Paragraph by paragraph
Please consider my application for the Senior HR Business Partner role at Pearson. I have worked in HR since 2018, first as an HR coordinator at Accenture and since February 2021 as an HR business partner at Deloitte, where I look after more than 400 people across three business units. I want to partner a single business for the long term and see what my changes do over several years.
Her route through HR, in one sentence
The role and employer, then her two firms and the size of her current patch. An HR director can see the level she works at straight away.
Voluntary turnover in my business units has fallen by 8% since we introduced stay interviews. Managers sit down with the people they would least like to lose and ask what would keep them, and we act on anything we hear more than once.
One result, with the method
The 8% would be easy to overclaim. She says what was done and how it works, which makes the number believable and shows she can get managers to act.
I also run recruitment for more than 60 roles a year with an average time to fill of 28 days, and I designed the diversity and inclusion training that more than 800 colleagues have now completed.
Recruitment and training, kept short
Two more results, in one sentence. "Completed" is the honest word for training numbers, because attendance is what was measured.
At Accenture I ran benefits for more than 2,000 UK employees, including pensions, private medical cover and cycle to work, and I processed the monthly payroll changes for starters and leavers without an error. Knowing how payroll and benefits work in detail helps when a manager asks what a change will actually cost.
The detail behind HR advice
Benefits and payroll can look junior next to business partnering. She ties them to something senior HR people value: knowing what a decision costs.
I hold the CIPD Level 7 Advanced Diploma and I am an Associate Member. This year I have been preparing our managers for the Employment Rights Act, starting with day one sick pay in April and the six month qualifying period for unfair dismissal that begins in January. I can meet at any time that suits you, in person or online.
Qualification and current law
The CIPD line gives the level and the membership grade. The Employment Rights Act sentence shows she has already started on the work the next employer will need.
Your CIPD line
"CIPD qualified" leaves the reader guessing. Give the qualification level and your membership grade, because they mean different things.
| Membership grade | Letters after your name | What it usually reflects |
|---|---|---|
| Associate Member | Assoc CIPD | Awarded on completing a Level 5 or Level 7 CIPD qualification. |
| Chartered Member | Chartered MCIPD | Level 7 or equivalent study plus experience at a strategic level. |
| Chartered Fellow | Chartered FCIPD | Senior experience, assessed by the CIPD. |
If you are studying, say which level and your expected finish date. An HR advisor post often asks for Level 5, and business partner posts often ask for Level 7 or working towards it.
For a recruiter or a careers site
Many senior HR roles go through recruiters or an online form with a short summary box. This keeps the results and the qualification.
HR numbers that hold up
HR readers know how these figures are produced, so word them carefully.
- Turnover: say whether it is voluntary or total, the period, and what you changed.
- Time to fill: give the average and the volume of roles, and say how it is measured, such as from approval to accepted offer.
- Training: "completed" or "attended" is honest. Claim an effect only if you measured one.
- Employee relations: give a number of cases and the types, and nothing that could identify an employee.
- Engagement: give the survey, the score and the change, such as up four points in a year.
Other HR roles and how to open
HR assistant or first HR job
Show the admin and people skills you already use, and any CIPD study.
I have handled the starters, leavers and absence records for our 150 person office for a year, and I start the CIPD Level 3 Foundation Certificate in January.
HR advisor
Give the case types you handle and how many, without describing anyone.
I advise managers across two sites on around 30 employee relations cases a year, mostly absence, capability and grievances.
Recruitment or talent acquisition
Give volumes, time to fill and where your hires came from.
Last year I hired 85 people into our engineering teams, with an average of 31 days from approval to accepted offer.
Learning and development
Describe a programme, who it reached and anything you measured afterwards.
I rebuilt our first line manager programme this year, and 140 new managers have now completed it across four countries.
Head of HR at a small company
Show breadth: you will do everything from policy to payroll queries.
I am the only HR person at a 250 person software company, and I cover everything from contracts and payroll queries to our first engagement survey.
The Employment Rights Act 2025 in an HR application
The Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025, and its changes are arriving in stages through 2026 and 2027. Employers hiring HR staff want people who are already working on it.
- From 6 April 2026: statutory sick pay is payable from the first day of sickness, and the lower earnings limit no longer applies. The Fair Work Agency was also set up in April 2026.
- From 1 January 2027: under the government's timetable, the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal falls from two years to six months.
- Later stages: other measures follow on dates the government publishes, so check the current timetable on GOV.UK before an interview.
In the letter, one sentence on what you have done is enough: a policy you rewrote, training you ran for managers, or a probation process you changed.
Five mistakes in HR cover letters
"Passionate about people"
Every HR letter says it, and it says nothing about how you work.
Give one result and how you got it.
Training numbers dressed up as results
How many people attended is not the same as what changed.
Say completed, and claim an effect only if you measured it.
Describing an employee’s case
An HR applicant who describes an employee’s case raises doubts about confidentiality straight away.
Give the number and type of cases only.
Out of date law
A 2026 HR letter that ignores the Employment Rights Act looks behind.
Add one line on what you have done to prepare.
A vague CIPD line
"CIPD qualified" could mean several different levels.
Give the level and your membership grade.
Length and who you are writing for
- Length: one page. Jennifer's letter is about 270 words.
- Who reads it: the HR director or head of people, often with the business leader you would partner.
- Tone: plain business English. Leave out HR jargon unless the advert uses it.
- Data: nothing about individual employees, and no internal survey files attached.
The main points from this page
- 1Give your CIPD level and membership grade.
- 2Use HR numbers with their period and how they were measured.
- 3Explain how you got a result, in words a manager would use.
- 4Show you are working on the Employment Rights Act 2025.
- 5Keep every employee detail out of the letter.
Frequently asked questions
What should an HR cover letter include?
The role and employer, your HR experience and the size of your client group, one or two results with how you got them, your CIPD level and membership, and how you are keeping up with employment law.
Should I mention the Employment Rights Act 2025?
Yes, briefly. One sentence on what you have done to prepare, such as manager training or new policies, shows you are current.
What is the difference between Assoc CIPD and Chartered MCIPD?
Associate membership comes with completing a Level 5 or Level 7 CIPD qualification. Chartered membership needs Level 7 or equivalent study plus experience at a strategic level.
When does the unfair dismissal qualifying period change?
The government’s timetable reduces it from two years to six months from 1 January 2027. Check GOV.UK for the current dates.
How long should an HR cover letter be?
One page, around 250 words, with the detail kept for the interview.