HR Business Partner

The Compleat Food Group; Nottingham; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Volunteering days

Well-being groups

Online LMS training

Charity events

Grocery Aid access

Exercise hub

Job summary

The Compleat Food Group is seeking an experienced HR Business Partner to join our Nottingham-based HR team. You will act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, developing a robust site people plan aligned to operational priorities and employee engagement initiatives.

You’ll lead HR strategy execution across the site, drive continuous improvement, and support workforce design, recruitment and performance management while ensuring compliance with UK employment law and governance standards.

Qualifications

• CIPD Level 7 or equivalent HR qualification.
• 2+ years’ experience leading an HR function, ideally in FMCG/manufacturing.
• Strong strategic HR partnering with senior stakeholders.
• In-depth knowledge of UK employment law, ER processes and negotiations.
• Experience supporting audits and compliance standards (SEDEX/SMETA).
• Ability to operate in a complex, operational environment with multiple stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Partner with Site Senior Leadership Team to develop a robust people plan.
• Lead implementation of Group HR strategy at site level and drive continuous improvement.
• Serve as trusted advisor to senior leaders with data-driven people solutions.
• Champion employee engagement through forums, surveys and site action plans.
• Lead complex employee relations, ensuring fair and compliant management of issues.
• Support organisational change, restructures, redundancy programmes and workforce design.

Skills

Stakeholder management

HR business partnering

Change management

Employee engagement

Education

CIPD Level 7 or equivalent

Tools

SEDEX / SMETA audits

Job description

Join Our HR Team at The Compleat Food Group!

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced HR Business Partner to join our fantastic HR team in Nottingham. This is a dual site role, overseeing both our sites in Nottingham.

As a trusted advisor to the Site Senior Leadership Team, you will be accountable for developing and delivering a robust site people plan that supports operational performance, workforce capability and employee engagement. Playing a key role in bringing our people strategy to life, you'll help embed consistent, compliant and modern HR practices while positively shaping site culture and enhancing leadership effectiveness.

Who We Are:

We’re home to some of the UK’s most exciting and loved food brands, includingWall’s Pastry, Pork Farms, Wrights, The Real Yorkshire Pudding Co., unearthed, Vadasz, Squeaky Bean, Palace Culture, andHarvey & Brockless. Alongside our branded portfolio, we’re a leading supplier of delicious own-label pastry, sweet bakery, party food, olives and antipasti, added-value egg products, continental meats, dips and sauces and plant-based food to the UK’s major retailers, as well as across foodservice.

With over 6,000 talented colleagues across 17 sites, and an annual turnover of £1.3bn, we’re united by a shared ambition to shape the future of food for the better.

Location: Nottingham

Working Hours:The working hours are Monday to Thursday 08:30am – 5pm, and 8.30pm – 4pm on Fridays. Who doesn’t love an early finish on a Friday!

Your Duties Will Include:

• Partnering with the Site Senior Leadership Team to develop and deliver a robust people plan that supports operational performance, workforce capability and employee engagement.
• Leading the implementation of Group HR strategy and transformation initiatives at site level, driving continuous improvement and embedding modern HR practices.
• Acting as a trusted advisor and coach to senior leaders, providing pragmatic, data-driven people solutions that support business objectives.
• Championing employee engagement by leading employee voice forums, engagement surveys and site action plans that enhance the employee experience.
• Leading complex employee relations matters, ensuring fair, consistent and compliant management of grievances, disciplinary issues and wider employee relations casework.
• Supporting organisational change initiatives, including restructures, redundancy programmes, collective consultations and workforce design activities.
• Overseeing recruitment, talent management and succession planning, ensuring the attraction, development and retention of high-performing talent.
• Developing and deliver site retention and reward strategies, using workforce insights and market data to support employee attraction and retention.
• Driving performance management processes, ensuring effective objective setting, development planning and performance improvement across the site.
• Ensuring robust attendance and absence management practices are in place, supporting employee wellbeing while maintaining operational effectiveness.
• Partnering with Operations and Finance teams to optimise workforce planning, labour deployment, agency usage and labour cost management.
• Building leadership capability across the site through coaching, development initiatives and close partnership with operational leaders.
• Leading and developing the site HR team, fostering a high-performance culture, continuous learning and succession planning.
• Ensuring compliance with employment legislation, HR policies and governance requirements, including Working Time Regulations, right-to-work checks, modern slavery obligations and ethical trading standards.
• Overseeing site compliance activities, including SEDEX requirements, internal HR audits, Employment Tribunal and ACAS cases, and monthly HR KPI reporting.
• Promoting a positive health, safety and wellbeing culture, ensuring HR practices support safe and sustainable ways of working.

Your Skills and Experience:

• CIPD qualified to Level 7 or demonstrated equivalent experience at HR Manager / HR Business Partner level.
• Minimum of two years’ experience leading an HR function, ideally within a fast-paced FMCG or manufacturing environment.
• Strong strategic HR partnering capability with proven experience influencing senior stakeholders.
• In-depth knowledge of UK employment law, employee relations, consultation processes, and negotiations.
• Experience supporting audits and external compliance standards, ideally including SEDEX / SMETA.
• Demonstrated ability to operate in a complex, operational environment with multiple stakeholders.
• 2 Employee Volunteering Days per year
• Employee well-being and community support groups
• Informal and Formal training opportunities with personalised online LMS platform
• Charity Initiatives and Team events
• 24/7 Access to Grocery Aid (Free Financial, Emotional and Practical Support)
• Physical Wellbeing Benefits – Free on demand exercise hub and various gym discounts.
• Free Financial wellbeing – mortgage calculators, budget tools, financial aid tools
• Holiday Discounts via Online Retail Discount

What You Should Know About How We Recruit

At The Compleat Food Group, we believe great teams are built on difference. We create an inclusive, respectful environment where everyone feels safe, supported, and are able to be themselves at work.

We’re proud to be an equal opportunities employer and are committed to Fairness, Equity, Inclusivity, and Respect. If you need a reasonable adjustment at any stage of our recruitment process, just let us know, we’ll support you — confidentially and with care.

We hire the best people for our roles, not the same people. Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, we focus on what you do and the impact you could make in our business. Our recruitment process is fair, accessible, and designed to give everyone an equal chance.

You’ll also find benefits that support people at every life stage, plus active internal networks — including Women @ Compleat, LGBTQIA+, and Neurodiversity.

Recruitment Agencies:

We have a small, active and trusted Preferred Supplier List to assist us if required. We do not acknowledge any speculative CVs or unsolicited candidate introductions. We only accept CV submissions for roles released to you directly by our Talent Acquisition team.

By submitting your CV and personal information, you consent to The Compleat Food Group processing your personal data for the purposes of assessing your application for employment. Your data will be processed in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We will use your personal data solely for recruitment and selection purposes, and it will be securely stored and accessible only to authorized HR and hiring personnel. If your application is unsuccessful, we will retain your details for up to 24 months unless you request earlier deletion.

You have the right to:

• Access, correct, or request deletion of your personal data
• Withdraw your consent at any time
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you believe your data has been mishandled

For more information on how we handle your data, please refer to our Privacy Policy .