Senior Human Resources Business Partner

Network Rail; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 66,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading transport infrastructure organization is looking for a Senior HR Business Partner to enhance workforce capability and engagement. Based in London, this role requires proven HRBP experience and the ability to leverage data for people strategy. The successful candidate will partner with senior leaders, champion diversity, resolve complex ER issues, and lead workforce planning initiatives. A competitive salary and hybrid working environment offer flexibility and supportive benefits, including substantial travel discounts.

Benefits

Heavily subsidised season tickets

Private healthcare

Annual performance-based bonus

Public sector boosted pension

Qualifications

• Proven experience as an HR Business Partner in a complex, unionized environment.
• Strong expertise in resolving escalated, complex ER cases.
• Comfort with HRIS and people analytics dashboards.
• Experience delivering inclusive outcomes and improving representation.
• Expertise in strategic workforce planning.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Knowledge of leading organizational change initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with senior leaders to deliver a comprehensive People Plan.
• Utilize HR and operational data to drive actions and priorities.
• Champion Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in all HR decisions.
• Provide guidance on complex employee relations matters.
• Design and implement effective workforce planning strategies.
• Coach leaders to enhance management capability.

Skills

HRBP experience

Strong ER expertise

Advanced data literacy

Delivering inclusive people outcomes

Strategic workforce planning

Coaching and influencing

Technical HR knowledge

Leadership in organisational change

Education

CIPD qualification or equivalent experience

Post graduate HR qualification

Job description

About the role

Are you ready to influence how our people strategy powers operational excellence? We’re seeking a Senior HR Business Partner who brings insight, curiosity, and confidence, someone who can work collaboratively with HR colleagues in SER and Network Rail. You’ll work closely with senior leaders in your business area to deliver a people plan that strengthens performance, builds capability, and supports a culture where everyone feels they belong. Based at London Blackfriars, with regular time across the route, you’ll take ownership of the People Plan for your business area using data, customer insight and strong relationships to focus on what matters most. You’ll have the autonomy to make a real difference, backed by a collaborative HR team that shares your commitment to doing the right thing. We offer hybrid working (3 days on site), heavily subsidised season tickets and up to 75% leisure travel for you and your family.

Responsibilities

• Partner with senior leaders to shape and deliver a joined‑up People Plan that improves performance, capability and engagement across your business area.
• Turn HR and operational data into action. Use people analytics to prioritise interventions, set targets and evidence impact.
• Champion EDI – embed EDI in every people decision, shaping inclusive hiring, progression, development and employee experience. Use data to identify barriers, track progress and coach leaders to role‑model inclusive behaviours.
• Lead on complex ER matters and escalations, providing calm, expert guidance. Partner closely with ER specialists, managers and trade union representatives to achieve timely, fair and sustainable outcomes.
• Act as a change agent. Design and deliver people solutions that enable safe, efficient operations, including organisational redesign, consultation, redundancy and TUPE where required.
• Lead on strategic workforce planning to ensure our people, skills and capability align with the needs of a safe, reliable and customer‑focused railway.
• Build robust pipelines, succession plans and development pathways. Coach leaders to grow capability and retain critical skills in a tight labour market.
• Work across Centres of Expertise, HR Shared Services and fellow HRBPs to improve policies, services and the employee journey end to end.
• Own a data‑driven People Plan aligned to business goals and safety obligations.
• Use people analytics and customer insight to spot trends, prioritise action and evidence ROI.
• Lead and advise on complex ER casework and escalations, ensuring procedural fairness and consistency.
• Build constructive trade union relationships and negotiate solutions in partnership with the ER team.
• Lead on strategic workforce planning across SER (Kent).
• Design and implement change programmes (restructures, consultation, redundancy) with appropriate risk management and stakeholder buy‑in.
• Coaching senior leaders to lift people management capability and embed inclusive, high‑performance behaviours.
• Partner with Centres of Expertise to enhance policy, reward, L&D and talent processes that remove barriers and improve outcomes for under‑represented groups.
• Working with HR Shared Services to streamline processes and continuously improve employee experience.

Qualifications

• Proven HRBP experience partnering senior leaders in a complex, unionised environment.
• Strong ER expertise with a track record resolving escalated, complex cases.
• Advanced data literacy (comfortable with HRIS/people analytics dashboards) and the ability to translate insight into action.
• Demonstrable experience delivering inclusive people outcomes and improving representation, progression and belonging.
• Strategic workforce planning expertise.
• Credible coach and influencer with excellent communication and stakeholder skills.
• Deep technical HR knowledge and CIPD qualification (or equivalent experience).
• Experience leading organisation change (e.g. redesign, consultation, redundancy, TUPE).

Desired

• MCIPD / post graduate HR qualification.
• Familiarity with project management approaches for complex, cross‑functional change.

Working pattern & benefits

• Hybrid: 3 days per week on site (London Blackfriars and across the route).
• Travel: heavily subsidised season tickets and up to 75% leisure travel for you and your family.

Salary and benefits

• Salary: £55,596 to £65,966 plus £3,270 location allowance.
• 75% off rail travel for you and your partner.
• Public sector boosted pension.
• Private healthcare.
• Annual performance‑based bonus.

Industry context

The Railway Industry is undergoing a once in a generation transformation as we move towards Great British Railways (GBR). Across the network, publicly owned train operators and Network Rail are coming together to form integrated leadership teams focused on driving up performance, improving the customer experience and growing revenue. Network Rail's Kent Route is the first in the UK to integrate with Southern Trains, creating a single, unified business unit: Southern Railways (SER). This is your opportunity to help shape what the future of a truly integrated railway looks like.