Recruitment Manager

Somerset Passenger Solutions; Ipswich; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension 5% matched

National retailer discounts

Free local bus travel

Rail travel for you and family

Life Assurance

Health Benefits

24/7 Employee Assistance Programme

Annual pay review

Job summary

Somerset Passenger Solutions seeks an experienced Recruitment Manager to lead the People Team and deliver the People Strategy. The role focuses on driver recruitment to support growth, client delivery, and a positive workplace culture.

You will oversee employee relations, investigations, disciplinary cases, and absence management while ensuring recruitment keeps pace with business expansion.

Qualifications

• Proven experience delivering high-volume, in-house recruitment using an ATS, with knowledge of recruitment best practices and legislation.
• Experience managing employee relations cases, payroll, and HR systems.
• Up-to-date knowledge of employment law and CIPD Level 3 qualification.
• Strong IT skills and experience with recruitment advertising and attraction strategies.

Responsibilities

• Lead recruitment team to deliver establishment targets and promote personality-first hiring.
• Collaborate with the People Director to design an effective recruitment strategy.
• Ensure forecasted establishment figures align with recruitment pipelines for drivers.
• Oversee end-to-end recruitment processes including job descriptions and compliance.
• Manage ER cases in line with employment law and SPS policies.
• Chair weekly ER case meetings with People and Operations teams.
• Coordinate training with Learning and Development for managers.

Skills

High-volume recruitment

ATS knowledge

Employment law

HR systems

CIPD Level 3

Full UK driving licence

Flexible working hours

Education

Equivalent to A level or Level 3 education

Tools

Microsoft Office

Workday

Job description

Reporting to the People Director, the Recruitment Manager will play a key role in delivering the People Strategy and building a positive, inclusive workplace culture.

This is a hands-on leadership role, with an initial focus on driver recruitment, ensuring the business attracts, hires and retains high-quality talent to support growth and client delivery. You'll lead the People Team, drive recruitment activity, and oversee employee relations, including investigations, disciplinary and grievance cases, and absence management.

In the first two years, you'll focus on embedding robust employee relations processes while ensuring recruitment keeps pace with business growth.

Duties include:

• Leading and managing the recruitment team to deliver the required establishment, selecting for personality first.
• Working with the People Directorto createan effective recruitment strategy to meet the business needs and support the People Strategy.
• Working with the operations team to ensure that we have up to date forecasted establishment figures and that the recruitment pipeline meets these requirements in terms of any increase in driver numbers.
• Ensuring an effective and robust process of recruitment from start to finish, including supporting department managers to produce effective job descriptions and ensuring they are fit for purpose.
• A fair and consistent process in line with all legislation.
• All Right to Work, DVLA, Safety Critical Medicals and other critical recruitment processes being followed.
• Adhering to allSPSpolicies and procedures at all times.
• The Applicant Tracking System and on-boarding section ofWorkday.
• EnsuringEmployee Relations (ER) cases are handled in a consistent, fair, andtimelymanner, adhering to employment law and regulatory requirements
• Chairing weekly ER Case meetings with People and Operations Management teams to ensure alignment and compliance with SPS policies and industrial regulations
• Conducting weekly reviews of long-term absence cases to ensure all timescales arein accordance withboth legislation and SPS policies
• Working with the Learning and Development Manager to ensure all managers receive the necessary training to perform their roles effectively
• Conducting regular reviews of HR processes and policies to ensure theyremaincompliant with current employment legislation and industry regulations
• Getting out into the community to promote SPS as a great employer and talent developer.
• Working with the Communications team to find inventive ways of advertising roles to attract great people.

Criteria:

• Proven experience delivering high-volume, in-house recruitment using an Applicant Tracking System (ATS), with excellent knowledge of recruitment best practice and employment legislation.
• Experience managing employee relations cases, Trade Union relationships, payroll, and HR systems.
• Up-to-date knowledge of employment law and a minimum CIPD Level 3 qualification.
• Strong IT skills, including Microsoft Office, and experience using recruitment advertising and attraction strategies.
• Full UK driving licence.
• Flexible approach to working hours to support a 24/7 operation.
• Experience of managing recruitment within a complex business environment.
• Occupational Health management
• Colleague Survey implementation and outcomes
• Equivalent to A level or Level 3 education.
• Knowledge of the transport sector.

Summary of benefits:

• Pension – 5% contributory pension matched by us
• National Retailer discount scheme
• Free local bus travel & significantly reduced rail travel for you & family members
• Life Assurance
• Health Benefits
• 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme
• Annual pay review

Please note - All employees must be willing to undergo Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) and obtain a DBS certificate. This standard is designed to provide a level of assurance as to the honesty, integrity and values of individuals who are required to work at a Nuclear Licenced Site, or who may have access to sensitive nuclear information.

Somerset Passenger Solutions welcomes applications from a diverse range of candidates regardless of background, gender, race, religious beliefs, disability, sexual orientation or age.