened our state-of-the-art Radiotherapy Centre, bringing advanced cancer treatment closer to home. Our services also include neonatology, specialist surgical care, and a wide range of diagnostics, supported by the new Community Diagnostic Centre at Whitehouse Health Centre. We have just opened the Oak Wards - a new ward block featuring two 24-bed wards.

Further investment is underway, including the recently approved Women and Children's Centre, set to open by 2030.

Visit our website to explore the latest news and opportunities at MKUH - News - Milton Keynes University Hospital -

For further information about Milton Keynes please visit - Visit Milton Keynes

Job responsibilities

You will be responsible for ensuring that all investigations are undertaken in line with Trust policy and best practice in a way that supports a fair and just culture.

You will be working in a modern office in the centre of Milton Keynes, with easy access to the many open green spaces characteristic of this modern town. You will have the opportunity to flexible working patterns enabling you to achieve a healthy work-life balance.

Employee Relations:

• To support fair and just culture panels as needed to ensure early decision-making regarding investigations is consistent and appropriate.

Management and Leadership:

• Use a coaching leadership style to build relationships and influence managers.

Training:

• Deliver HR policy and procedural coaching and training to both managers and small / large groups (35+) on a regular basis.

Policy / Service Development:

• Reviewing, writing, negotiating, and agreeing corporate HR policies - taking into account feedback from stakeholders (including management and staff side perspective) and both internal and external research.

Recruitment:

• To provide guidance and advice to the Recruitment Team and relevant managers as and when recruitment related issues arise (including with regards advertising, pre-employment and pay issues) in order that any matters are resolved in a speedy and effective manner.

Agenda for Change:

• To undertake and attend Job Evaluation panels on a regular basis acting as the management representative to ensure all jobs are matched to pay bandings in line with national requirements. This requires regular use of local database and also the Intelligent Job Evaluation System (IJES) database.
• Working with managers, employees, and payroll to resolve pay issues as required including ensuring the smooth processing of highly sensitive Ill Health Retirement Applications; analysing detailed information as required to this end.

Information Management:

• Continuous monitoring and updating of Employee Relations Cases using the Trusts ER Case Tracker system. Responsible for monitoring and inputting/maintaining the Electronic Staff Records Database for Employee Relations/Visa Issues.

Please refer to the Job Description for further details.

Qualifications and knowledge

• Associate Level CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and development)


• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience


• Evidence of continuous professional development.


• Up to date and thorough working knowledge of Employment Law and Human Resource Best Practice


• Knowledge and understanding of the full range of HR and HR policy issues and best practice

Experience

• Experience of recent generalist HR experience in a large, complex organisation.


• Experience across a broad range of HR work including HR policy development and implementation, as well as HR casework.


• Experience of consultation and working in partnership with Trade unions.


• Experience of developing and delivering training interventions to staff and managers.


• Experience of preparing workforce information reports

Skills

• Strongly developed communication skills including the ability to communicate complex information with fully developed persuasive, negotiating and influencing skills.


• Analytical and judgement skills with the ability to analyse and interpret complex situations.


• Ability to create and develop good partnership working.


• Ability to work autonomously, without direct supervision and as part of a team.


• Good presentation and report writing skills.


• Good IT skills (to includes as a minimum: Word Excel, PowerPoint, HR databases).


• Good typing/word processing skills where speed and accuracy are important.


• Ability to interpret and apply NHS Terms and Conditions of Employment.


• Ability to set own priorities, meet tight deadlines and work independently


• Ability to gain and maintain credibility and establish good working relationships with staff at all levels across the organisation.


• Ability to maintain confidentiality and deal with situations in a sensitive manner.


• Able to work to tight deadlines and pay attention to detail.

Personal and people development

• The ability to work on own initiative, responding to immediate requests.


• Team member with a mature and flexible approach to work, willing to adapt to regularly changing situations.


• Proactive and self-motivated.

Communication

• Able to concentrate with frequent interruptions and where work is unpredictable, e.g., constant phone calls requesting advice.


• Able to deal with distressing or emotional circumstances, frequently when imparting information e.g., discipline, sickness, organisational change.

Specific requirements

• Able to perform the duties of the post with reasonable aids and adaptations.


• Own transport to travel between sites

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

£39,959 to £48,117 a yearper annum pro rata