HR Business Partner

About the job

Key information

Location: Based at Service Headquarters, Exeter – work location can be flexible on agreement with Line Manager. Expectation is that you will need to work from a Service location for at least 2 days per week.

Contract: Permanent, Full Time (37 hours per week)

Salary: Starting at £44,253 rising annually to £47,665

What will I be doing?

Help Shape the Future of Our Workforce.

Join Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, England’s largest non-metropolitan Fire and Rescue Service, and play a key role in delivering a modern, inclusive and high performing people service that supports the workforce.

We are seeking an experienced and motivated HR Business Partner to join our HR Business Partnering team.

About the role:

As an HR Business Partner, you will support the delivery of our People Strategy by partnering with managers and teams across the Service. Acting as a trusted advisor, strategic partner and critical friend, you will provide expert HR guidance on a wide range of people matters, helping managers make informed decisions and enabling positive workforce outcomes.

In addition to your business partnering responsibilities, you will take a lead role in one of the team’s key areas of focus:

• Policy and Procedures
• Casework
• Change and Trade Union Relations
• Management Development
• Job Evaluation

Key responsibilities:

Strategic HR Partnership and Policy Development:

You will:

• Provide proactive, high-quality HR advice and guidance that supports the People Strategy, workforce plans and Service objectives.
• Build effective partnerships with managers and senior leaders, promoting consistency, fairness and best practice across people processes.
• Support organisational change projects, restructures, reviews, reorganisations, redundancies and contractual changes.
• Lead the review and development of HR policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with legislation and organisational need.
• Contribute to Service-wide projects, providing professional HR expertise and insight.

Employee Relations and Case Management:

You will:

• Manage complex employee relations cases, including disciplinary, grievance, capability and long–term sickness matters.
• Provide HR support and advice throughout formal hearings and meetings.
• Ensure policies and procedures are applied fairly, consistently and in line with legislation and Service expectations.
• Analyse HR Data and trends to identify opportunities for improvement and support informed decision making.
• Maintain positive and constructive relationships with Trade Unions, Service representatives, Speak Up Guardians and Staff Networks.
• Workforce Planning and Talent Management:

You will:

• Support workforce planning, succession planning and talent management activities across operational and professional services teams.
• Work with managers to identify capability requirements and develop plans to meet future workforce needs.
• Provide guidance on Job Evaluation processes, including reviewing role requirements and developing job descriptions.
• Partner with operational management teams on workforce-related matters, including working patterns and secondary contracts.
• Employee Wellbeing and Development:

You will:

• Promote a positive, inclusive workplace that supports employee engagement and wellbeing.
• Work closely with Health and Wellbeing colleagues to facilitate appropriate workplace support and return-to-work arrangements.
• Coach and support managers to build confidence and capability in managing people issues.
• Research, develop and deliver training to support management development and policy implementation.

What kind of experience or qualifications do I need?

To be eligible to apply you must hold:

CIPD Level 7, or equivalent experience and/or qualification demonstrating a theoretical understanding of Human Resource Management.

What is in it for me?

At Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service, your work will make a real difference to the communities we serve. In addition, we offer:

• Flexible working options.
• Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Excellent annual leave entitlement
• Ongoing professional development opportunities.
• Health and wellbeing support, including gym access, physiotherapy and counselling services.
• Family friendly policies.
• Blue Light Card membership and associated discounts.
• A supportive, collaborative and inclusive working environment.

Supporting documents and information

Interested?

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact:

Renee Naughton – Senior HR Business Partner, via 07929 664862 or rnaughton@dsfire.gov.uk.

If you have the skills, experience and enthusiasm to succeed as our new HR Business Partner, we’d love to hear from you.

Apply today to help us build an outstanding workforce that supports the communities of Devon and Somerset.

Closing Date: 2359hrs Sunday 11 October 2026.

Application Requirements:

You will be required to complete an application form and submit a document evidencing how you meet the following essential criteria from the Job Description and Person Specification.

We are not able to shortlist for interview from a CV, so please evidence the following in full, demonstrating how you meet each one.

1. Good working knowledge and understanding of day-to-day HR and ER activities and up to date knowledge of employment law.
2. Recent experience of working in a complex HR environment as an HR Business Partner, in particular experience of employee relations and case work.
3. Experience of providing innovative HR support and advice in a challenging and fast paced environment.
4. Experience in workforce planning including talent management processes, specifically including Selection & Assessment and Succession Planning.
5. CIPD Level 7 (or equivalent experience / other qualification evidencing theoretical underpinning in Strategic Human Resource Management).
6. A proven ability to plan, prioritise and organise own workload effectively in a busy environment.

To help you complete this part of the application form please find attached below the document “Essential Criteria for HR Business Partner Application” for you to download and complete with your evidence in relation to the above criteria. You can then upload this document when completing your application form.

Please note there is a maximum word count of 2000 words (excluding titles) applied to your evidence document.

Apply on the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service  website

Apply now