People Policy and Engagement Partner – West Midlands Fire Service

Professional 2B

Closing date: 28th April 2025

Salary: £39,513 Hours: 37 full time Overview

West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS) is the second largest fire and rescue service in England, serving an area of 902km square and a population of over 2.9 million people.

Our vision is ‘Making the West Midlands safer, stronger and healthier’.

This vision and the strategic goals outlined in ‘Our Strategy’ are what drives the people, professionalism and pride with which we serve our communities.

WMFS is a dynamic and forward-thinking organisation committed to leadership excellence and improving the employee experience. We aim to empower our people to be their best through inclusive and equitable workplace practices.

We are now seeking a People Policies and Engagement Partner to join our team. Reporting to the Senior HR and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Business Partner, you will play a key role in developing and embedding people policies that are inclusive, accessible, and aligned with our strategic goals.

This role will suit someone with the confidence to challenge the status quo and a passion for improving the employee experience. You will lead on policy consultation, ensure legal and practical compliance, and develop clear implementation plans to embed new policies across the organisation.

Responsibilities

As People Policies and Engagement Partner, you will:

create and manage a structured programme of work for developing and implementing people policies
research, write, and evaluate people policies to ensure they are inclusive, legally sound, and aligned with our values and strategy
undertake benchmarking and external research to ensure our approach is innovative and reflects best practice
develop clear process maps for each policy, outlining roles and responsibilities at every stage
ensure all policy consultation is timely and meaningful, involving trade unions and network groups as appropriate
create and implement robust plans to support the rollout of new or revised policies and help embed them across the organisation
complete thorough equality impact assessments for all new and updated policies
establish a feedback framework to capture employee experiences and insights, and use business intelligence to support ongoing improvements
review and assess the quality, clarity, and accessibility of current guidance and templates, ensuring they are user-friendly and promote best practice.
Essential skills or experience

a CIPD Level 5 qualification or equivalent, or working towards it, or significant experience in a people or HR role
proven experience in developing and implementing inclusive and engaging people policies
up-to-date knowledge of UK employment legislation and an understanding of how to maintain that knowledge
excellent communication and influencing skills
experience of consulting with trade unions and employee network group