People Advisor (Central)

Reports to: HR Business Partner (Central)

Location: West London – currently operating an agile working policy with two core days (Mon and Weds) in the office

Contract: Permanent

Pattern: Full Time (standard hours 9am – 5.30pm)

Closing date: 03/03/2023 at 10am

Interviews: Interviews will be arranged as suitable candidates are identified, so early application is strongly advised

Start date: 27/03/2023

Salary: £35,000 to £40,000 (depending on experience)

About the role:

Working as a key member of the People Team, the remit of the role will be to provide a proactive HR advice to Ark employees across our Central teams. You will be supporting the People Business Partner with the delivery of HR queries, advice and associated administration, supporting the administration of our new starter and leaver end to end processing as well managing employee lifecycle forms, reporting, monitoring, audit and policy management and reviews.

Key Responsibilities:

• Delivering an effective, efficient, and engaging first point of contact HR service, in line with Ark’s Policies and own ER knowledge, to all employees of Ark including associated HR administration (including note taking, preparing letters and advising during meetings)
• Build and maintain strong stakeholder relationships with the People Business Partner and Ark’s employees at all levels
• Support the People Business Partner with design, development and maintenance of effective Ark Intranet Resources with the end user at the forefront of design
• Support Business Partner with restructures and TUPE transfer processes
• Lead on the review of Central People policies, ensuring these are regularly reviewed and updated and that any recommended amendments to the policies (whether process or entitlement related) are clearly communicated to the Central Business Partner for approval
• Supporting the Central Business Partner and People Operations Team with the effective delivery of the training activities to the Central team
• Develop meaningful data analysis and insight to review effectiveness of areas of own responsibility, always seeking ways to improve practices
• Collate Exit Interview feedback for common themes following the meetings
• Keep abreast of HR best practice, legislative changes and new developments to continuously develop and improve knowledge and skills and broaden the understanding of inter-relationships between the range of human resources activities and functions

Key Requirements:

• CIPD Level 5 qualified
• Commitment to Continuous Professional Development in HR field
• Experience working within a HR function, with exposure to all areas of HR; Recruitment, Learning & Development, Payroll, Systems & Employee Relations
• Experience with delivering a high standard of customer service
• Up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the ACAS Code and statutory employment laws (working time directive, minimum wage and family friendly rights as a minimum) A wider knowledge of HR best practice advantageous but not essential if willing to work towards this
• Demonstrable skill at carrying out attention to detail activities, when using Excel

View the full job description and person specification here

About Ark

We’re an international charity, transforming lives through education. We exist to give every young person, regardless of their background, a great education and real choices in life. In the UK, we’re a network of 39 schools, educating around 28,500 pupils in areas where we can make the biggest difference and we’re recognised as one of the highest achieving academy groups in the country. We want to change the lives of children everywhere, not just in our own schools. So, we create and incubate Ventures designed not only to help pupils in Ark schools, but also to improve education systems.

You’ll be joining a group of like-minded, ambitious individuals who work collaboratively and are all committed to our core mission, that every child has the potential to succeed. Having just celebrated our 20^th anniversary, we are shaping our goals for the next 20 and there has never been a more exciting time to join us.

Benefits

• 27 days annual leave plus bank holidays, rising with each year of service and full office closure between Christmas and New Year
• Hybrid working, with currently two days a week in our state-of-the-art office in West London working alongside colleagues
• Regular social events, monthly free breakfast, and daily fruit
• A flexible approach to working with understanding and consideration for work life balance and personal commitments
• As an Ark employee, you will have the opportunity to be part of the TPT (The Pension Trust) scheme, our workplace pension scheme where we make an 11% contribution; you are not required to contribute towards this scheme unless you choose to. Depending on your role you may also be entitled to LGPS which is a defined benefit scheme where you contribute a percentage based on how much you earn (as do we) in exchange for a guaranteed amount in your pension pot every year
• Access to high-quality professional learning throughout your career, offering both face-to-face sessions and a bespoke online learning platform
• Access to Ark Rewards scheme offering savings from over 3,000 major retailers, interest-free loans available for season tickets or a bike, gym discounts offering up to 40% off your local gym and free eye tests

How to Apply:

Apply with a CV and cover letter on our online recruitment portal. Applications to be submitted by Friday 3^rd March 2023 at 10am but please note: we will be reviewing applications on an on-going basis and this advert may close earlier than advertised depending on the level of response.

This ATS application form should take no longer 20 minutes to complete. At any time, you can pause, save, and log back in. If you have any difficulty with meeting the deadline for application, please contact recruitment@arkonline.org

Interviews will be arranged as suitable candidates are identified, so early application is strongly advised.

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.  

Ark requires all employees to undertake an enhanced DBS check. You are required, before appointment, to disclose any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Non-disclosure may lead to termination of employment. However, disclosure of a criminal background will not necessarily debar you from employment - this will depend upon the nature of the offence(s) and when they occurred. To read more about Ark’s safer recruitment process, please click this link.