Director of HR

Location: Manchester

At AQA, we’re committed to advancing education and we’re committed to our people. As the largest provider of academic qualifications in the UK, we mark over 10 million exam papers each year and it’s our people who make this happen.

Director of HR

Manchester | Permanent | Hybrid | £115,000 - £125,000

Shape the future of people leadership at AQA

You'll play a pivotal role in shaping the future of AQA through its people, providing the clarity, direction and strategic vision needed to help the organisation thrive during a period of growth, change and opportunity.

Reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer, you'll lead a People function of around 25 colleagues and help shape a people agenda that supports more than 1,500 employees across AQA Education.

Working closely with leaders across the organisation, you'll champion a strategic business partnering approach, strengthen organisational effectiveness and workforce transformation driven by technology and AI, and ensure our people strategy helps drive long-term success.

This is a role with significant strategic breadth and influence. You'll work closely with the Executive Team, Directors, Trustees and Trade Unions, providing trusted advice on organisational priorities, workforce planning, leadership capability, employee relations and organisational effectiveness.

Most importantly, you'll help shape a clear and ambitious people vision that enables organisational success whilst creating an environment where people can thrive.

Leading strategic people partnering

A key focus of this role is continuing to strengthen AQA's approach to strategic people partnering.

You'll lead and develop a high-performing team that works alongside leaders to solve organisational challenges, build capability, plan for the future and deliver meaningful organisational outcomes.

We're looking for someone who sees HR as more than a support function, and who is comfortable managing risk. Someone who can build trusted partnerships, influence decision-making and help leaders navigate complexity with confidence and clarity.

Alongside Strategic People Partnering, you'll lead:

• Diversity & Inclusion
• Employee Relations
• People Advice
• People Services
• Pay, Reward & Benefits

You'll work closely with the Head of People Operations, whose remit includes Talent Acquisition, Learning & Development and People Operations, to ensure a joined-up and effective people strategy.

Shaping an inclusive future

Creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can do their best work is a strategic priority for AQA.

You'll lead our Diversity & Inclusion agenda, supported by a dedicated Head of Diversity & Inclusion and D&I Specialist. We've made genuine investment in this area because we believe greater representation, broader perspectives and inclusive leadership make us stronger as an organisation.

You'll help ensure inclusion is embedded across our people strategy, leadership practices and employee experience, helping us better reflect and serve the communities we work with every day.

You’ll thrive in this role if you have:

• Significant senior HR leadership experience within a complex organisation
• A demonstrable track record of leading and developing strategic HR Business Partnering teams
• Extensive Employee Relations and Trade Union experience
• Experience influencing Executive, Board or Trustee-level stakeholders
• Experience shaping organisational change, workforce planning and leadership capability
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication and negotiation skills
• A collaborative, strategically minded and outcomes-focused approach
• The credibility and judgement to act as a trusted adviser to senior leaders

What's in it for you?

Alongside a salary of £115,000 - £125,000, you'll benefit from:

• 25 days' annual leave, rising to 30 with service, plus bank holidays and additional Christmas closure days
• A 35-hour working week and flexible hybrid working arrangements
• An excellent pension scheme with combined contributions of up to 18.5%
• Private Medical Insurance, life assurance and a health cash plan
• Enhanced family-friendly policies
• Up to five paid volunteering days each year
• Ongoing professional development opportunities

Most importantly, you'll have the opportunity to influence the future direction of a purpose-led organisation whose work impacts millions of learners and educators.

What's Next?

To apply, please upload your most recent CV.

As part of the application process, you'll also be asked to complete a short role-related application question, alongside AQA's standard Diversity & Inclusion question for senior-level appointments.

Applications close at 23:59 on Sunday 27 September 2026.

Initial Teams interviews are expected to take place during mid to late October, with final face-to-face interviews in Manchester in early November. We anticipate making a successful appointment by mid to late November.

We're committed to providing a positive candidate experience and all applicants will receive a written outcome following their application.

Our commitment to inclusion

At AQA, we're committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can do their best work. We value the different perspectives, experiences and backgrounds our people bring, knowing they strengthen our culture, decision-making and impact. We foster an inclusive environment where everyone is treated with respect, has access to opportunities to grow and contribute, and feels able to be themselves. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and lived experiences.

#STEC

Recruitment Agencies

We have a preferred supplier list (PSL) in place.

Unsolicited CVs will be treated as a gift. We will not be subject to or liable under your terms and conditions for agency fees.

Full Job Description

Summary

This is a strategically critical leadership role, responsible for shaping and championing a customer-focused, outcomes-driven people agenda across AQA Education. The postholder will lead the development and delivery of people strategies that enable organisational success, enhance employee experience, strengthen culture, and support the achievement of AQA's strategic objectives.
The role has overall responsibility for People Partnering, Pay & Benefits, Employee & Industrial Relations, People Services, and Diversity & Inclusion, ensuring the delivery of integrated, high-quality people services across the organisation.
Leading a team of People (HR) Business Partners and Advisors, you will provide the primary people interface for business areas across AQA. Together, you will build trusted partnerships with leaders, supporting them to create a sustainable, high-performing organisation, develop talent, drive organisational effectiveness, and foster an inclusive and engaging culture. Through a modern, insight-led and proactive approach, the team will deliver solutions that meets business needs alongside an outstanding employee experience.
As a trusted adviser to the Chief Operating Officer, Executive Team and Directors Group, you will provide expert strategic counsel on people matters, helping to inform business decisions and organisational priorities. You will also work closely with the Employee Forum, recognised Trade Unions and employee diversity networks, building positive and constructive relationships that support meaningful engagement and collaboration across AQA.
The postholder will lead the organisation's approach to Employee Relations, ensuring that people practices and decisions support organisational outcomes while operating within legal, regulatory and governance frameworks. In addition, you will oversee the People Services function, ensuring the delivery of an efficient, responsive and customer-focused service to employees and leaders.
A visible and influential champion of Diversity & Inclusion, you will provide senior sponsorship for people-related D&I initiatives, embedding inclusive practices and helping to create an environment where all colleagues can thrive and contribute to their full potential.Landscape:
AQA Group is more than an exam board, with AQA Education focusing on General Qualifications, alongside other parts of the Group focused on Vocational Qualifications and Educational Assessment Services. This role is focussed on AQA Education, which employs almost 1,500 permanent staff alongside seasonal staff and associates. As the UK’s leading provider of General Qualifications (GCSEs and A Levels), we are focused on organic growth, digital transformation and diversification through acquisitions in the UK and internationally. Our growth and diversification is driven by the aim of increasing our charitable impact and ensuring financial sustainability. This role is part of a wider Corporate Services Office leadership team and reports to the Chief Operating Officer. You will work closely with the Head of People Operations, who is responsible for People Systems & Data, Recruitment, and Learning & Development.

Activities:
Leadership & Line Management
Provide strategic direction for the People function, aligning it with the overall people agenda and organisational goals.
Set the department up for success, with clear priorities and the right resources.
Role model and embed AQA’s desired culture, focusing on our strategy and our customers to create an inclusive workplace where people learn and grown, and can do their best work every day.
Manage talent and performance of your team, holding colleagues to account for delivery and behaviour, and ensuring long term capability and organisational sustainability.
Focus on achievement, taking ownership to drive change, continuous improvement and deliver results.
As a senior leader, champion enterprise-wide initiatives and contribute to the development and implementation of the company's business strategy.

Build HR business partnering capability:
Lead and coach HR team members for effective business partnering, fostering development through clear feedback.
Drive HR business partnering capability, building relationships, understanding of AQA strategy and acting as a "critical friend" with strong influencing and risk management skills.
Provide high quality people analyses and recommendations to drive positive change in line with objectives.
Lead the team in supporting informed and commercially sound decisions.
Proactively engage with stakeholders to influence strategic projects.

People (HR) Strategy and Planning:
Co-lead the AQA people strategy by developing and executing an HR agenda that supports organisational growth and development.
Lead workforce planning initiatives, ensuring the right talent and capability is in place to meet current and future business needs, and reflecting the impact of technology (including AI) on skills and the workforce.
Lead the HR strand of business planning and contribute to an effective and value adding business process.
Manage competing demands for people related activities, creating a unified HR strategy across AQA and gaining buy-in from organisational leaders on agreed priorities.
Utilise people and business data and insights to proactively inform and influence both organisational decision making and the design of people products and services.
Input to and analyse business cases and business planning to ensure people requirements are identified and addressed.
Communicate AQA’s employee offer so that we retain and motivate existing and attract future talent.
Plan and manage HR team expenditures and headcount within budget as part of the wider People Group budgeting and planning, ensuring the function delivers value for money.

Organisation design and development:
Drive organisational effectiveness by leading initiatives that enhance employee performance, engagement and satisfaction.
Oversee organisational change efforts, including potential integration of acquisitions and restructuring, acting as the HR lead when necessary.
Oversee AQA’s approach to job evaluation, ensuring roles are sized objectively, and that line managers are able to make fast, responsive and robust decisions about pay.

Employee Relations:
Manage and maintain positive employee relations, working closely with unions and employee representatives.
Oversee HR policies and procedures, ensuring they reflect legal requirements, AQA's appetite for risk, and organisational culture and values.
Oversee a specialist team to lead and resolve employee relations issues, ensuring support for organisational outcomes and adherence to legal and regulatory frameworks.

Talent Management:
Collaborate with leaders to identify talent needs, develop succession plans, and foster career development opportunities.
In collaboration with People Group centres of expertise in Talent Acquisition and Learning & Development, implement effective strategies for recruiting, retaining, and developing top talent.

Pay and performance:
Lead on the design of competitive compensation and benefits programs, working closely with Talent Acquisition and Finance to ensure they are effectively implemented.
Manage the pay and performance cycle and annual negotiations with unions, ensuring organisational leaders are ready and able to play their part in objective setting, regular feedback and calibration of contribution recommendations.

General accountabilities:
Stay abreast of changes in employment laws and regulations
Comply with all AQA data, security and regulatory policies and legislative requirements.

Critical interfaces outside of People Group:
Business area leadership teams
Director of Finance
Head of internal communications and employee engagement
External industry thought leaders
Director of Enterprise Technology
Director of Programmes & Projects

To be successful in this role, you will need to demonstrate:
Essential Criteria
A real interest in what AQA does, its purpose and values
Proven success in senior HR roles
Solid technical HR and ER expertise
CIPD qualifications at L7 or equivalent an advantage
Excellent relationship building, communication and influencing skills.
Proven negotiation skills, including with Trade Unions
Quick, sound decision-making based on knowledge and judgment.
Resilient and adept at managing multiple priorities.
Experience in implementing People Strategy and delivering related services and initiatives, including leading people transformation initiatives such as mergers, acquisitions, TUPE, restructures and collective consultations
Business outcome orientated approach to HR