Head of People

About us
Ten Health & Fitness is a premium multi-site wellness studio business operating across 10 London locations. We bring together Dynamic Reformer Pilates Physiotherapy Massage Therapy and Clinical Exercise under one roof through our Circle of Care model delivering integrated evidence-based health and wellness to our clients.

Our workforce is a blend of employed staff and self-employed freelance practitioners including HCPC-registered physiotherapists and clinical exercise specialists. This mix creates a distinctive and rewarding HR environment for the right individual.

Role Overview

This is a hands-on operationally driven HR leadership role. The right person will be as comfortable managing a complex ER case on Monday morning as they are reviewing a compliance tracker on Friday afternoon. They bring calm authority sound judgement and a genuine passion for supporting people in a fast-moving environment.

The Head of People leads the HR function across Ten Health & Fitness taking ownership of employee relations recruitment oversight compliance payroll coordination manager capability and HR process improvement. The role is supported by an HR Assistant and sits within the Senior Leadership Team.

While this is primarily an operational role there is meaningful scope to contribute to wider people strategy and culture initiatives as the function matures.

Key Responsibilities

1. Employee Relations & HR Operations

• Lead all employee relations activity end to end including disciplinaries grievances investigations absence management performance cases ACAS conciliation and Employment Tribunal support.
• Act as the primary point of guidance for managers and Heads of Department on people issues ensuring decisions are legally sound commercially sensible and handled with care.
• Conduct a full review and overhaul of HR policies employment contracts and the employee handbook ensuring alignment with current UK employment law and Tens operational reality.
• Manage the full employee lifecycle including onboarding contractual changes and offboarding with accuracy and a positive employee experience.
• Maintain accurate employee records and manage the HRIS (Factorial) ensuring data integrity and reporting capability.

2. Payroll & HR Administration

• Partner with Finance to support timely and accurate payroll processing covering salaried staff hourly workers freelancers overtime leave sickness and contractual changes.
• Manage payroll-related queries from employees freelancers managers and Finance with professionalism and accuracy.
• Oversee HR administrative compliance processes linked to payroll including training fee recovery where applicable.

3. Compliance & Risk Management

• Own and maintain all HR compliance processes including Right to Work DBS checks HCPC/CSP professional registration insurance monitoring Sponsorship/Visa compliance First Aid certification and mandatory training.
• Ensure compliance trackers are accurate up to date and regularly audited alongside the HR Assistant.
• Manage Occupational Health referrals workplace adjustment processes maternity risk assessments and fitness for work cases.
• Liaise with external employment law providers insurers and specialist HR advisors as required.

4. Recruitment & Workforce Planning

• Oversee end-to-end recruitment activity across all sites and disciplines from briefing through to offer and onboarding coordination.
• Support hiring managers with process advertising interview structuring and candidate assessment including specialist clinical roles.
• Monitor workforce gaps hiring progress and headcount across studios escalating risks to the Chief of Staff as appropriate.
• Ensure recruitment practices reflect Tens values compliance obligations and commitment to clinical quality.

5. Manager Capability & Stakeholder Engagement

• Provide practical guidance coaching and training to managers on ER absence management performance management and people processes.
• Deliver regular HR reporting and people metrics to the SLT translating data into clear insights and recommendations.
• Coach and develop the HR Assistant building their ER capability and operational HR knowledge.
• Contribute to HR system and workflow improvement projects that increase efficiency and reduce manual overhead.

6. Employee Experience & Culture

• Support engagement initiatives internal communications and wellbeing activities that reflect Tens values and the nature of our clinical and wellness environment.
• Help leadership teams gather understand and act on employee feedback in a meaningful way.
• Champion an inclusive professional and high-performing culture across all ten studios.

Person Specification

Were looking for an HR professional who is confident practical and deeply credible in an operational setting. Youll be as comfortable in front of a studio manager navigating a grievance as you are presenting people data to the SLT. Youre not someone who hides behind process; you use it as a tool to get the right outcomes for the business and its people.

Essential Experience

• Proven experience in a senior operational HR role within a fast-paced multi-site service environment (hospitality retail fitness wellness healthcare or similar).
• Comprehensive employee relations experience including complex disciplinaries grievances investigations ACAS conciliation and ET support.
• Strong working knowledge and practical application of UK employment law and HR best practice.
• Demonstrable experience supporting managers through difficult conversations complex cases and high-risk people situations.
• Experience managing high-volume multi-role multi-location recruitment activity.
• Working knowledge of HR compliance requirements including Right to Work DBS professional registration checks and Sponsorship licence compliance.
• Experience reviewing and updating HR policies contracts and handbooks in line with evolving UK employment legislation.
• Experience using Factorial (HRIS) or equivalent HR systems alongside ATS platforms and reporting tools.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate clearly and professionally with a physio a studio manager or the Chief of Staff.

Desirable Experience

• Experience managing a blended workforce of employees and self-employed freelancers/contractors.
• Experience working within a clinical or allied health environment (physiotherapy exercise medicine or similar).
• Experience supporting HRIS implementation automation or HR process improvement initiatives.
• Experience producing HR dashboards people analytics and operational SLT-level reporting.
• Experience with immigration and Sponsorship licence administration.

Qualifications

• CIPD Level 5 or above preferred or equivalent demonstrated through significant operational HR experience.
• Practical hands-on HR expertise is weighted equally to and in some areas above formal qualification for this role.

Who You Are

Ten is a premium people-centred business. The culture is professional warm and high-standard. Our Head of People will embody all three: someone who holds a high bar without being heavy-handed who supports people without creating dependency and who earns trust through consistency and good judgement.

• Calm and decisive under pressure; you dont escalate anxiety you reduce it.
• Commercially minded; you understand that HR exists to serve the business not the other way around.
• Resilient and resourceful; youre used to a lean team and a full workload and you manage both well.
• A clear communicator who adapts their style from a clinical practitioner to a board-level audience.
• Organised thorough and proactive; you dont let things fall through the cracks.
• Genuinely curious about wellness health and the kind of business Ten is building.

Additional Information

This role is suitable for a highly operational HR professional who is confident working with pace and breadth. Strong prioritisation resilience sound ER judgement and a genuine commitment to doing HR well are what will make someone exceptional in this role.

An awareness of Dynami...