HR Manager

Wrightington Wigan & Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; Wigan; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare provider in the UK is seeking an experienced HR Manager to lead People Advisory support across clinical divisions. This role includes providing high-quality advice on employee relations, developing inclusive policies, and ensuring a customer-focused HR service. Ideal candidates will have significant HR experience, knowledge of employment law, and excellent communication skills. The position offers competitive compensation in the range of £47,810 to £54,710 annually.

Qualifications

• Significant experience of operational HR at a senior advisory level.
• Strong knowledge of employment law and HR best practice.
• Experience of working in a unionised environment.

Responsibilities

• Provide compassionate leadership and management to HR Advisors.
• Develop and maintain effective working relationships across the organisation.
• Contribute to the improvement of key workforce performance indicators.

Skills

Excellent communication skills

Ability to influence and negotiate

Strong people management skills

Proficiency in Microsoft Office

Ability to analyze complex information

Education

Masters level in HR or equivalent HR experience

CIPD Associate Member, working towards Level 7

Employment Law qualification

Tools

HR information systems

ESR

e-Rostering

Job description

HR Manager

The closing date is 04 January 2026

Following a reorganisation of our People Services function, these newly created roles will be an integral part of our service, providing professional, proactive and customer-focused People Advisory support to our clinical divisions and corporate services across WWL.

Main duties of the job

Working collaboratively with Senior Business Partners and HR Advisors, you will ensure the delivery of timely, compassionate and high-quality advice and support on complex employee relations, wellbeing and organisational change programmes for medical and non-medical teams.

You’ll also develop inclusive, person‑centred policies and procedures, and design and deliver engaging and innovative ways to embed policies and new ways of working. Through your advice, coaching and influencing skills you’ll support our leaders/managers to be excellent people leaders, and ensure that we develop a culture which attracts and retains a diverse and engaged workforce, who deliver the best patient care to the users of our services.

With significant experience of operational HR at a senior advisory level, advising on complex employee relations cases, you’ll have an in‑depth knowledge of employment law, along with HR best practice. You’ll also have skills and experience in developing and maintaining effective and progressive relationships with Trade Union representatives, be an excellent communicator, and be passionate about, as well as sharing, our values.

About us

Choose Well – Choose WWL

Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are the proud providers of acute hospital and community services to the people of the Wigan Borough and surrounding areas. At WWL, we value our staff believing that ‘happy staff, makes for happy patients’. We have a recognised track record in staff engagement and living our values.

People at the Heart

Listen and Involve

Kind and Respectful

ONE Team

WWL are committed to placing the patient at the heart of everything we do, and in the provision of safe, effective care that acknowledges and ensures dignity. We are seeking to recruit people who share our values and beliefs.

At WWL we value the benefits a rich and diverse workforce brings to our community and therefore welcome applications from all sections of society.

Job responsibilities

Provide compassionate leadership and management to HR Advisors in the delivery of an effective and high‑quality operational HR service to the Trust. Coach and mentor HR Advisors and other members of the team to develop their knowledge and skills.

Work on own initiative and prioritise own workload and that of the team to ensure key performance indicators and service level agreements are met.

Ensure services are customer‑focused, efficient, and aligned to divisional priorities and People Services objectives.

Develop and maintain effective working relationships at all levels across the organisation, establishing trust and professional credibility, for the purpose of supporting the delivery of the organisations people priorities and improving the employee experience.

Contribute to the improvement of key workforce performance indicators, e.g. sickness, turnover, appraisal rates, mandatory training rates, bank and agency usage, workforce numbers, staff engagement, through coaching and supporting leaders to develop and enact plans, and through providing workforce reports and workforce analysis to services.

Coach and support leaders to create compassionate and inclusive cultures in their service areas.

Produce high‑quality reports, drawing data and information from a variety of sources, present information to relevant stakeholders.

To support the Business Partners and Associate Director of People Services in developing and implementing systems and procedures which provide an efficient and effective basis for the provision of accurate and appropriate HR advice to all levels of the organisation.

Maintain and support the development of digital workforce systems.

Working with the Senior Business Partner, and Digital Workforce Team colleagues ensure the divisions have robust workforce information and data, supporting services to interpret and translate their data into actions which support the delivery of services and high quality patient care and staff experience.

To lead the development, implementation and review of a range of employment policies and procedures within the Trust, ensuring that the Trust anticipates and responds in a timely manner to changes in employment legislation and that managers are trained and supported to implement such policies fairly and consistently, working in partnership with Trade Unions.

To monitor, measure and report on HR issues, opportunities, development plans and achievements within agreed formats and timescales.

Contribute to the development of workforce plans and strategies.

Seek feedback from key stakeholders and share this with Business Partners/wider team to improve the service People Service provides.

Provide professional advice and guidance on escalated, often complex and multifaceted people matters and enquiries relating to terms and conditions of service and interpretation of organisational policy and procedure.

Work closely with managers and leadership teams to ensure effective and timely resolution of all levels of employee relations matters, including complex informal and formal including disciplinary, safeguarding, grievance, performance management, dignity and civility at work and attendance at work, as well as any other employment related issues.

To lead and actively participate in HR forums and sub groups.

Develop and establish effective working relationships with trade union representatives in line with Trust values, promoting partnership working whilst exploring and determining effective courses of action and resolving conflict and contentious issues.

To support change and innovation within the Trust working in partnership with management and staff side to facilitate new ways of working and the effective management of change, in accordance with appropriate policies, procedures, legislation and best practice.

To undertake and lead specific HR projects as identified and contribute to the NHS modernisation agenda through involvement in the development and implementation of key national areas of work including Agenda for Change, Equality and Diversity, Wellbeing etc.

To work closely with the OD, L&D and Digital Workforce Teams to contribute to the development and implementation of the national and local People/OD strategy, in order to meet the objectives and quality standards of the Trust.

To be responsible for the promotion of equality of opportunity and diversity within the workplace and contribute to the development of appropriate strategies to support equality and diversity in employment policies and initiatives.

Design and deliver training and development programmes in a range of areas relevant to People Services.

Deputise for the Senior HR Business Partners in their absence.

Oversee internal/external audits within areas of responsibility. Analysing results and developing and embedding actions to improve performance.

Act as an ambassador for the Trust, representing the organisation to relevant partners, other NHS bodies, regulators, voluntary sector, and other relevant organisations, developing constructive relationships to the benefit of the Trust.

Participate in relevant internal and external working groups/projects, services and initiatives to provide, information and expertise.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Educated to masters' level in HR or equivalent HR experience
• CIPD Associate Member, working towards Level 7
• Evidence of Continuing Professional Development.
• Employment Law qualification

Additional

• Commitment to the delivery of the highest standard of customer service
• Steadfast commitment to promotion of equality, diversion and inclusion
• Commitment to embedding, promoting and championing WWL Values and Behaviours
• Able to travel and work flexibly across the geographical footprint of the organisation

Knowledge

• Strong knowledge of employment law and HR best practice
• Knowledge of NHS Terms & Conditions and Agenda for Change
• Understanding of NHS 10 Year Plan, Long Term Workforce Plan, and People Promise commitments.
• Knowledge of equality, diversity, inclusion and wellbeing in employment practice.
• Knowledge of NHS Job Evaluation process
• Knowledge of NHS terms and conditions and employment policy

Skills/Abilities

• Excellent communication skills, written and verbal, with ability to influence and negotiate effectively at all levels
• Ability to analyse complex information and provide sound, evidence-based advice
• Ability to manage competing priorities and deliver to tight deadlines.
• Strong people management skills with ability to coach and support others.
• Ability to remain calm, impartial and solution-focused under pressure.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and HR information systems.
• Progressive and innovate approach to HRM and the contribution of HR to the delivery of a modern NHS service.
• Ability to use workforce analytics to support decision-making

Experience

• Significant experience of operational HR at a senior advisory level, including leading casework and advising managers
• Experience of working in a unionised environment and developing constructive staff side relationships.
• Experience of managing or supervising others
• Experience of leading HR policy development and implementation.
• Experience of supporting organisational change and service redesign.
• Experience of dealing with complex employee relations issues, including grievance, discipline, sickness absence and organisational change.
• Previous NHS HR experience
• Experience of using ESR, e‑Rostering and other digital workforce systems.
• Experience of delivering training and development to managers.

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.

Wrightington Wigan & Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

£47,810 to £54,710 a yearper annum, pro rata