Senior HR Business Partner

Arriva UK Bus Limited; Thurmaston; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

None

Job summary

Arriva UK Bus Limited is seeking a Senior HR Business Partner to join the People team and drive the people strategy across the Midlands region. You will advise senior operational leaders, shape organisational design, lead change programmes and develop talent and leadership capabilities to support growth.

You’ll deliver an expert HR service, manage complex employee relations matters, and collaborate with Reward, Learning & Development, and Recruitment to provide integrated people solutions across

Qualifications

• Significant HR experience in a large, operationally focused organisation.
• Senior HR Business Partner or equivalent strategic HR leadership role.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and employee relations best practice.
• Experience leading organisational change, restructuring and transformation programmes.
• Track record in talent management, organisational development and employee engagement.
• Excellent stakeholder management to influence senior leaders.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with data-driven decision making.
• CIPD Level 7 qualification desirable; degree in HR or related discipline desirable.

Responsibilities

• Partner with senior operational leaders to develop and implement HR strategies aligned to regional objectives.
• Provide expert guidance on organisational design, workforce planning and change management.
• Lead complex employee relations cases ensuring fair, compliant outcomes.
• Support organisational change, restructuring and transformation programmes.
• Drive talent acquisition, succession planning, retention and leadership development.
• Champion employee engagement and foster an inclusive, high-performing culture.
• Use HR metrics to identify trends, manage risk and recommend improvements.
• Collaborate with Reward, Learning & Development, and Recruitment to deliver integrated solutions.
• Ensure compliance with employment legislation and company policies.

Skills

Strategic HR leadership

Employee relations

Organisational design

Talent management

Stakeholder management

Data-driven decision making

Education

CIPD Level 7

Degree in Human Resources or related discipline

Job description

At Arriva UK Bus, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We're looking for an experienced and commercially minded Senior HR Business Partner to join our People team and play a key role in delivering our people strategy across our Midlands region. Reporting to the HR People Operations Director, you'll act as a trusted advisor to senior operational leaders, helping to drive business performance through effective people strategies, organisational development, employee engagement, and operational excellence. This is an exciting opportunity for a strategic HR professional who thrives in a fast-paced operational environment and is passionate about building high-performing teams and creating positive workplace cultures.

The Role As Senior HR Business Partner, you'll work closely with senior leaders to ensure our people agenda supports business goals and future growth. You'll lead and support key people initiatives, provide expert guidance on complex employee relations matters, and play a central role in organisational change and transformation programmes. You'll also be instrumental in developing leadership capability, driving talent and succession planning activities, and ensuring the delivery of a professional, customer‑focused HR service across the region.

What You'll Be Doing

• Partnering with senior operational leaders to develop and implement HR strategies that support regional and business objectives.
• Providing expert advice on organisational design, workforce planning, talent management, employee relations, and change management.
• Leading complex employee relations cases, ensuring fair, consistent, and legally compliant outcomes.
• Supporting organisational change, restructuring, and transformation programmes.
• Driving talent acquisition, succession planning, retention, and leadership development initiatives.
• Championing employee engagement activities and fostering an inclusive, high‑performing culture.
• Using people data and HR metrics to identify trends, manage risk, and recommend improvements.
• Collaborating with specialist HR teams including Reward, Learning & Development, and Recruitment to deliver integrated people solutions.
• Ensuring compliance with employment legislation, company policies, and HR best practice.
• Promoting Arriva's values and supporting the continuous improvement of people processes across the business.

About You

• Significant HR experience gained within a large, complex, and operationally focused organisation.
• Proven success in a Senior HR Business Partner or equivalent strategic HR leadership role.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and employee relations best practice.
• Experience leading organisational change, restructuring, and transformation programmes.
• A track record of delivering successful talent management, organisational development, and employee engagement initiatives.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence, challenge, and coach senior leaders.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to use data to support decision‑making.
• CIPD Level 7 qualification (or equivalent experience) is highly desirable.
• A degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related discipline is desirable.

Why Join Arriva?

At Arriva, you'll have the opportunity to make a real impact on our people and our business. You'll work alongside experienced leaders, contribute to key transformation initiatives, and help shape the future of a leading public transport organisation. If you're a strategic HR professional who enjoys partnering with the business to drive performance and deliver positive change, we'd love to hear from you.

Arriva is a leading provider of passenger transport across Europe, employing around 34,400 people and delivering around 1.6 billion passenger journeys. With buses, trains, coaches, trams, waterbuses, bike‑sharing systems, on‑demand transport solutions and a rolling stock leasing company, Arriva proudly connects people and communities safely, reliably and sustainably across 11 countries, delivering these services in a better way, every day. The activities of Arriva are divided into four business units: UK Bus, UK Trains, The Netherlands and Mainland Europe. Arriva has passenger transport operations in the Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom, and also operates a rolling stock leasing company in Romania.