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Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Assistant People and Culture Business Partner

The closing date is 25 January 2026

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Job summary

NSFT is seeking an Assistant People and Culture Business Partner to deliver high-quality, proactive business partnering to our teams. This is an exciting opportunity to support the delivery of our People and Culture Strategy, working collaboratively to ensure our workforce is empowered, valued, and supported. This post is based at Wedgwood House, Hardwick Lane, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk and is fixed term to cover maternity leave until 30th September 2026.

Previous applicants need not apply

As an Assistant People and Culture Business Partner, you will:

  • Provide specialist advice and support to managers and teams within a designated locality, helping to deliver quality patient-focused services and achieve business goals.
  • Support the planning and implementation of people and culture strategies, including workforce modernisation, role redesign, and organisational development projects.
  • Champion best practice in human resource management, coaching managers in excellent people management and supporting the implementation of the People and Culture Strategy.
  • Manage a caseload of complex employee relations work, providing proactive advice and ensuring compliance with policy and legislation.
  • Lead and supervise designated People and Culture Advisors, providing professional leadership, guidance, and development.
  • Analyse workforce data and staff feedback to identify issues and develop creative, effective interventions.

Main duties of the job

What We're Looking For

  • CIPD qualified (postgraduate diploma) or working towards CIPD qualification, or equivalent level of knowledge and experience.
  • Experience advising managers on a wide range of people and culture operational issues (e.g., grievance, disciplinary, absence management).
  • Strong consultancy, customer service, and organisational skills, with the ability to manage a varied workload and conflicting deadlines.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate business needs into creative solutions.
  • Comprehensive knowledge of employment law, equality and diversity, and best practice in people and culture.
  • Friendly, approachable, and confident, with a positive 'can do' attitude and a commitment to collaborative working.

Join a forward-thinking organisation where your expertise will help shape a culture of compassion, inclusion, and continuous improvement. You'll have the opportunity to develop your skills, support others, and make a real difference for our staff and service users.

About us

Here at NSFT we pride ourselves on being a welcoming, talented, friendly and supportive team who like nothing better than sharing experiences and learning from each other. In addition to ongoing training and development opportunities, we are committed to providing an environment in which you can thrive.

Why work for us? We have challenges as a Trust, but we have ambitious aspirations, are pushing ahead with exciting transformation work and we need dedicated individuals to support us on our journey. We have strong, established professional networks coupled with an exceptional leadership team who will ensure you are truly cared for and cared about.

Why Norfolk and Suffolk? The people here are warm and welcoming, you'll never be far from the beautiful coastline or Broads National Park. We're an hour and a half away from London and have an international airport in Norwich too. Our villages, towns and cities are packed full of history, independent cafes, shops and theatres. We have excellent shopping, eating out, top ranking schooling and affordable house prices too.

Details

Date posted

07 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£38,682 to £46,580 a year Pro rata

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

8 months

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

246-COR7599632-A

Job locations

Wedgwood House, Bury St Edmunds

Hardwick Lane

Bury St Edmunds

IP33 2QZ


Job description

Job responsibilities

Please find attached our Job Description and Person Specification for more detail on your Key Accountabilities, then if you feel you have what it takes to make a difference in your local communities, click APPLY!

Interview dates are yet to be set; you will be contacted via email and invited to book a time. These emails may go to your SPAM, so please keep checking all your emails if applying.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please find attached our Job Description and Person Specification for more detail on your Key Accountabilities, then if you feel you have what it takes to make a difference in your local communities, click APPLY!

Interview dates are yet to be set; you will be contacted via email and invited to book a time. These emails may go to your SPAM, so please keep checking all your emails if applying.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) qualified (equivalent to post graduate diploma) or working towards
  • CIPD qualification or equivalent level of knowledge and experience

Experience

Essential

  • Demonstrable experience of advising managers on a wide range of people and culture operational issues e.g. grievance, disciplinary, absence management, etc

Desirable

  • Use of Electronic Staff Record (ESR)

Knowledge

Essential

  • A comprehensive knowledge of Employment law, professional People developments and best practice
  • Good understanding of equality and diversity issues and commitment to delivering the Trust's People and Culture Strategy objectives, as well as agreed local and national commitments
Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) qualified (equivalent to post graduate diploma) or working towards
  • CIPD qualification or equivalent level of knowledge and experience

Experience

Essential

  • Demonstrable experience of advising managers on a wide range of people and culture operational issues e.g. grievance, disciplinary, absence management, etc

Desirable

  • Use of Electronic Staff Record (ESR)

Knowledge

Essential

  • A comprehensive knowledge of Employment law, professional People developments and best practice
  • Good understanding of equality and diversity issues and commitment to delivering the Trust's People and Culture Strategy objectives, as well as agreed local and national commitments

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Address

Wedgwood House, Bury St Edmunds

Hardwick Lane

Bury St Edmunds

IP33 2QZ


Employer's website

https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust

Address

Wedgwood House, Bury St Edmunds

Hardwick Lane

Bury St Edmunds

IP33 2QZ


Employer's website

https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/Pages/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

People & Culture Business Partner

Vickie Miller

vickie.miller@nsft.nhs.uk

Details

Date posted

07 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£38,682 to £46,580 a year Pro rata

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

8 months

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

246-COR7599632-A

Job locations

Wedgwood House, Bury St Edmunds

Hardwick Lane

Bury St Edmunds

IP33 2QZ


Supporting documents

Privacy notice

Norfolk & Suffolk Foundation NHS Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)