People Advisor

Lincolnshire Co-op; Lincoln; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

Pension scheme up to 12%

Colleague discounts

Learning and development opportunities

Job summary

Lincolnshire Co-op is seeking an experienced People Advisor to provide practical, fair HR guidance to managers and colleagues across multiple sites. You’ll apply employment law, policies and procedures with care, supporting absence, performance, disciplinary and grievances while maintaining confidential records.

You’ll collaborate with the People team, deliver consistent advice, and help investigations, documentation and return-to-work processes.

Qualifications

• A CIPD qualification and previous experience in a similar People Advisor or HR role
• Strong generalist HR experience and a sound understanding of current employment law
• Experience advising and supporting managers across a range of people matters
• The confidence to build strong relationships at all levels and coach and guide colleagues
• Experience working in a multi-site organisation and/or retail environment would be highly desirable
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain HR policies and processes clearly and sensitively
• A practical, organised approach, with the confidence to manage multiple cases and priorities

Responsibilities

• Providing clear, consistent and practical advice on employee relations matters
• Supporting managers with absence, performance, disciplinary, grievance, probation and flexible working cases
• Coaching managers to apply policies fairly and confidently
• Supporting investigations, hearings, outcome letters and accurate case documentation
• Coordinating occupational health referrals and supporting wellbeing and return-to-work plans
• Handling sensitive information carefully and maintaining accurate records in line with GDPR
• Building positive working relationships with managers and colleagues across the Society

Skills

HR generalist experience

Employment law knowledge

Advising managers

Coaching managers

Education

CIPD qualification

Job description

About the role:

Help people navigate the moments that matter

At Lincolnshire Co-op, our People team supports colleagues across a wide range of roles and business areas. As a People Advisor, you’ll provide practical, fair and people-focused advice, helping managers and colleagues navigate employee relations matters with confidence.

Because great people support isn’t just about knowing the policy.
It’s about knowing how to apply it with care, consistency and understanding.

Where good advice makes a difference

From absence and performance to disciplinary and grievance cases, you’ll help managers understand their responsibilities, follow the right processes and handle sensitive situations fairly.

Working alongside our People Business Partners and wider People team, you’ll take ownership of cases, provide clear advice and help find practical solutions that work for colleagues and the Society.

Because sometimes, the right conversation can make all the difference.

Where expertise meets a people-focused approach

You’ll be a trusted point of contact for managers and colleagues, bringing your knowledge of employment law, HR policies and employee relations to everyday conversations and more complex cases.

One day, you might be advising a manager on a performance or absence matter.
The next, supporting an investigation, preparing documentation or helping a colleague through a return-to-work process.

You’ll focus on:

• Providing clear, consistent and practical advice on employee relations matters
• Supporting managers with absence, performance, disciplinary, grievance, probation and flexible working cases
• Coaching managers to apply policies fairly and confidently
• Supporting investigations, hearings, outcome letters and accurate case documentation
• Coordinating occupational health referrals and supporting wellbeing and return-to-work plans
• Handling sensitive information carefully and maintaining accurate records in line with GDPR
• Building positive working relationships with managers and colleagues across the Society

Because this role isn’t just about giving advice.

It’s about helping managers make confident decisions, while making sure colleagues feel heard, supported and treated fairly.

INDMP

About You

The kind of person who’ll shine here

You’re confident providing people advice, but you also understand that great HR support starts with listening.

You’re approachable, knowledgeable and comfortable having conversations that aren’t always straightforward. You can balance the needs of colleagues and managers while making sure advice is fair, consistent and grounded in current employment law.

You’ll bring:

• A CIPD qualification and previous experience in a similar People Advisor or HR role
• Strong generalist HR experience and a sound understanding of current employment law
• Experience advising and supporting managers across a range of people matters
• The confidence to build strong relationships at all levels and coach and guide colleagues
• Experience working in a multi-site organisation and/or retail environment would be highly desirable
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain HR policies and processes clearly and sensitively
• A practical, organised approach, with the confidence to manage multiple cases and priorities

Most importantly, you’ll be someone managers can trust for clear, balanced and practical advice—and someone that understands the importance of treating every colleague with respect, fairness and care.

As well as being part of a People team that makes a real difference to colleagues and managers every day, you’ll benefit from:

• 30 days’ annual leave, including bank holidays, pro rata
• A pension scheme with employer contributions of up to 12%
• Colleague discounts across our family of businesses
• Learning and development opportunities to help you build your skills and confidence

As an Investors in People Platinum employer, we’re committed to creating an environment where colleagues are supported to learn, develop and feel proud of the work they do.

If you’re an experienced HR professional who enjoys helping managers navigate people matters, building strong relationships and providing advice that makes a difference, this could be the role for you.

Join us and help create positive colleague experiences through great people advice, support and guidance.

You can find the full job description attached to this page for more detail about the role and responsibilities.

About Us

From a single store in 1861 we have grown to be one of the most successful co-operatives in the UK. We’re proud to be able to offer a wide range of services from across our family of businesses. From Food Stores and Pharmacies to Post Offices and Support Services, we’re a growing society made up of over 220 outlets and nearly 3,000 colleagues.
We're owned by our members, the people of Lincolnshire and surrounding counties, and have been for more than 160 years! Communities are at the heart of everything we do and motivates us to deliver more than great customer service. We support them by sharing dividend with our members, investing in new and improved services, raising money for charity through our Community Champion scheme, supporting local schools and so much more!
We work together as a Society and are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is barrier free and as inclusive as possible for everyone. If you need any adjustments, would like us to do anything differently during the interview or would like to get in touch with us about anything else, please contact our Recruitment team on [phone], or alternatively you can email [e-mail].
We may choose to close our vacancies in the event that we receive a high volume of suitable applications, so we encourage all candidates to apply as soon as possible.