We are looking for an experienced HR Manager who can deliver consistent, legally sound, and people-centred HR operations across the full employee lifecycle, working closely with the Head of HR to translate people strategy into everyday practice.
Acting as the first point of contact for employees and line managers, you will ensure the business runs compliantly, efficiently, and with care — freeing the Head of HR to focus on strategic priorities while maintaining full confidence that day-to-day HR is in safe hands.
Key Duties and
Responsibilities
- Talent Acquisition & Recruitment Administration
- Collaborate with department heads and the Head of HR to draft job descriptions, post listings, screen CVs, and coordinate the interview pipeline in line with the agreed recruitment strategy
- Manage the recruitment inbox and LinkedIn company page, ensuring a professional and responsive candidate experience
- Support the Head of HR on senior and specialist hiring as required
- Onboarding & Induction
- Coordinate the end-to-end onboarding and induction schedule for all new starters, including equipment setup, system access, and first-day logistics
- Deliver the company induction programme, ensuring new starters are welcomed, informed, and set up for success from day one
- Conduct early probation check-ins and flag any concerns to the Head of HR in a timely manner
- Guarantee that every new starter receives their Written Statement of Employment on or before their first day, in line with legal requirements
- Offboarding & Exit Management
- Coordinate the full offboarding process for all leavers including resignation acknowledgement, leaver documentation, and systems access removal
- Conduct exit interviews, calculate final holiday pay entitlements, and issue factual references within agreed timeframes
- Collate and report exit interview findings to the Head of HR to inform retention strategy and people analytics
- Employee Relations & Case Management
- Lead formal HR processes including disciplinary meetings, grievance hearings, and capability procedures, ensuring full compliance with the ACAS Code of Practice at every stage
- Author and maintain detailed records throughout ER cases including investigation notes, minutes, and outcome letters, ensuring a clear and defensible paper trail within the six-month employment tribunal window
- Act as the first point of contact for HR queries from employees and line managers, escalating complex, sensitive, or senior matters to the Head of HR promptly
- Coach and support mid-level managers on performance management and early-stage conflict resolution, reducing escalation risk and building management confidence across the business
- Legal Compliance & Policy
- Conduct, log, and track mandatory Home Office Right to Work checks for all incoming employees, ensuring full compliance and zero exposure to illegal working penalties
- Enforce UK GDPR compliance across all employee files, medical records, and applicant tracking systems
- Maintain and update the Employee Handbook annually, ensuring all sections reflect current UK employment law and are clearly communicated to employees
- Support the Head of HR in ensuring all HR policies, contracts, and documentation remain legally compliant and consistently applied across the business
- Manage the preparation and distribution of policy updates and employee communications under the direction of the Head of HRHRIS Management & People Data
- Own the accuracy and integrity of all employee records within the HRIS, ensuring data is current, complete, and audit-ready at all times
- Process all employee changes including promotions, salary updates, contract amendments, and leavers accurately and within agreed timeframes
- Deliver HRIS coaching and support to all employees, ensuring the system is understood and used consistently across the business
- Produce regular and ad hoc people data reports for the Head of HR to support strategic analytics and CEO reporting
- Absence, Health & Wellbeing
- Conduct return-to-work assessments following short and long-term sickness absence, evaluating capability and coordinating reasonable adjustments in line with the Head of HR's wellbeing framework
- Administer and accurately calculate statutory day-one rights for all employees including SSP, SMP, SPP, and shared parental leave
- Monitor absence data and flag patterns or concerns to the Head of HR for strategic review
- Payroll & Reward Administration
- Collate and coordinate monthly pay adjustments for submission to the external payroll team and Finance, ensuring accuracy for monthly HMRC PAYE processing
- Act as the first point of contact for employee pension enquiries and contribution changes, liaising with the pension provider as required
- Support the Head of HR during the annual compensation benchmarking and review process through data collation and letter preparation
- Qualifications, Skills and Knowledge
- Essential
- Proven experience of at least five years in a generalist HR Manager or Senior HR Advisor role
- Strong working knowledge of UK employment law including the ACAS Code of Practice, right to work legislation, GDPR, and statutory entitlements
- Experience leading formal ER processes end-to-end including disciplinaries, grievances, and capability hearings
- Confident and professional communicator at all levels, with the ability to handle sensitive matters with discretion
- High attention to detail with a track record of accurate HR administration and record-keeping
- Experience managing and maintaining an HRIS platform
- CIPD Level 5 qualified or equivalent demonstrable experience managing HR operations within a UK-based SMEDesirable
- Experience working in a 100 person business
- Ideally from a fashion/retail background
- Exposure to payroll coordination and liaison with external payroll providers
- Experience coaching or supporting line managers through people management challenges
- Company
Benefits
Competive SalaryCompany Sick PayEnhanced Maternity PayLong Service Recognition50% Employee Staff DiscountPlease send your CV with a cover letter to recruitment@damsonmadder.com
