HR and Recruitment Administrator

The Scout Association

Hours
35 hours per week

Length of contract
31 Aug 2026

About the Organisation

Scouts and everyone are welcome here - all genders, races, and backgrounds. We give over 400,000 4–25-year-olds the skills they need for school, college, university, and the job interview: the skills they need for life. Right across the UK, we’re helping young people gain skills for life and find their place in the world. We help them speak up, play their part, and shine bright. Scouts is the place to be yourself and find yourself.

These are young people who are not afraid to stand up for what they believe in, to do the right thing, and to think of others before themselves. At a time when communities sometimes feel divided, Scouts brings people together. We’re building stronger communities and contributing to a stronger society. All this is made possible by the generosity of our adult volunteers.

Now’s a challenging time for us all, but Scouts has never been more important - giving young people purpose, hope, and a place to belong. With the launch of Squirrels for 4–6-year-olds, and opening more units in even more areas of deprivation, we’re making more of a difference than ever.

About the role

Join our inclusive and collaborative People team as an HR & Recruitment Administrator. You’ll play a key role in supporting end-to-end recruitment and onboarding processes, helping us deliver a positive and efficient experience for candidates and new starters. We pride ourselves on open communication, flexibility, and creating a welcoming environment where everyone can thrive. If you’re passionate about improving recruitment practices and supporting diversity and inclusion, we’d love to hear from you.

Responsibilities

Key Accountabilities:

• Ensure the successful candidate’s eligibility to work in the UK is checked, and Employee records are accurately maintained, demonstrating legal and policy compliance.
• Ensure that the correct level of DBS checks is requested, submitted and followed up on for the new joiners, notifying the Talent Acquisition Manager of any DBS results that are returned with adverse information
• Manage the DBS Renewal process for employees where required, ensuring that the process is carried out before the expiry date to maintain compliance
• Proactive in ensuring that all reference requests are made, followed up on and responses reviewed to ensure that they correctly match the candidate's CV data. This must be done in a timely and accurate manner, notifying the relevant Recruitment Coordinator when all references required are returned and escalating any concerns to the relevant Recruitment Coordinator. Recognising the different levels of checks required for roles involving regulated activity.
• Complete any other pre-employment checks required, such as credit checks, educational certificates or driving licences for essential car users.
• To enter all new starter details onto HR Systems prior to start date, ensuring all details are correct, supporting accurate reporting
• Support the onboarding of new starters by ensuring they receive induction details and that all internal stakeholders have been notified of new starters, working collaboratively with the Learning & Development Team to ensure access to benefits and mandatory training
• Manage the Recruitment email Inbox, acting as first line response for recruitment queries from managers and staff, developing knowledge to provide responses in line with Scouts’ policies and procedures, as well as legislation, good practice and Scouts’ values. Escalating more complex queries to the relevant colleagues as required.
• Manage New Starter and Induction Spreadsheets, ensuring that up-to-date information is maintained at all times to support the production of Recruitment Statistics
• Manage and maintain the Job Description Library, being the first point of contact for managers and staff sourcing job descriptions
• Producing Team charts on request for managers, recruitment campaigns and job evaluation processes
• Developing, managing and maintaining a Recruitment Activity Calendar, gathering information from all members of the recruitment team to support the team and Talent Acquisition Manager in recruitment planning. This should include all team members' annual leave, other absences, training activities and Scouts/People Team events
• To regularly keep the Recruitment Coordinators informed of onboarding progress and any challenges encountered. Implementing initiatives to improve time scales for onboarding and resolving any issues where possible
• Support the HR team with the data cleanse, to digitalise paper employee files and destroy paper files in line with the Data Retention policy.
• Continuously help to improve recruitment processes, providing suggestions on areas for efficiency.
• Support the Recruitment Coordinators with other recruitment activities as required
• Support the HR team with ad hoc tasks

Skills, Competencies, Experience & Attributes

Skills & Abilities:

• Excellent customer-focused approach
• Excellent IT literacy (including Word, Adobe, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook)
• High level of attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in all work
• Ability to manage a busy workload and prioritise tasks on one's own initiative, working to tight deadlines
• Excellent planning and organisational skills
• Excellent communication skills
• Flexibility to adapt to changing business and operating priorities
• Ability to manage and coordinate electronic records systems

Knowledge, Experience & Qualifications:

• Previous HR or Recruitment administrative experience,
• Experience of using an HR System or database
• Experience of onboarding practices including Right to Work Checks, DBS Checks and Referencing
• Experience working as part of a busy team
• Understanding of the requirements of GDPR, confidentiality of records, documents and information
• Experience in diary management

Personal Qualities:

• A sense of urgency and accuracy when undertaking tasks and responding to queries, even when under pressure
• Good team player and has a proactive approach to all tasks
• Empathetic and use emotional intelligence when communicating with staff, candidates and managers
• Proactive regarding own learning and development and performance
• Commitment to the values of Scouts and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Compensation & Benefits

• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 days after 2 years), plus extra days at Christmas
• Double-matched pension up to 10% of gross salary
• Generous family leave and support as a family-friendly employer
• Access to our Learning & Development hub for ongoing training
• Recognition as Charity of the Year (Charity Times Awards 2022)

Working locations

• Gilwell Park, Essex, United Kingdom

How to apply

• Please submit an online application by 11:59 pm on Wednesday, 29th April 2026.
• If you'd like to find out more to see if this role suits you, we'd be very happy to have an informal chat; please contact [email protected] to set up a call or virtual meeting.
• To help us monitor the application of our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy, we’d be grateful if you'd also complete the Recruitment Monitoring questions on the Application Form. 
• Before making an application, please make sure that you’ve read the Recruitment and Selection Policy

Interviews

• Interviews will be held in person at Gilwell Park on Tuesday, 12th May 2026.

Policies

The Scouts is an equal opportunity employer, and we are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and empowered to contribute. We offer flexible working arrangements to support diverse needs and lifestyles, ensuring that our teams can thrive both professionally and personally.

We welcome and encourage applicants from all walks of life, believing that varied perspectives strengthen our innovation and community. Your unique experiences and ideas are essential to our success, and we look forward to hearing from all voices.

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