HR Governance Lead

Overview of Responsibilities

About Us

Fusion, the process that powers the sun and stars, is one of the most promising options for generating the cleaner, carbon-free energy that our world badly needs. UKAEA leads the way in realizing fusion energy, partnering with industry and research organisations to achieve ground-breaking advancements. Our goal is to bring fusion electricity to the grid by developing the power stations of tomorrow and the skilled workforce to deliver them.

About the job

As HR Governance & Business Support Lead, you’ll play a pivotal role in ensuring the People, Culture & Skills function operates with strong governance, effective assurance and high-quality business support. Working closely with senior leaders, you’ll shape governance frameworks, oversee policy and audit activity, and provide the reporting and insight that supports confident decision-making. This is an opportunity to influence how the People function operates across UKAEA, helping ensure it remains compliant, efficient and equipped to support organisational growth as we deliver the future of fusion energy.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead the development and continuous improvement of governance and assurance frameworks across the People, Culture & Skills function.
• Oversee the review and maintenance of HR policies, procedures and governance documentation, ensuring compliance with legal and organisational requirements.
• Lead HR audit, assurance and inspection activity, coordinating responses and implementing recommendations.
• Develop and maintain HR performance dashboards, KPIs and management information to support strategic decision-making.
• Lead business planning activities, including workforce planning inputs, resource planning, budget coordination and professional development reporting.
• Identify and manage governance risks, maintaining effective risk registers and mitigation plans.
• Prepare high-quality papers, briefings and submissions for boards, committees and senior leaders.
• Build effective partnerships with Finance, Legal, Internal Audit and other corporate functions to strengthen governance across the organisation.
• Lead and develop a small team while driving continuous improvement across HR governance and business support activities.

What you’ll bring

• Significant experience in HR governance, HR operations or HR business support within a complex organisation.
• CIPD Level 7 qualification, or equivalent relevant professional experience.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law, HR policy frameworks and governance best practice.
• Experience leading audits, assurance activities or regulatory reviews.
• Experience developing performance reporting and using workforce data to support governance and decision-making.
• Knowledge of corporate governance, risk management or internal control frameworks would be advantageous.

Benefits

We have a generous range of benefits (see the full list here) and highlights include:   

• A salary of £58320
• Up to 7% corporate performance bonus 
• Final salary defined benefits pension scheme with an equivalent of 21.5% employer pension contribution
• 25 days annual leave, 2.5 privilege days and 8 Bank Holidays
• 3 days of site closure over Christmas break
• Flexible working options plus family-friendly leave provisions

Our commitment to ED&I

UKAEA’s mission is clean energy for all, and we welcome talented people from all backgrounds to help us achieve this goal. We are committed to equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility, and strive to ensure fair representation across our workforce.

Please email talent@ukaea.uk if you have any questions or require adjustments to help you participate fairly in our recruitment process, for example changes to the way we interview or share information. As a Disability Confident Employer, we are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment experience for all candidates.

We particularly encourage applications from groups currently underrepresented in STEM, including women and people from diverse ethnic backgrounds. All appointments are made on merit and further information can be found here