HR Operations Coordinator (maternity cover)

The Access Project; Greater London; Remote; GBP 14,000 - 16,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave 25 days

PerkBox

Employee Assistance Programme

Online Medical access

Pensions (3%)

Volunteering days

Wellbeing day

Job summary

The Access Project is seeking an HR Operations Coordinator to cover maternity leave within the Strategy, Finance and Operations team. You will support HR and People operations, maintain BambooHR, coordinate events, update policies, and assist with onboarding and offboarding to ensure smooth staff experiences.

This part-time fixed-term role is based in England with home-working options and occasional travel to Birmingham or London, starting December or January, with a closing date of 2 November

Qualifications

• Analytical and systematic problem-solving attributes.
• Passionate about technology and using it to develop efficiencies.
• Previous HR Administrator experience.
• Collaborative approach to business partnering across departments.
• Flexible approach to work and solution oriented.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong administrative skills and time management.
• Excellent attention to detail and high levels of accuracy.
• Able to handle sensitive information confidentially and professionally.
• Proficient in Microsoft 365 apps including SharePoint, data analysis, and presentations.
• Proactive and supportive team player with willingness to learn.
• Experience of using BambooHR.
• Commitment to the mission and values of The Access Project.

Responsibilities

• Promptly responding and resolving colleague queries from across the organisation.
• Maintaining the BambooHR system to ensure People records are accurate and secure.
• Arranging bookings for Town Halls and Engagement events, organising meeting agendas and catering bookings where relevant.
• Updating HR information system guidance documents and training managers on people management responsibilities.
• Update employment policies with guidance from the Head of People and manage benefits administration.
• Manage recruitment administration using BambooHR and provide updates to hiring managers.
• Oversee Onboarding and Offboarding processes using BambooHR, including Right to Work, DBS checks and IT access.
• Prepare and issue employment contracts, ensuring compliance with employment law.
• Manage induction process and schedule induction meetings for new joiners; liaise with hiring managers.
• Coordinate and participate in the virtual phone rota and handle correspondence professionally.
• Support the Chief Operations Officer in meeting Health and Safety and legal requirements.
• Support other operational activities as required.

Skills

Analytical thinking

HR administration

Microsoft 365

Data analysis

Communication

Team collaboration

Discretion/confidentiality

BambooHR

Flexible working

Tools

BambooHR

Job description

Job Title: HR Operations Coordinator (maternity cover)

Salary: £14,131 per year (This is £28,262 pro-rated, 0.5 FTE, 18.75 hours a week. If living home-based in London, salary is £15,631.)

Closing Date: 9am Monday 2nd November 2026

Reporting to: Head of People

Contract: Part time, Fixed Term Contract until October 2027.

Job Location: Based in England, working from home with occasional travel to Birmingham or London

Interview date: To be confirmed

Start date: December or January

About the organisation

Our mission is to support students from under-resourced backgrounds to access top universities through a unique programme of mentoring, skills coaching, and tuition. Students enrolled on our programme receive expert support from our University Access Officers, mentors embedded in schools to guide pupils through their education options, university applications and student life topics such as navigating student finance.

Safeguarding Statement

The Access Project is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Our safeguarding system is underpinned by a range of policies and procedures which encourage and promote safe working practice across the organisation.

Why work at The Access Project

People who work at The Access Project are motivated by the desire to create a fairer society. We all play an active part in achieving the mission to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds access top universities. At The Access Project, we’re a friendly, collaborative, supportive and inclusive team, with passionate people working together in Delivery, Sales and Partnerships, Strategy, Finance and Operations to achieve our mission.

Our values

Empowerment

We support students and our people to develop the skills and knowledge to accomplish their goals.

Courage

We encourage our students and our people to be authentic, innovative and ambitious in order to reach their full potential and deliver our mission.

Impact

We evolve our programmes through an evidence-led approach, supporting our students to achieve their best outcomes.

Inclusion

We respect and value individuality and engage diverse voices to achieve our mission.

Ownership

We hold ourselves accountable in all our actions and efforts. We ask “What can I do to improve my results?”

About the role

We have a vacancy for an HR Operations Coordinator in the Strategy, Finance and Operations team to provide Maternity Leave cover. The person will be supporting HR and People operational activities by delivering excellent support through strong relationships across the organisation. This is an exciting role for a motivated self-starter, who is keen to make a key contribution to our values-driven organisation and support with staff engagement.

Role responsibilities

• Promptly responding and resolving colleague queries from across the organisation
• Maintaining the BambooHR system to ensure People records are accurate and secure. Training will be provided.
• Arranging bookings for Town Halls and Engagement events, organising the meeting agendas and catering bookings where relevant.
• Updating HR information system guidance documents, delivering training to managers to ensure managers are fully trained on people management responsibilities.
• Update employment policies with guidance from the Head of People, manage the administration of benefits and recognition awards
• Manage the recruitment administration using the Bamboo software and providing proactive updates to hiring managers.
• Managing the Onboarding and Offboarding processes using the BambooHR system, including obtaining the Employment references, conducting Right to Work, DBS checks and IT access.
• Preparing and issuing employment contracts, ensuring compliance with employment legislation
• Manage the induction process and arranging induction meetings for new joiners, communicating proactively with hiring managers.
• Coordinate and participate in the virtual phone rota and handle correspondence in a a professional manner. This includes overseeing successful handover between rota team members.
• Supporting the Chief Operations Officer in ensuring the charity meets Health and Safety and legal requirements
• Support other operational activities as required

Person specification

Essential

• Analytical and systematic problem-solving attributes
• Passionate about technology and using it to develop efficiencies
• Previous HR Administrator experience
• Collaborative approach to business partnering and teamwork across Departments
• Flexible approach to work and solution oriented
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong administrative skills and time management skills
• Excellent attention to detail and high levels of accuracy
• Able to handle sensitive and private information confidentially and professionally
• Proficient in using Microsoft 365 applications effectively, incl. Sharepoint, data analysis, presentations, and numeracy skills
• Proactive and supportive team player and willingness to learn
• Experience of using BambooHR
• A commitment to the mission and values of The Access Project

Desirable

• Experience of HR information systems
• Project management experience

Benefits

• 25 days annual leave p.a. (pro rata) plus Bank Holidays and 3-5 Winter closure days.
• PerkBox – online shopping discounts, gym memberships, holidays, wellbeing support.
• Employee Assistance Programme, a 24-hour helpline for staff
• Online Medical assistance – access 24/7 to a qualified GP within minutes, with referrals and prescriptions available same-day.
• Interest-free travelcard loans
• Cyclescheme loans
• 2 paid Volunteering Days
• 1 paid Wellbeing Day
• Employer’s pensions contributions (3%)
• Learning and Development opportunities
• Staff Mentoring scheme
• The Access Project welcomes requests for flexible working arrangements

Equal Opportunities Statement

The Access Project aspires to represent the diversity of communities across the UK at all levels of the organisation and proactively takes steps to support this. We are committed to creating a culture where the experiences and voices of people from marginalised backgrounds are listened to and valued; where their skills are appreciated; and where their talents are nurtured and encouraged.

The Access Project is an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from people from all backgrounds. If you believe you have most of the skills to fulfil the role we encourage you to apply. Amongst staff at our organization, there is under-representation of people who are Black, Asian or people from ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled, care-experienced, from low socio-economic backgrounds, and who are LGBTQIA+ . We particularly welcome applications from people with lived experience in reference to our mission.

Disclosure of a Criminal Record

The Rehabilitation of Offenders 1974 (Exceptions) (Amendment) Order 1986 applies to posts where there is access to children. This means that applicants for employment that involves working with children and young people must disclose anything listed in their criminal record, with the exception of protected cautions and convictions. All Disclosures are carried out in the strictest confidence and are made only in connection with your application for employment and for no other purpose. The application for a DBS check at a level appropriate to the job role will be activated before your first day of work. Members of staff who are not eligible for a standard or enhanced DBS check are required to undertake a basic DBS check only in line with legal requirements. If you are selected for appointment to the role, you will be subject to this procedure.

Present or most recent employment

It is important to give full information, including the organisation you work in, or most recent employment if not currently working, full dates, address and explanation of any gaps in employment.

References

All appointments are subject to verification of employment and suitability of the candidate for the post applied for. We reserve the right to approach any previous employer for a reference and to verify their identity but will request your permission before doing so. If you have experience of working with children, please include this as one of your references.

Education, Qualifications and Training:

Ensure you give all the information requested, including dates, establishment where you studied and make clear the level of any examinations e.g., GCSE, GCE 'O' Level or 'A' Level or equivalents etc. and the grades you obtained. Also include any skills training you have had. You will be required to produce original documentary evidence of any qualifications relevant to the job, and these will be detailed on the person specification.

Proof of qualification is required before the appointment is confirmed.

Contact information

Please direct any queries to our email via the Contact page on our website.