HR Coordinator

HR Coordinator – Maternity Cover

30 hours per week | Fixed-term maternity cover
12 October 2026 to 27 August 2027
Salary: SCP: 13 (£30,023 pro rata)

Are you an organised and approachable HR professional with payroll experience who enjoys making sure things run smoothly behind the scenes?

Bridgwater Town Council is looking for an HR Coordinator to join our HR team on a fixed-term basis to provide maternity cover.

This is a varied, hands-on role supporting the day-to-day delivery of HR across the Council. You'll coordinate our monthly payroll, maintain our HR system, support recruitment and onboarding and help managers and employees navigate our HR processes.

What you'll be doing

A key part of the role will be taking responsibility for the administration and processing of our monthly payroll, including:

• gathering and checking payroll changes and information;
• processing payroll accurately through our HR/payroll system;
• working with managers and relevant stakeholders to resolve queries or missing information;
• checking payroll information before it is finalised;
• distributing payslips securely through the system; and
• responding to routine payroll queries from managers and employees.

Alongside payroll, you'll support the wider HR function by:

• maintaining accurate employee records and our HR system;
• processing new starters, leavers and contractual changes;
• coordinating recruitment and interview administration;
• completing pre-employment checks and onboarding;
• preparing routine HR correspondence and documentation;
• supporting the administration of sickness absence, probation, family leave, 1:1s and appraisals;
• producing routine HR reports and management information; and
• providing friendly, practical support to managers and employees on everyday HR processes.

What we're looking for

You'll need to have:

• previous experience of processing or administering payroll;
• experience of working within HR, payroll or people administration;
• experience of using an HR/payroll or similar business system;
• excellent attention to detail and confidence working with numerical information;
• strong organisation skills and the ability to work to monthly deadlines;
• good communication skills and the confidence to work with managers, employees and other stakeholders;
• good IT skills; and
• an understanding of the importance of confidentiality when working with employee and payroll information.

A CIPD qualification, experience of recruitment and onboarding, and previous experience within local government or the public sector would be advantageous but are not essential.

Why join us?

You'll be joining a supportive HR team at a time when we're continuing to develop our people processes, systems and approach across the Council.

We are looking for someone who is practical, organised and comfortable taking ownership of their workload, but who also enjoys working collaboratively and being part of a team.

Contract: This appointment is offered on a fixed-term basis to provide maternity cover, commencing 12 October 2026 and ending on 27 August 2027.

Closing date: 18/09/2026
Interview date: TBC

Bridgwater Town Council is committed to equality of opportunity and welcomes applications from suitably qualified candidates from all backgrounds. We are committed to providing an inclusive recruitment process and will consider reasonable adjustments for applicants who require them.

Appointment will be subject to satisfactory pre-employment checks and references.

Pay: £30,023.00 per year

Benefits:

• Company pension
• On-site parking
• Sick pay

Work Location: In person