Head of HR

Head of HR

Application Deadline: 9 February 2026

Department: HR

Employment Type: Permanent

Location: Donmar Warehouse Office

Reporting To: Director of Finance and Operations

Compensation: £55,.5 FTE (pro rata for 30 hours a week)

Description

Purpose of the role: The Head of HR at the Donmar Warehouse will partner with stakeholders across the organisation to support an excellent standard of staff management, welfare and engagement. Using proven skills and experience in HR generalism, recruitment and organisation design, the role will support the overarching strategy of the Donmar with a fit for purpose HR business plan and manage the full employee lifecycle.

The role will deliver on all aspects of HR operations, using a blended approach of staff welfare and culture with compliance and due diligence to keep our people and our organisation safe and thriving. The standalone role encompasses the full lifecycle of HR activity which includes business partner and business planning, through to administration and support of relevant workflows. The post works closely with the Head of Inclusion and Skills to ensure our training programmes are relevant, effective and embedded.

Duties and Responsibilities HR business plans

• Develop and deliver on an agreed HR business plan feeding into the Donmar's current strategic plan
• Liaise with and support legal and consultant partners to respond to risks, prevention and responsive case management as necessary
• Provide regular and ad hoc reports up to and including Board level to show progress towards KPIs, highlight risks and propose solutions
• Build and manage the HR budget lines effectively and appropriately
• Develop and support a remuneration strategy with senior stakeholders including contractual and discretionary benefits and perks, pay bandings and benchmarking

HR generalism

• Partner successfully with relevant managers and staff across the Donmar to ensure they are supported and coached to deliver safe, effective and inclusive staff processes
• Ensure all staff processes and policies are compliant, intuitive and accessible for all of our people, keeping up to date with employment law changes, risks and improvements
• Lead recruitment and talent attraction campaigns and initiatives, supporting hiring managers to recruit safely, with inclusion and successfully
• Manage the HR side of payroll processing, working closely with Finance colleagues to ensure monthly pay is accurate and to deadline
• Manage all employee relations cases including investigations, disciplinary and grievance hearings, flexible working requests, capability processes and sickness management. Be able to manage complex and high-risk cases with colleagues of all levels. Liaise with external consultants and legal partners where appropriate particularly on ACAS, tribunal and county court proceedings.
• Manage any organisational change cases including restructures, redundancies and development
• Work with Operations and IT providers to ensure all HR related systems and software are fit for purpose, cost effective, with correct access permissions and regulatory compliance, drawing on data to write insightful reports showing trends and benchmarking standards
• Ensure all administration and support is provided to line managers against relevant HR workflows.

Training and development

• Support the Head of Operations with mandatory technical and H&S training for the organisation
• Work closely with the Head of Inclusion and Skills to deliver staff inclusion, training and wellbeing initiatives, using information collected in the course of the role to inform and support objectives
• Develop people management capability, working closely with the Head of Inclusion and Skills to embed training, follow ups and refreshers, and promoting a consistent experience to our staff which is compliant with employment law and ACAS best practice, while providing agility for the nature of the organisation
• Actively contribute to the inclusion strategy by developing all HR processes to be inclusive, accessible and attract and engage with a diverse range of talent

Person Specification Essential Criteria

• Strong knowledge of best practice HR processes, employment law, equality legislation, organisational design and change, and recruitment. CIPD L5/7 qualified preferred or commensurate experience.
• Understanding of theatre operations, processes, and roles, or experience working within a creative environment.
• Experience writing, reviewing and managing HR policies.
• Experience developing and delivering on clear and effective HR business plans and reporting, supporting the overall strategy.
• A passionate advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion in HR practice with experience of delivering best practice in this area, ideally (not essentially) in an arts environment.
• Substantial experience in a similar role, demonstrating evidence-based decision making and professional learnings.
• Experience in managing all types and complexities of employee relations cases (i.e. disciplinary, grievance, redundancy, welfare, etc).

Skills and abilities

• Ability to contribute to the development and management of an HR budget.
• Exceptional organisational skills: able to prioritise effectively, work under pressure, and adapt to new situations.
• Practical problem solver with a can-do attitude and keen attention to detail.
• Collaborative team player, able to balance competing demands and build strong working relationships across the organisation in collaborative and outcome-focused ways.
• Discretion, emotional and professional maturity, and the ability to self-direct.
• Strong people management and interpersonal skills; able to communicate clearly and confidently with a wide range of people and stakeholders.

Terms and Benefits

Terms: 30 hours worked across 4 out of 5 weekdays per week. In addition to this there are a number of rehearsals, press nights, previews and supporters evenings which require attendance. A TOIL system is in operation.

How to Apply

Please complete the online application form and upload your CV by clicking the Apply Now button on the top right.

Applications Currently Scheduled to Close at 10am on Monday 9 February

Late submissions will not be accepted but please see note below.

Round One Interviews: Monday 16 February and Tuesday 17 February

Round Two Interviews: Tuesday 24 February

Ideal start date: end of March/early April (please contact us if you have any questions about this)

We would ideally like a candidate who can start in post at the end of March/early April. We will consider applicants who are available for a staggered start or significant handover if not available at this exact time.

We reserve the right to close the advert early if we receive enough suitable candidates to shortlist and may recruit on a rolling basis.

If you have any questions, please do email .

BENEFITS Holiday:

• Enhanced holiday scheme with 25 days a year (pro rata) excluding Bank Holidays.
• Annual Birthday leave.

Benefits (post-probation and dependant on length of service):

• 6% employer pension contribution as part of the Donmar's stakeholder pension scheme.
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, and shared parental leave

Lifestyle:

• Season ticket loan (travel)
• Subsidised local gym membership
• £25 towards annual eye tests
• Employee welfare programme
• Cycle to work bike loan scheme
• Discount at Donmar bar on food and drinks
• Complimentary tickets to attend Donmar performances

Professional Development:

• All staff training and professional development programme