Are you passionate about people, purpose, and making a positive impact? If you are, then why not join the UK’s number one zoo and play a key role in creating an inspiring, inclusive, and high-performing workplace, one that helps us achieve our mission of protecting wildlife, engaging communities, and delivering unforgettable visitor experiences.

About the Role
As a People & Culture Partner, you’ll collaborate with managers and teams across the zoo to bring our People Strategy to life. You’ll offer expert HR advice, support and coach leaders, and play a key role in shaping a culture that reflects who we are, and supports our mission and values.

You’ll take ownership of the full employee lifecycle, from recruitment and onboarding to wellbeing, performance, and development, all while ensuring our people feel supported, valued, and able to thrive.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with departments to design and deliver robust people plans that align with organisational goals
• Coach, upskill and empower line managers to lead and manage high-performing, engaged teams
• Take full accountability for the employee lifecycle and people service delivery, maintaining the highest standards of professionalism and care
• Manage key people activity including recruitment, employee relations, Occupational Health, and absence management
• Use data and insight to inform decision-making and provide proactive people solutions
• Support workforce planning, talent development, and organisational change initiatives
• Contribute to wider People & Culture priorities such as ED&I, wellbeing, and employee engagement
• Lead and support projects that drive continuous improvement and business impact
• Ensure people policies and processes are fit for purpose, consistently applied, and compliant with legislation

About You
You’ll be a confident, solutions-focused HR professional with experience partnering with managers in a complex organisation. You’ll bring strong employee relations skills, a collaborative approach, and a genuine passion for making a difference.

Ideally, you’ll have:

• Experience in a busy, generalist people role
• CIPD Level 5 qualification (or equivalent experience)
• Excellent communication and coaching skills
• A proactive and data-driven mindset
• A commitment to inclusivity, wellbeing and organisational values

Why Join Us?
At Chester Zoo, you’ll be part of a unique community. Our working environment could not be more different from a typical office; where else can you stroll among rare giraffes and orangutans on your lunch break?

We offer hybrid working; however, we believe in a zoo-first approach as most of our colleagues work on site at our amazing zoo, meaning you will be in the office the majority of the time.

We Offer:

• A Fixed-Term maternity cover contract for 14 months
• Starting salary of £39,833 per annum based on 40 hours per week, working Monday-Friday
• 33 days annual leave (inclusive of bank holidays)
• Annual holiday buy/sell scheme
• Excellent pension scheme
• Staff pass so you can visit the zoo during your time off, plus multiple complimentary tickets for your friends and family
• Access to exclusive staff previews and events
• Payment of annual CIPD membership (if required)
• Discounts on cinema tickets, restaurants, high street shops and more
• Plus so much more! See here for more details.

If this sounds like the perfect next step for you, just click the link below to apply online, we’d love to hear from you!