Assistant HR Business Partner

Assistant HR Business Partner

Location: South West (Hybrid working - 2-3 days office‑based)

Travel: Regular travel across the South of England required

Employment Type: Full‑Time, Permanent

Working Hours: Monday - Friday

What's in it for you…

We believe in looking after our people, and it shows. When you join Ipsum, you're not just taking a job - you're starting a career with real support behind it.

25 days annual leave plus bank holidays with the option to buy more

Hybrid working

Group Personal Pension Plan

Car allowance

Career development & progression with the opportunity to earn professional qualifications

24/7 access to a virtual GP and Mental health support & counselling services

Cycle to Work scheme

Discount club - supermarkets, phone bills, gyms & more!

Life assurance cover

Long service recognition

Active local social committees

Regular social events

About the role…

As an Assistant HR Business Partner, you will play a pivotal role in translating the organisation's people strategy into effective, commercially focused people plans across the South of England within the Water & Infrastructure division.

Working closely with the Head of HR and divisional leadership teams, you will act as a trusted advisor, challenger, and enabler of business performance through people. You will be accountable for delivering the divisional people agenda in line with the wider HR strategy set by the HR Director, driving workforce effectiveness, leadership capability, employee engagement, and organisational change. The role also leads on people aspects of business growth activity, including acquisitions, TUPE transfers, and integration programmes, ensuring outcomes are compliant, well‑managed, and commercially effective.

As an Assistant HR Business Partner you will…

Deliver targeted workshops to enhance line manager capability across key areas including leadership, employee relations, and absence management.

Support and enable managers to take ownership of day-to-day people matters, building confidence in managing their teams effectively.

Champion employee engagement and positive relations through proactive collaboration with managers

Partner with Head of HR (Operations) to implement engagement action plans that drive performance

Embed PeopleHR across divisions to strengthen accountability and enable cultural change

Maintain real-time accuracy of operational data within PeopleHR

Coordinate with Head of HR (Operations) on TUPE, acquisitions, integration, restructuring, and redundancy

Coach managers on handling difficult conversations and resolving issues informally

Provide pragmatic, risk-aware HR advice to managers, escalating to Head of HR (Operations) when needed

Prepare monthly HR reports for senior leadership and board-level business reviews

Use HR metrics to generate insights and drive performance improvements across operational teams

About you…

We are looking for a confident and experienced Assistant HR Business Partner who thrives in a fast-paced, matrixed environment. Ideally, you'll bring experience from the utilities sector and have a strong grasp of employment law, with a proven track record of leading complex change projects such as restructures, TUPE, and variations to terms and conditions. You'll be comfortable building relationships at all levels, influencing stakeholders, and driving meaningful business impact through strategic HR initiatives.

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