HR Business Partner

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust; Chester; On-site; GBP 52,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an experienced HR Business Partner to provide senior HR advice and strategic support across the Trust. You will lead an HR sub-team, shape decisions, and work on employee relations, recruitment, attendance, change management and workforce planning.

The role requires substantial senior HR experience in a large, unionised environment, with strong communication and relationship-building skills to deliver practical HR solutions and drive

Qualifications

• Graduate CIPD (level 7) qualification or equivalent work based
• Associate member of the CIPD
• Evidence of commitment to Continuing Professional Development
• AfC Job Evaluator or equivalent experience

Responsibilities

• Provide senior HR advice and guidance to Trust leaders
• Lead an HR sub-team and foster an empowering, engaged environment
• Support employee relations, recruitment and retention, attendance management and organisational change
• Interpret and apply policies and procedures to deliver practical HR solutions

Skills

HR leadership

Employee relations

Policy interpretation

Workforce planning

TUPE knowledge

Stakeholder management

Strategic HR

Change management

Education

CIPD Level 7

AfC Job Evaluator

CIPD Associate

CPD commitment

Job description

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

HR Business Partner

The closing date is 16 November 2026

Are you an experienced HR professional looking for a role where you can grow your skills and make a difference? This is a chance to build on what you already know, work with people across the Trust and get involved in a wide range of HR work. In our busy, fast-paced environment, you'll gain hands‑on experience, sharpen your problem‑solving skills and build confidence in tackling different HR challenges.

You'll work closely with colleagues across the Trust, building relationships, helping shape decisions and providing senior HR advice and guidance. You'll get involved in everything from employee relations, recruitment and retention, and attendance management to organisational change, workforce planning, terms and conditions of employment, and interpreting and applying policies and procedures. This variety will give you plenty of opportunities to learn, build your expertise and become more confident in handling complex HR matters, while helping find practical solutions that put people first.

Main duties of the job

You will also provide effective leadership to your HR sub‑team, creating an environment where colleagues feel empowered, engaged and supported to deliver a high‑quality service. Previous line management experience is essential, along with the ability to motivate others, manage priorities and contribute positively to continuous improvement.

The successful candidate will bring substantial senior‑level HR experience gained within a large, complex organisation, ideally within a highly unionised environment. You will be confident operating at pace, able to establish immediate credibility with colleagues at all levels, and skilled in building strong, trusted relationships.

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are vital, as is the ability to think creatively and pragmatically to deliver effective HR solutions. If you are a resilient, proactive and compassionate HR leader who is passionate about making a meaningful contribution, we would welcome your application.

About us

The Trust's services are provided from three locations:

• The Countess of Chester Hospital: providing 473 general and acute beds.
• Ellesmere Port Hospital: providing 60 beds as a rehabilitation, intermediate and outpatient facility.
• Tarporley War Memorial Hospital: a base for community services which serve the local rural population.

The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust employs 5,964 staff (headcount) to provide care and treatment to a population of over 400,000 people living in Chester and West Cheshire which includes Ellesmere Port and Neston as well as the Deeside area of Flintshire.

The Trust works collaboratively within the wider Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System. Due to its location on the border with North Wales, the Trust also works closely with the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board.

The Trust treats patients from England and some parts of Wales. During 2024/2025, there were approximately 643,000 patient attendances (inpatient, A&E, outpatient and diagnostic) ranging from a simple outpatient appointment to major cancer surgery

Job responsibilities

See Job Description for further details.

Recruitment selection processes are based on competence (see Person specification) and values. An applicant guide to help and support you through your recruitment journey can be accessed at the bottom of this page.

If you have a disability that meets the definition set out in the Equality Act 2010, and you can show that you meet the essential criteria described in the person specification for an available position, please answer YES to the question: Do you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme?

Please inform the team if you have any special support needs to be considered as part of the interview and selection processes.

The trust offers a Guaranteed Interview Scheme to any armed forces community applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post.

If a DBS is required for your role, you are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee applies which is payable to the DBS Service.Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costswill be deducted from their salary over the first three months of employment.

New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.

Applicants requiring sponsorship may wish to determine the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship for this position by assessing themselves against the criteria on the gov.uk website - https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa.

The Trust will not sponsor where the starting salary does not meet immigration rules

Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post, we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date.

Good luck with your application.

Qualifications

• Graduate level CIPD (level 7) qualification or equivalent work based
• Associate member of the CIPD
• Evidence of commitment to Continuing Professional Development
• Agenda for Change Job Evaluator

Knowledge and Experience

• Working and detailed knowledge of employment legislation, equal opportunities and best practice, including managing complex cases and exposure to solving employee relations issues.
• Experience of taking the lead on projects, writing reports and implementing recommendations from these.
• Experience of working with, and influencing, senior managers.
• Experience of working in a Human Resources function in a Business Partner environment.
• Experience of providing and operational Experience of working within a complex multi-union environment.
• Experience of interpreting a range of terms and conditions of service.
• Experience of working in a complex organisation, ideally in a range of HR specialism's e.g. personnel, recruitment, development, change organisation management, legislation HR Understanding of and ability to develop and analyse workforce and management information to support capacity planning and/or identify and devise learning strategies.
• Experience of re design, restructuring, re organisation/redundancy handling/TUPE.
• Experience of providing strategic and operational support to managers and staff within a large business area/service or several small business areas/services
• Knowledge of Agenda for Change job evaluation

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.

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust