26.139 HR Business Partner

Job summary

About the Department

DBS was established under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 on 1 December 2012, working from two sites, which are Liverpool and Darlington. We operate on behalf of government delivering Disclosure functions in England, Wales, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and Barring functions for England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. We function within a framework of legal and regulatory requirements and that includes work with a range of external organisations including other government departments, regulators, and trade bodies.

We provide a service that enables organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to make better informed, safer recruitment and other decisions. We do this by providing information to enable them to determine whether individuals are unsuitable or unable to undertake certain work, particularly with occupations involving regular contact with vulnerable groups, including children.

Our Strategy

Our current Strategy sets out our purpose, vision, and the impacts we want to achieve. Our strategy was co-created with our staff and has been supported by insight from our various partners, and throughout, you will find our ambitions to be achieved. Everything that we do within DBS, from developing our strategic intent, to the day-to-day operational delivery of our services, is underpinned by constant considerations of safeguarding, quality, sustainability, value for money, and diversity and inclusion. Our strategic objectives aim to enhance our effectiveness, influence, and customer satisfaction while fostering a supportive environment for everyone.

Equality, Diversion, and Inclusion at DBS

DBS is committed to fostering an environment that values individual differences and ensures fair treatment to unlock the full potential of staff and better support customers. Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are core to driving organisational success and we have developed specific equality objectives for DBS.

Every decision and activity will be considered through an EDI lens, aiming to build an inclusive culture, improve policies and practices, gain external assurances, and become a leading voice of good practice in EDI.

Read More

For further information, please see below for a collection of DBS strategies and business plans:

• DBS strategies - GOV.UK
• DBS business plans - GOV.UK

Job description

A key member of the People & Inclusion Team, HR Business Partners deliver a highly proactive partnering service to senior leaders, ensuring that people remain at the heart of DBS. The role plays a key role in building organisational and people capability, working collaboratively to deliver positive and significant change by shaping and implementing effective people strategies to help achieve our DBS strategy.

• Build and maintain strong customer relationships with key internal and external stakeholders. This includes but not limited to Directors and Directorate Management teams, external Legal providers and representing DBS in cross Government initiatives/forums.

• Partner the Senior Leadership team at Directorate Management meetings, acting as the trusted confident and key link between the directorate and the People & Inclusion team.

• Be the commissioning role within the People & Inclusion team, that act as the people expert for their business area implementing specific people approaches including but not limited to learning, development and talent interventions for business areas.

• Act as a change agent, helping to build the future in line with organisational priorities and leading initiatives with senior leaders/teams including but not limited to TUPE, restructuring and redundancy.

• Providing specialist advice on escalated complex employee relations casework and employee tribunal matters.

• Provide challenge and appropriate support and guidance on a range of areas including: workforce planning, talent management, organisation design, performance management, organisational change and leadership development

• Be the People subject matter expert on DBS projects which may extend to all DBS products and services .

• Be the critical friend to DBS, ensuring business intelligence from internal and external stakeholders is shared with Organisational Development colleagues, to ensure that DBS policies and procedures are fit for purpose and inclusive.

• Develop and analyse management information to inform business decisions around people management and achieve KPI / targets.

• People lead on workforce planning, maintaining regular engagement with senior leaders to plan and manage the effective use of resources to meet current and future operational business needs, focusing on both workforce MI to achieve the correct numbers and capability development/talent strategies to achieve the right skills.

• Provide FTE/headcount approval for the management of vacancies, working with the People Services team to ensure recruitment plans are appropriate, offer value for money, have best reach and attract a diverse candidate pool.

• Influence managers to make informed decisions in relation to the attraction and retention of candidates, through the use of Job Evaluation and labour market intelligence.

• Support union negotiations including but not limited to, implementation of change initiatives, ER agreements, terms and conditions etc in accordance with the Employee Relations Framework.

• Working collaboratively with the Academy team to develop talent management and succession planning pipelines which develop and maximise organisational capabilities.

• Use coaching skills to guide senior leaders in developing robust performance management strategies, building the capability of managers to anticipate and pre-empt organisational issues.

Corporate Duties:

· Produce reports for SLT on People & Inclusion initiatives, providing insight and making recommendations. Adhering to the relevant governance arrangements and providing reporting and information for the relevant governance groups such as People Steering Group.

• Act as a role model for our Equality and Diversity agenda, creating an inclusive environment that is safe and trusting; where people feel valued, have a voice and act with autonomy.

• Manage health and safety issues in your area of responsibility in line with the relevant section(s) of the relevant Health and Safety Policy.

Confidentiality

As a Public Servant, employees have a duty to protect official information entrusted to them. Employees must not give another person or organisation official or confidential information concerning DBS’ business affairs, internal processes or trade secrets to which they have access during the course of their employment. This restriction also applies after employees have left the organisation.

Equal Opportunities

Required to comply with the DBS’s equal opportunities policies and procedures showing an understanding of and commitment to diversity, and how it applies to this role.

Health and Safety

Required to comply with the requirements of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (and associated legislation); to take reasonable care of an employees and others health and safety.

Further Information:

Part-Time hours available = 29.6 hours per week.

To view the DBS Recruitment and On-boarding Privacy Notice, please click the link below:

DBS Recruitment and On-boarding Privacy Notice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This privacy notice covers personal data collected during the recruitment, security clearance and on-boarding process.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

Ability:

• Demonstrable knowledge of employee relations/employment law
• Ability to identify solutions to address directorate issues using professional and organisational insight
• Ability to be resilient in the face of challenge, with the confidence to present and defend professional view

EXPERIENCE:

Demonstrable HR related experience across the full range of HR generalist areas.

• Demonstrable experience of delivering complex projects
• Demonstrable stakeholder management skills, built on a foundation of trust and professionalism
• Demonstrable experience providing depth and breadth of knowledge and personal credibility to impact at senior levels
• Demonstrable experience in delivering organisational change, specifically complex restructures within large and complex organisations.
• Demonstrable experience of guiding managers through formal procedures, including drafting and collating a range of complex and detailed documents.
• Demonstrable experience of working with Trade Unions in respect of case management, consultation, negotiation and collective bargaining

TECHNICAL:

• Level 7 CIPD qualification and/or Chartered status
• Competent in all aspects of Microsoft Applications

Qualifications

Level 7 CIPD qualification and/or Chartered status

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Changing and Improving

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £60,380, Disclosure & Barring Service contributes £17,492 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

The DBS offers a number of excellent benefits for its employees. These can include:

• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Excellent maternity, paternity and adoption schemes (after a qualifying period)
• Commitment to the health and wellbeing of our employees
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Flexible working opportunities
• Eyecare voucher scheme
• Occupational Health Service including referrals for counselling and physiotherapy
• 24/7 Counselling and Wellbeing Service
• A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

The DBS vision and purpose is to make people safer by being a visible, trusted and influential organisation, providing an outstanding quality of service to all our customers and partners, where our people understand the important safeguarding contributions they make and feel proud to work here. To do this, the DBS is committed to being an employer that is able to attract, develop, retain and engage diverse talent that is representative of the communities we serve, and to be an organisation providing outstanding service to all our existing and new customers, who are diverse and have a range of different needs. We want all our staff to be able to bring their ‘whole self’ to work.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

To apply for this role, please provide a CV along with a Personal Statement of no more than 500 words outlining how your skills, experience and qualifications meet the requirements of the role, including all essential and desirable criteria.

Please also provide behaviour examples for:

• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture

If a large number of applications are received, the sift may base solely on the C.V. & Personal statement.

Candidates successful at the sift stage will be invited to attend an interview which will include a presentation and will assess the following behaviours:

• Changing and Improving

Further details on the presentation topic and the assessed behaviour will be provided to shortlisted candidates invited to interview.

The Interview will also assess the following behaviours via questions:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Managing a Quality Service

Interviews will be held virtually via MS Teams.

The following timetable outlines indicative dates. Please note, these dates may be subject to change without prior notice.

Advert closing date: Monday 2nd November at 10am.

The initial candidate sift is due to take place week commencing 2nd November 2026.

Interviews are due to take place week commencing 9th November 2026.

Whilst we will endeavour to provide some flexibility with regards to dates wherever possible, it is unlikely that we will be able to offer an alternative date once an appointment has been scheduled.

Please note, the above dates may be subject to change.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : HR Services Team
• Email : DBSPeopleSupportTeam@dbs.gov.uk
• Telephone : 0300 106 1500

Recruitment team

• Email : DBSPeopleSupportTeam@dbs.gov.uk

Attachments

HRBP Job Description - October 2026 (002) Opens in new window (docx, 452kB)