Receptionist
Abingdon, Oxfordshire, OX14 3NB
£28,000 to £30,000 per year, depending on experience
Full-time | Permanent | On-site
Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:00pm
About Helix
Helix is a business development and consultancy company based at Abingdon Science Park. We work with businesses across areas including market expansion, operational efficiency, strategic partnerships, business consultancy, digital transformation, and training and development.
We are looking for an experienced, professional and highly organised Receptionist to join our Abingdon office on a full-time, permanent basis. This is an important front-of-house position and will suit someone who takes pride in creating a professional first impression while keeping the day-to-day administration of a busy office organised and running smoothly.
The successful candidate will be the first point of contact for visitors, clients, suppliers and incoming enquiries. Alongside reception duties, you will provide practical administrative support across the office and work closely with colleagues to ensure meetings, communications, records and general office requirements are handled efficiently.
This is a full-time, on-site position. Applicants should have at least two years of relevant experience in reception, front of house, office administration, business support or a closely related professional customer-facing role.
Key Responsibilities
Your responsibilities will include:
- Welcoming clients, visitors, suppliers and other guests in a professional and friendly manner
- Managing the reception area and ensuring it remains organised, presentable and ready to receive visitors throughout the working day
- Acting as the first point of contact for incoming telephone calls and general enquiries
- Answering, screening and directing calls accurately to the appropriate person or department
- Monitoring shared email inboxes and ensuring enquiries and messages are acknowledged, recorded and forwarded promptly
- Managing visitor sign-in procedures and maintaining accurate visitor records in line with company processes
- Coordinating meeting room bookings and ensuring rooms are prepared before internal and external meetings
- Supporting the organisation of client meetings, appointments and internal business meetings
- Greeting meeting attendees and notifying the relevant team member of their arrival
- Managing incoming and outgoing post, deliveries, couriers and collections
- Keeping office supplies, stationery and essential reception items appropriately stocked
- Placing approved orders for routine office supplies and monitoring stock levels
- Liaising with suppliers, contractors and service providers when required
- Reporting office maintenance or facilities issues to the appropriate person and following up where necessary
- Providing general administrative support, including data entry, document preparation, scanning, filing and maintaining organised records
- Updating spreadsheets, contact information, internal records and other business documents accurately
- Supporting colleagues with diary coordination and routine administrative tasks
- Handling information professionally and maintaining appropriate confidentiality
- Helping ensure documents, messages and enquiries are passed to the correct person without unnecessary delay
- Supporting the smooth day-to-day operation of the Abingdon office
- Carrying out other reasonable reception and office administration duties relevant to the position
What We Are Looking For
Essential Requirements
To be considered for this position, you should have:
- At least two years of experience in a reception, front-of-house, office administration, business support or closely related professional customer-facing role
- Previous experience working in an office or professional business environment
- Strong verbal and written communication skills
- A confident and professional telephone manner
- The ability to communicate effectively with clients, visitors, colleagues and external contacts
- Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage several tasks and priorities during the working day
- Good attention to detail and a high level of accuracy when handling information, messages and administrative records
- Confidence using email, electronic calendars and standard office software
- The ability to learn new systems and internal processes
- A professional, reliable and approachable manner
- The ability to work independently while also contributing effectively as part of a team
- Good judgement when handling confidential or sensitive business information
- A proactive approach to identifying and resolving routine administrative or office issues
- The ability to remain calm, organised and professional during busy periods
- Reliable availability to work on-site in Abingdon from 8:00am to 4:00pm, Monday to Friday
Desirable Experience
The following would be useful but is not essential:
- Experience working within business consultancy, professional services or a corporate office environment
- Experience coordinating meeting rooms, visitor arrangements or office facilities
- Experience supporting senior colleagues, consultants or a wider business team with administrative tasks
What We Offer
- A competitive salary of £28,000 to £30,000 per year, depending on relevant experience
- A permanent, full-time position
- A consistent Monday to Friday working pattern
- Working hours of 8:00am to 4:00pm
- No regular evening or weekend working
- A professional office-based working environment at Abingdon Science Park
- Paid annual leave in line with statutory entitlement and company policy
- Workplace pension arrangements, subject to eligibility
- The opportunity to build broad experience across reception, office administration and business support within a consultancy environment
Application Process
Please apply directly through Indeed with an up-to-date CV clearly outlining your relevant reception, front-of-house, customer service or office administration experience.
Applications will be reviewed against the requirements of the role, and candidates whose experience most closely matches the position will be contacted regarding the next stage of the recruitment process.
Helix is committed to providing equal opportunities and welcomes applications from suitably qualified candidates. Recruitment decisions will be based on the requirements of the role, relevant skills and experience. Reasonable adjustments can be discussed as part of the recruitment process where required.
Pay: £28,000.00-£30,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company pension
- Free parking
- Health & wellbeing programme
- On-site parking
- Sick pay
Ability to commute/relocate:
- Abingdon OX14 3NB: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Experience:
- Receptionist: 2 years (preferred)
Work authorisation:
- United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: In person
