HR Consultant - Wellbeing

At Oxfordshire County Council (OCC), we believe great services start with people who feel supported, included and able to thrive. Our HR and Cultural Change Service plays a critical role in enabling the organisation to deliver for residents by building high‑performing, engaged and agile teams, and creating an environment where colleagues can bring their whole selves to work.

Working to a centre‑of‑excellence model, we provide strategic leadership, expert advice and evidence‑based frameworks that support services to perform effectively, while fostering a healthy, inclusive and sustainable working environment. Our approach is guided by the Council’s People & Culture Strategy - Attract, Thrive, Grow and Lead - which sets a clear direction for how we support our workforce now and into the future.

Employee wellbeing is a core part of this agenda. As the Council continues to navigate significant organisational change, including service redesign and upcoming Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), we are deliberately moving beyond transactional or reactive approaches to wellbeing. Instead, our focus is on embedding wellbeing into how the organisation operates, leads and makes decisions every day.

This role sits at the heart of that ambition, providing senior professional leadership, shaping organisational culture and supporting leaders to manage wellbeing risk effectively, in an organisation that is genuinely committed to doing things differently.

In this role, you will:

• Lead the creation, implementation and ongoing development of an organisation‑wide wellbeing strategy, ensuring alignment with organisational priorities and workforce needs.
• Provide expert advice and challenge to senior leaders, managers and HR colleagues on wellbeing, psychosocial risk and work‑related stress.
• Design, commission and oversee preventative, tailored and evidence‑based wellbeing initiatives, ensuring they are effective, accessible and deliver value.
• Ensure wellbeing support and interventions are clearly communicated, well‑understood and consistently applied across the organisation.
• Work in close partnership with Employee Relations, Public Health, Health & Safety and other key services to embed wellbeing in a joined‑up and coherent way.
• Manage key relationships with wellbeing providers (including Access to Work), ensuring services are fit for purpose, responsive and deliver value for money.

Could this be you?

What You'll Bring

We’re looking for someone who can operate with confidence from day one, and comfortable working autonomously. If you’re passionate about improving wellbeing at a strategic level and want to shape an organisation‑wide approach that makes a real difference, we’d love to hear from you!

You will have:

• Demonstrable experience of leading strategic wellbeing or mental health initiatives at scale, in a similar role or sector.
• A strong understanding of psychosocial risk management, work‑related stress and preventative wellbeing approaches.
• Proven ability to influence and advise senior leaders and a wide range of stakeholders, balancing appropriate challenge with support. Strong communication skills are essential.
• Experience of using data and evidence to inform strategy, manage risk and demonstrate impact.
• The ability to combine strategy with practical delivery managing ambiguity and exercising sound professional judgement in a complex organisational environment.

Desirable:

• Experience within local government or the wider public sector.
• Experience supporting organisations through change or reorganisation.
• Strong understanding of Occupational Health models and commissioning.

Before applying, we recommend reviewing the attached job description. It has further information and clear guidance on what we’re looking for.

What You Can Look Forward To

At OCC, you'll be part of a team that’s not only passionate about what we do, but also about how we do it. We foster a culture of inclusion, respect, and continuous improvement, and we’re proud to offer flexible working arrangements, professional development opportunities, and a strong sense of purpose in everything we do.

• Hybrid working – Flexibility is important to deliver the service and to suit individual lifestyles, we encourage discussion at interviews as we acknowledge there isn’t a one size fits all approach
• Culture of flexible working
• Great learning and development opportunities to support your growth
• Technology to support agile working – with unlimited access to Copilot for smarter productivity

Ready to Apply?

• If you are interested in this role, please submit your application via our careers site by 17 March 2026.
• We encourage early applications and may close the vacancy early if we receive a strong response, so don’t wait until the deadline if you’re interested.
• When applying, please upload a current CV and a personal statement. Your personal statement should explain how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role, referring to the key criteria set out in the job description. We recommend that the statement is no more than 750 words.
• Interviews are expected to take place online via Microsoft Teams shortly after the closing date. Shortlisted candidates will receive full details, and you may also be invited to meet our friendly team in person at our central Oxford office.
• If you’d like an informal conversation about the role or have any questions, please contact Claire Grundy, Employee Engagement & Communications Manager at Claire.Grundy@Oxfordshire.gov.uk