HR and Governance Manager

Orbis UK is delighted to offer the role of HR and Governance Manager, a new position for the charity, as the organisation seeks to grow and build on past successes to reach its target of achieving £10m income in the next 5 years.

About Orbis UK

Orbis UK is an affiliate of Orbis International, an eye care charity that transforms lives through the prevention and treatment of avoidable blindness and visual impairment.

Over 1.1 billion people live with vision loss in the world today. Yet for a staggering 90% of these people, visual impairment is treatable or could have been prevented.

At Orbis we work to change this injustice by providing treatment to thousands of people each year, training new generations of eye health-workers, and leading cutting-edge scientific breakthroughs that restore sight. Our vision is a world where communities strive together in the fight to save sight, and no one is needlessly blind.

Orbis UK (Orbis Charitable Trust) is a registered charity in the UK and raises income from funders across the UK, Europe and the Middle East, towards our global commitment to eliminate avoidable blindness. In 2025, the UK team raised £7.1m. These funds supported 18 projects across 8 countries. With these funds we delivered 9,908 training sessions for health workers, enabled 469,287 eye screenings, 37,378 treatments and delivered 2.5m doses of antibiotics to tackle trachoma.

About the Role

Title: HR and Governance Manager
Directorate: Business Support Team
Reports to: Director of Finance and Operations
Location: Hybrid (2 days a week required in London, UK, near Charing Cross)
Contract: Full time, 37.5 hours per week permanent
Grade: Professional Level 3 Salary: £42,317 per annum

This role is critical to supporting a highly performing group of staff and trustees as we seek to transform lives through the prevention and treatment of blindness. This role will sit within the Business Support Team, which is responsible for the day to day running of the organisation and will be crucial in creating a revised HR strategy and ensuring that the organisation's compliance with key statutory and regulatory requirements are maintained at all times. The successful postholder will work collaboratively with the Director of Finance and Operations to meet these objectives, but also will have a central role in identifying opportunities for growth within the HR and Governance function to ensure that good practice, wellbeing and compliance work hand in hand with one another and is embedded within the ethos of the organisation for the benefit of its staff and, ultimately, our beneficiaries.

In addition, the successful postholder will work with the Board of Trustees to provide Executive Assistant level support to enable the Board to meet its obligations and to ensure that they can conduct the business of the charity in the most efficient and effective manner. You will be privy to sensitive and confidential information, attending meetings in order to take summary minutes and provide clerking services, including the issuing of papers, monitoring Companies House and Charity Commission requirements and acting as counsel to the Senior Management Team and the Board, where appropriate.

You will line manage and work with the Business Support Administrator, also a new post, that will provide support to you and the wider staff team. The recruitment of both these posts simultaneously provides a unique opportunity to a new postholder to shape this role and set out the strategy for this directorate and take ownership of demonstrable change within the organisation.

We are looking for someone who has a Level 5 CIPD or equivalent qualification with demonstrable experience in supporting and developing a HR strategy and/or working at an EA level working with senior executives across different sectors. Knowledge of the NGO sector is desirable, but we are open to applications from across disciplines and expertise if you can demonstrate your aptitude for the role with a hunger to learn or for someone who is keen to translate their HR experience into this broad and interesting role.

The main responsibilities of this role include:

• To line manage and work with the Business Support Administrator and to provide a responsive problem solving and supportive HR service to managers across the organisation.
• To support and advise the Senior Leadership Team to develop and deliver a strong HR strategy embedding best practice while continuing to build a positive, inclusive and high performing culture strongly aligned with Orbis's values.
• To support the Director of Finance and Operations (DFO) to provide high-quality, responsive and effective support to the Orbis Board and its sub-committees.
• To deliver a HR strategy and solutions in high performing teams, and balance compliance with taking a progressive attitude towards embracing the opportunities and challenges of embedding values-led principles within an organisation.

Benefits of Working for Orbis UK

• Competitive Salary benchmarked annually
• Minimum 25 days holiday pro rated increasing with length of service
• Life Assurance Policy (4 x salary)
• Employee Assistance Programme
• E learning Courses
• Social Activities
• Flexitime
• Free Sight test

Plus, following successful completing of your probation:

• Matched employer pension contribution up to a maximum of 10% of basic salary
• Interest free season ticket loan
• Cycle to work scheme
• Contribution to cost of new prescription glasses
• Possibility of an overseas project visit after 3 years' service

Applications & Interviews

Closing Date: 28th April 2026
First Interviews: 1st or 5th May 2026
Second Interviews: 11th or 12th May 2026
Start Date: ASAP

All applicants must have the legal right to live and work in the UK. Unfortunately, we won't be able to reply to all applications, so if you haven't heard from us by 30th April 2026, your application has not been successful.

Our Values

At Orbis we look to attract inspiring and motivated people to help fight blindness in communities around the world. Experience is vital to any application but over and above this we are looking for individuals who share our values. Our values of Accountability, Commitment, Innovation, Integrity and Equity are the thread that connect our global team across geographies, languages, job functions, and time zones. The Orbis values reflect the way we - as an organisation and as individuals - approach problems and communicate with each other.

Our Vision

To transform lives through the prevention and treatment of blindness.

Our Mission

With out network of partners, we mentor, train and inspire local teams so they can save sight in their communities.

Equal opportunities

Orbis UK is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from any suitably qualified persons. We operate an anonymised recruitment procedure so that no job applicant receives less favourable treatment either directly or indirectly, on the grounds of age, gender reassignment, being married or in a civil partnership, being pregnant or on maternity leave, disability, race including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. This aims to ensure all applicants are assessed solely on the strength of their application and not be affected by unconscious bias or confirmation bias. Orbis UK acknowledges and recognises the disadvantages and barriers people from underrepresented and socially diverse groups face in the workforce. Orbis UK is committed to addressing this issue and we strongly encourage those from underrepresented and socially diverse groups (Black and Ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ and candidates with disabilities) to apply.

Safeguarding

Orbis UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and criminal records checks. Orbis UK is also a member of the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.

Application is via curriculum vitae and covering letter, via the Charity Jobs Website where applications will be kept anonymous to ensure a fair selection process. Enquiries about the role can be made to .