People Advisor

Clifton College; West of England; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

Clifton College is seeking a proactive People Advisor to join the People Team and deliver an excellent colleague experience across the Clifton College Group.

You will provide expert HR advice across the full employee lifecycle, foster a positive and inclusive culture, and work with senior stakeholders to ensure compliant people practices in line with the College’s values. The role is office-based, five days a week, with a focus on safeguarding and data integrity.

Qualifications

• Must have CIPD Level 5 or equivalent HR experience.
• Strong generalist HR advisory and guidance across the employee lifecycle.
• Up-to-date knowledge of employment law and HR best practices; excellent communication.

Responsibilities

• Provide professional advice on employee relations matters including wellbeing, attendance, performance, conduct, probation and grievance cases.
• Coach managers to handle people matters in line with employment law and policies.
• Support recruitment and onboarding ensuring Safer Recruitment compliance.
• Maintain accurate employee records and safeguarding/ SCR compliance.
• Assist policy development, audits and compliance activities across the Group.
• Identify learning needs and help deliver training and workshops.
• Support People projects, strategy initiatives and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Produce people data, reports and insights for decision-making.
• Build relationships with colleagues, managers and stakeholders across sites.

Skills

General HR advisory

Employee relations

Stakeholder management

Employment law knowledge

Communication skills

Proactive problem solving

Education

CIPD Level 5

Tools

HRIS

People data analysis

Job description

We are looking to appoint a proactive and people-focused People Advisor to join our People Team and support the delivery of an exceptional colleague experience across the Clifton College Group. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced HR professional to provide expert advice and guidance across the full employee lifecycle, helping to foster a positive, inclusive and high-performing workplace culture. The successful candidate will work closely with senior stakeholders and colleagues across the Group, building strong relationships and ensuring people practices are compliant, consistent and aligned with our values.

Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Providing professional advice and guidance on employee relations matters including wellbeing, attendance, performance, conduct, probation and grievance cases
• Supporting and coaching managers to confidently manage people matters in line with employment legislation and Group policies
• Promoting colleague wellbeing initiatives and contributing to a positive and inclusive workplace culture
• Supporting end-to-end recruitment and onboarding processes, ensuring compliance with Safer Recruitment requirements
• Maintaining accurate employee records and ensuring compliance with safeguarding and employment requirements, including the Single Central Record (SCR)
• Supporting policy development, audits and compliance activities to ensure best practice across the Group
• Identifying learning and development needs and supporting the delivery of training and workshops
• Supporting the delivery of People projects, strategy initiatives and continuous improvement activities
• Producing people data, reports and insights to support informed decision-making
• Building positive working relationships with colleagues, managers and stakeholders across multiple sites
• Maintaining the highest standards of confidentiality, professionalism and customer service at all times

The ideal candidate will be CIPD Level 5 qualified, or able to demonstrate equivalent relevant experience, with substantial experience providing generalist HR advice and guidance. They will possess up-to-date knowledge of employment law and HR best practice, excellent communication and relationship-building skills, and a proactive approach to problem solving. Experience using HR systems and analysing people data would be advantageous, as would experience supporting people-related projects and system implementations.

Please note that this is a fully office-based role, and the successful candidate will be required to work from the office five days per week.

Clifton College is part of Clifton College Education Group, and is a leading independent day and boarding school educating over 1,200 pupils aged 3 to 18 years. The College offers day education, flexi and full boarding and is a proudly inclusive and supportive community, with over 40 nationalities represented.

Founded in 1862, the College provides an exceptional all-round education that successfully combines a rich heritage with modern state-of-the-art facilities. Located in one of the most beautiful suburbs of the vibrant city of Bristol, we are proud to offer the finest all-round education based on the highest academic and pastoral standards, and a diverse range of first-class co‑curricular activities.

For further details regarding this role, please see the attached job description.

Closing date: 08/10/2026

Early applications are encouraged, as the College reserves the right to interview and possibly appoint candidates before the closing date.

Clifton College is committed to creating and promoting a diverse and inclusive workforce that better reflects our community. Applications are welcome from all suitably qualified candidates regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage / civil partnerships. We particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. Please note, we require candidates to be at least 18 years of age for all roles apart from our lifeguard positions where candidates are required to be 16+ with the relevant qualifications.

We are committed to the safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All staff and volunteers are required to share this commitment. Safeguarding is underpinned by a range of policies and procedures which encourage and promote safe working practice across the College. We make sure that all our staff are trained and supervised to a high standard so they can provide safe, effective practice.

All posts are subject to a safer recruitment process which includes the disclosure of criminal records and barring checks, scrutiny of employment history, robust referencing and other vetting checks. Due to the nature of the role, you will need to complete an enhanced criminal record disclosure (DBS check) and undergo our pre-employment screening. As a regulated sector we are required to ask for references prior to interview, by applying for this role you are consenting for us to contact your referees. Please note that this role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 therefore you will be asked to disclose all previous convictions not exempt under amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020.