HR Advisor (12 Month Contract)

HR Advisor (12 Months FTC - Maternity Cover) | Kendal, Cumbria | £30,000–£33,000 FTE | Full or Part Time | Office Based

Do you enjoy a generalist HR role where you get involved in a bit of everything? Are you available for an interim long term 12 month contract covering a period of planned absence in the HR team?

We're working with a long-established, privately owned business in the leisure sector who have a number of sites across Cumbria. It's a supportive, collaborative place to work, and the HR team has recently grown to three, so you'd be joining a friendly function that's building rather than standing still. This is a maternity cover contract of twelve months, starting asap with flexibility on both length and hours.

The Role

This is a proper hands-on generalist role supporting managers across the full employee lifecycle. You'll be the day-to-day point of contact for HR queries, with an experienced HR Manager alongside you for the more complex work.

Advising and supporting managers

You'll coach managers to handle people matters themselves, rather than doing it all for them.

• Providing practical, day-to-day HR advice to managers and employees across a multi-site business


• Building manager confidence and capability so they own the conversations and you guide the approach


• Supporting recruitment, onboarding and performance activity, keeping managers in the driving seat

Employee relations

You'll handle the everyday casework, with support on hand for anything more involved.

• Managing absence, investigations, disciplinary and grievance matters


• Keeping cases moving, well documented and fair


• Escalating and supporting on complex cases alongside the HR Manager

Payroll and HR systems

You'll own the preparation and accuracy side of payroll, which is processed by an external provider.

• Preparing, checking and submitting payroll data each month


• Maintaining the HR database covering hours, payroll and absence


• Producing reports and keeping records accurate and compliant

Projects, wellbeing and general HR

There's scope here to shape things, not just maintain them.

• Contributing to policy development, process improvement and engagement work


• Supporting wellbeing initiatives across the business


• General HR administration across the team

What You'll Bring

• Experience in a generalist HR role


• Good working knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice


• Confidence handling employee relations casework


• Experience using HR systems, with payroll exposure a real advantage


• Strong communication skills and the ability to build relationships quickly


• Well organised and detail focused, comfortable juggling a varied workload in a busy multi-site environment


• A calm, fair and solutions-focused approach


• A full UK driving licence, as occasional travel to sites across Cumbria may be required (a pool car is available, or business mileage is paid for use of your own vehicle)

Why You'll Love Working Here

• £30,000–£34,000 depending on experience and qualifications (FTE, pro rata for part time hours)


• 30 days annual leave inclusive of bank holidays


• Above statutory employer pension contribution


• Company sick pay, increasing with length of service


• Family-friendly policies and flexible working opportunities


• Training and development support


• Free parking at the central Kendal offices


• Full or part time considered, around 30–37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday


• Office based, with the potential to work up to two days from home once you're settled in the role

Foxgroves Recruitment acts as an employment agency for vacancies on behalf of clients, following fair and inclusive recruitment practices in line with the Equality Act 2010. All appointments are subject to pre-employment screening, including right to work checks, reference checks, and qualification verification. Reasonable adjustments are available for individuals with disabilities throughout the recruitment process.