People and Culture Partner at Wood Finishes Direct - Folkestone Hours: Ideally full-time (37.5 hours per week) Part-time 30 hours per week may be considered for the right candidate Location: Folkestone – On-site Some occasional flexibility to work from home by agreement will be provided Reports to: Chief Operating Officer Salary: £40 - £45K per year About the Role We are looking for a capable and confident People and Culture Partner to join us at a pivotal stage in our business journey. With over 60 employees and growing, we are now at the size where we need a dedicated people professional to take the lead on all things people and culture, balancing day-to-day coordination with the chance to grow and develop into a more senior role over time. This is a hands-on and developmental role. You will be the go-to for managers and employees alike, and will take responsibility for the daily delivery of people support across the business. We want someone who brings energy, maturity and a calm head to all HR related activities, someone who is just as comfortable dealing with a disciplinary as they are shaping an induction or rolling out a new HR system. This is a fantastic opportunity to make your mark and help shape our people practices for the future. Key Responsibilities Attraction & Recruitment Support managers throughout the end-to-end recruitment process, from writing job adverts and interviewing to onboarding Ensure all recruitment activity aligns with our goal of low-cost, high-value hiring, minimising reliance on recruitment agencies Promote our culture and values to help attract great people Work to continuously improve recruitment practices and candidate experience based on regular candidate feedback People Management & Culture Act as a trusted advisor to managers across the business, helping them lead, engage, and develop their teams Work with the Senior Leadership Team to continuously evolve and deliver the people related strategic plan Contribute to attracting and retaining talent by helping shape and promote a great place to work Collaborate on the development of a compelling and sustainable reward strategy Work closely with leadership to embed our values and create a positive, inclusive culture Champion wellbeing, employee engagement, and staff development initiatives Support and coach line managers to hold effective one to one’s, performance conversations, and team meetings Employee Relations Handle employee relations matters confidently and fairly, from informal chats to formal processes (e.g. disciplinary, grievance, capability) Maintain up-to-date knowledge of employment law and ensure policies and practices are compliant Work with our strategic outsourced HR partners on more complex or high-risk cases when needed HR Operations & Processes Support managers to own the employee lifecycle from recruitment and onboarding through to leavers and exit interviews Manage and maintain employee records, contracts and HR systems; always looking for ways to automate and streamline processes and empower managers to be self-sufficient Ensure all HR processes are efficient (using automation wherever possible), compliant and support good decision-making HR Systems & Reporting Continuously improve our existing HR system to support automation, streamline processes and provide management with meaningful data and insights Launch and monitor annual processes that give managers the autonomy and tools to take greater ownership (e.g. performance reviews, absence tracking) Learning, Development & Progression Support the development of training plans and career paths across the business Identify opportunities to utilise the Apprenticeship Levy and government-funded training schemes to maximise learning and development across the business Help managers identify and address skills gaps Support with apprenticeships or external training coordination where needed About You We are looking for someone who is pragmatic, approachable, and resilient. You will need to be confident working in a fast-moving environment, able to juggle competing priorities, and remain calm when dealing with tricky situations. You will also need to bring the credibility to influence managers; and the care and attention to support individual employees fairly. Essential skills and experience to be successful: Solid HR generalist experience, ideally within a similar-sized SME Confident dealing with employee relations issues at all levels Strong working knowledge of UK employment law and knowledgeable about the impact of proposed government changes in the coming years A practical, solutions-focused approach with excellent attention to detail Comfortable getting hands-on and rolling your sleeves up where needed Able to build great relationships with people across all areas of the business Desirable: CIPD Level 5 (or working towards) Experience of working in an e-commerce industry Experience supporting both warehouse and office-based staff Experience of implementing or improving HR systems or processes Why Join Us? We are a growing business with ambitious plans and our people are right at the heart of that. This is your chance to help shape how we work, bring ideas to life, and play a key role in building a brilliant place to work. We offer: A competitive salary of £40–45K, with the opportunity to grow as you develop in the role A supportive leadership team Mentoring and guidance from our experienced Director level outsourced HR Partners to help you grow into a more senior, strategic and business-focused role We offer some flexibility to work from home by agreement, although this is primarily an office-based role to allow for strong visibility, relationship building and hands-on support to managers and teams The opportunity to make a real impact in a business that values its people Ongoing professional development and support for CIPD qualifications A role with variety, visibility, and scope to grow You will have the autonomy to influence and deliver the business strategy and implement the day-to-day People and Culture activities in a way that works best for all the team to create a highly engaged workplace culture. If this sounds like you apply today, we would love the opportunity to meet you!