Helping you navigate our HR services

The HR Advisory Package provides year-round proactive support, including a dedicated HR consultant, unlimited daily advice, and an annual HR audit. The HR Partner Package also offers this, but builds on the Advisory foundation by adding the option to become a beneficiary of our Employment Protection Liability Insurance scheme, which provides cover starting at £100,000 per claim, subject to the policy terms and conditions. The HR Partner package also offers 22.5 hours of dedicated on-site or remote employee relations support, and representation in Employment Tribunal claims.

Yes, our Ad Hoc HR Support is designed for schools or academies that generally manage day-to-day HR operations internally but require outsourced expertise for specific scenarios. With Ad Hoc HR Support, we can help with major restructures, redundancy processes, formal appeal hearings, or specialised safeguarding and LADO support, with no ongoing retainer required.

Yes. We understand that a school’s operational priorities and leadership requirements can evolve from year to year. You can discuss your changing needs with our team to transition between our Ad Hoc Support, HR Advisory, and HR Partner packages.

Yes, we provide an advanced Human Resources Information System (HRIS) software as an optional add-on. This digital tool allows schools to digitalise employee records and automate sickness absence systems and trigger points.

HRIS add-on pricing is tailored to your school’s maximum employee headcount:

• Up to 50 employees: £700
• Up to 100 employees: £1,250
• Up to 150 employees: £3,163

Please get in touch with our team if you require a tailored breakdown for higher headcounts.

Pricing is calculated based on the chosen package and your school’s total employee headcount. To make budgeting flexible, schools and academies can pay termly or monthly via direct debit, and a 10% discount applies to those who opt to pay annually. Please note that all prices are exclusive of VAT. Please get in touch with our team for a full, bespoke pricing breakdown for your school.

Unlike traditional Local Authority SLAs, which can often feel rigid and structured around process rather than outcomes, Heads HR offers a more flexible and commercially accountable alternative. We provide a personal, tailored service that considers your school’s unique needs. We are committed to high service levels, responsiveness, and creating a genuine impact for every establishment we work with.

Our CIPD-qualified team has extensive experience across the education and local authority sectors. Our Operations Director, Sarah Whiting, is CIPD Level 7 and has worked with several schools for over seven years. Find out more about our team.

We provide comprehensive, education-specific support across the entire employee lifecycle and key operational areas. Here are some examples of how we can help:

• Safer recruitment and selection processes
• Guidance for Governors during Headteacher recruitment
• Succession planning
• Advice on STPCD and NJC pay and conditions
• School Model Pay Policies and salary protection
• Disciplinaries and grievances
• Attendance and performance management
• Investigations and hearings
• Probationary policies
• Safeguarding and LADO
• External referrals to DBS and (TRA)
• Liaising with Trade Unions and professional associations
• Restructures and redundancies
• TUPE transfers
• Settlement agreements
• Compliance documentation
• HR policy toolkits

For both our HR Advisory Package and HR Partner Package, your main point of contact will be a dedicated, assigned HR consultant. 

Having a single, consistent specialist means they will quickly get to know your school’s culture, leadership team, and operational history inside and out. This results in a deep understanding and highly responsive guidance tailored specifically to your institution across the entire employee lifecycle. 

We are based in Manchester but work with schools and academies across the UK. We offer flexible on-site and remote support and can arrange face-to-face meetings at a location of your choosing. 

While Heads HR specialises exclusively in the education sector, our sister company, Sapphire HR, provides expert, dedicated HR advice and outsourced support for businesses across all commercial and professional sectors.  

Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026 is the updated statutory safeguarding guidance issued by the Department for Education (DfE) that all schools and colleges in England must follow. Coming into force on 1st September 2026 and replacing the 2025 edition, KCSIE 2026 establishes mandatory requirements for safeguarding children, protecting student welfare, and safer recruitment practices. We have published a dedicated blog post on this topic. 

Gross misconduct requires a strictly formal approach and cannot be handled informally. Attempting to bypass a structured process exposes your school to major legal risks and unfair dismissal claims. To safeguard your institution, always promptly initiate a formal investigation to establish the facts and strictly follow your school’s disciplinary policy. Every step should be transparently documented.  

If you need support navigating the process or reviewing your policies, we’re here to help.

Managing sickness absence requires a balancing act and should be handled with care. You should adopt three core practices so staff feel supported and operations don’t suffer: 

1. Have clear and consistent absence management procedures in place  
2. Intervene early with proactive conversations to address issues quickly
3. Formalised return-to-work meetings and ongoing wellbeing support 

This helps support fairness and can prevent short-term absences from escalating. If you need some help drafting transparent policies, get in touch with our team. 

The right time to implement a PIP is when: 

1. Informal support hasn’t worked, and the quality or standard of the employee’s work has not improved
2. There are consistent, trackable gaps in an employee’s performance that need to be closed in a professional manner 

A PIP provides the structured, supportive framework an employee needs to reach their full capability within their role. If you need help drafting a fair, compliant PIP or navigating performance management at your school, get in touch. 

It’s important to take an objective approach to a flexible working request and balance staff wellbeing with school operations. You should: 

• Establish clear job specifications that detail required working patterns, core hours, and on-site presence expectations 
• Make sure any rejections are based on objective operational realities 
• Always document how accommodating a request impacts broader school operations 

We can help you navigate complex flexible working requests with confidence. Contact us for support.