HR Business Partner

Government Recruitment Service; West of England; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employer pension contribution of 28.97

25 days annual leave + bank holidays

Flexible working options

Job summary

Government Recruitment Service is seeking an HR Business Partner for the Vehicle Certification Agency in Bristol. You will work with senior leaders to shape people strategy, manage performance, develop leadership capability and lead inclusion and wellbeing initiatives.

You will support two divisions, provide expert HR advice, design workforce plans and coach managers to deliver organisational goals within a fast-paced civil service environment.

Qualifications

• Experience partnering with senior leaders to drive organisational change.
• Ability to provide expert HR advice on complex people matters.
• Experience leading learning and development and wellbeing initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead performance management policies across two divisions.
• Develop workforce plans aligning capability with objectives.
• Coach SLTs to build leadership and technical capability.
• Drive diversity, inclusion and wellbeing priorities.
• Support HR strategy in line with the organisation's plan.

Skills

HRBP experience

Stakeholder management

Learning & Development

Diversity & Inclusion

Job description

Are you passionate about helping organisations achieve their objectives through their people?

Do you enjoy partnering with senior leaders to deliver meaningful organisational change and improve business performance?

Can you influence decision‑making, challenge constructively and provide trusted HR advice on complex people matters?

Are you motivated by developing workforce capability, shaping organisational culture and driving continuous improvement?

If so, we would love to hear from you!

Our work is focused on improving vehicle safety and environmental protection by providing robust testing and certification to national and internationally recognised standards. We are a part of the Department of Transport as the designated UK Vehicle Type Approval Authority. With more than 40 years’ experience, we have become one of the largest and well‑respected approval bodies around. This position has been built on a reputation for technical expertise and quality, which is at the heart of everything we do, and what you could be a part of.

Please also refer to our Candidate Pack and VCA website for more information.

HR Business Partner

Company: Government Recruitment Service Salary: £45,900 to £51,775 a year Hours: Full-time Location: Bristol Job type: Permanent Posting date: 28 Oct 2026 Closing date: 9 Nov 2026

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King's birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work‑life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at VCA

As an HR Business Partner, you will work closely with senior leaders to help ensure the organisation has the capability, capacity and culture needed to deliver its objectives. You will provide expert advice, challenge and coaching across a range of people matters, using data and insight to identify risks, develop solutions and drive organisational improvement.

You will be required to support two business divisions, utilising your experience as a HR Business Partner to advise and guide them on a range of HR related issues. You will also lead learning and development and diversity, inclusion and wellbeing for the agency. You will have previous experience working within a fast‑paced HR environment, managing multiple workstreams and evidence of working with stakeholders at all levels. As a HR Business Partner, you'll work closely with the Head of HR in the development of the HR Strategy in achieving a range of key HR objectives that support the organisation's business plan.

Your main duties will include but will not be limited to:

• Working with senior leadership teams (SLT) in leading the implementation of performance management policies and processes across two business divisions and working with SLTs to measure, assess and build both leadership and technical capability within their teams to increase organisational effectiveness.
• Support senior leaders and Management Boards to develop and implement workforce plans that align workforce capability, capacity and talent requirements with organisational objectives.
• Working with SLT's to ensure effective talent management. Use knowledge and insight from talent information and performance management reviews to inform succession planning for business‑critical roles. Promote internal and external talent development opportunities, including ODP development pathways to support the growth of talent pipelines within business areas.
• Leading the agency's Learning and Development offer, identifying capability needs and developing interventions that support organisational priorities and workforce capability.
• Leading the development and implementation of VCA's Diversity, lnclusion and Wellbeing priorities, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives and Civil Service best practice.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

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