About us

Grace is an independent HR recruitment agency

What we lack in size, we make up for with bags of energy and the determination to set ourselves apart from your average recruiters.

We know that it’s easy to say that we’re different and, let’s be honest, that’s what everyone says! So, how can we prove it? Well, we actually care about our candidates and clients. And we have over 150 five-star Google Reviews to prove it! 

Grace is more than just ‘recruitment’. We invest time and effort into each placement to make sure we find the best person for the role that’s available. It’s not a numbers game to us: we don’t just fire loads of random CVs over to our clients and hope for the best. 

We specialise in recruiting for HR and business support roles. It allows us to focus our efforts on one industry and continue building strong client relationships. Having recruited for numerous HR roles over the last 20 years, we have an in-depth understanding of what hiring managers are looking for when recruiting for a human resources position. Being in the recruitment business means that we’ve gained great insight into people processes and can advise on best practices.  

History of Grace

Grace Personnel was founded in 1999 by experienced recruiter, Nicola Dandridge, with the aim of providing a superior recruitment service with integrity and respect for clients and candidates alike. 

The way we work sets us apart from other recruiters and our longstanding relationships with clients says it all. We’ve worked with many of our clients for well over 10 years, and a couple we’ve worked with for almost 20! 

In 2016, Nicola decided to sell the business, but she didn’t want it to be bought out by one of those high street recruiters. Instead, Grace was sold to venture capitalists with Lauren Hopkins, who’d been working as the Business Manager already, promoted to Managing Director. 

This was a huge learning curve for Lauren, but she’s ridden that wave, steered the business through a global pandemic and come out the other side with a growing team.  

Grace continues to evolve but one thing that never changes is our outstanding dedication to customer service. 

Local community support and charitable work

We love getting involved in our local community and supporting charities. In the past year, we’ve provided volunteers to man the ADS charity shop, donated to The Brett Foundation who help those in poverty in Maidenhead, and supported a pop-up shop in The Chalfonts that was collecting donations for Ukrainians who’ve fled the conflict and are now living locally.  

We’re working our butts off to change the perception of recruitment agencies, and the whole industry, from money grabbers to people who genuinely care and want to provide people with opportunities.  

Our values

We're unapologetically ourselves

There’s no façade. We believe the best way to build relationships with people is to be genuine and authentic.
And we encourage you to be your authentic self too.

We will never judge anyone

Whether you’re coming back from a career break, a working parent or perhaps looking to take a leap in a totally different direction, we don’t judge. We want to help to get where you want to go. 

We do the right thing even when no one is watching

There are so many fake promises in the industry but not here. We never promise anything we can’t deliver. And we’ll be honest – if we think you’re doing the wrong thing, we’ll tell you. 

We’re not just a supplier

We see everyone we outsource work to as part of the team. We hope it goes both ways – we’re not just a supplier of people and jobswe’re an extension of your business too. 

We are Thames Valley at heart

We care about our local community and the people in it. We’re invested in local business growth and are proud to champion other businesses from the Thames Valley area.  

We're unapologetically ourselves

We will never judge anyone

We do the right thing even when no one is watching

We’re not just a supplier

We are Thames Valley at heart

There’s no façade. We believe the best way to build relationships with people is to be genuine and authentic.
And we encourage you to be your authentic self too.

Whether you’re coming back from a career break, a working parent or perhaps looking to take a leap in a totally different direction, we don’t judge. We want to help to get where you want to go. 

There are so many fake promises in the industry but not here. We never promise anything we can’t deliver. And we’ll be honest – if we think you’re doing the wrong thing, we’ll tell you. 

We see everyone we outsource work to as part of the team. We hope it goes both ways – we’re not just a supplier of people and jobswe’re an extension of your business too. 

We care about our local community and the people in it. We’re invested in local business growth and are proud to champion other businesses from the Thames Valley area.  

Meet the team

Lauren

A coffee snob but not ashamed to admit it, Lauren is the Managing Director at Grace. She’s always planning her next far-flung adventure abroad. When she’s not at work she’s likely trying out a new hotspot (she’s recently moved to London), listening to a podcast, or at a barre or hot Pilates class.

She is passionate about supporting other women and celebrating their successes. Lauren relishes being the motivating force behind the teamshe’s always cheering them on either from the side line or on hand to celebrate their wins, both personally and professionally.

Lauren started her journey with Grace as a freshfaced graduate in 2012 and after working as a consultant for three years, stepped up to become business manager overseeing all operational aspects before taking on the role as managing director in 2016.  

Hollie

At under 5ft tall, Hollie’s our pocket rocket. She’s a snackaholic and is usually a bar of chocolate and packet of crisps down by 10am – no judgement here. Hollie is messy beyond belief and always has 1000 tabs open on her browser. ‘Organised chaos’, apparently!

Hollie has a ‘half glass full’ approach to life and does everything with a smile – even after the morning school run. She has an infectious laugh that will catch on a mile away. And her caring nature makes her ideal for building longlasting relationships with her permanent desk. 

Justine

When you look up the definition of team player, you’ll see Justine Sargeant. The longest standing member with over 10 years of service, Justine has been a fundamental part of Grace’s journey.

She’s service-led through and through, which is evident from the numbers of candidates who come back to her time and time again. She is the epitome of Grace, always willing to go the extra mile for our candidates and lend an ear.

Never without her red lippie or a leopard print item, her summer wouldn’t be complete without a road trip to a campsite in Cornwall for the sea air and sand between her toes. Our queen of Temps and resident bargain hunter.  

Lynda

When she’s not working, you can find Lynda down at her allotment, taking her rescue dog, Zara, for walks on the beach (she lives on the coast) or spending the weekend with her beloved grandchildren.

With Grace since 2016, she acts as Lauren’s right arm overseeing the finances of the business. Conscientious, loyal, and with a great work ethic, she never visits the office without gifts for everyone and is a real mother hen figure. Lynda’s a credit control machine but really a softie at heart. 

What our clients have to say

Harry Evans
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Grace was a huge help in finding me the perfect candidate for a sales role which became avaliable within my team.

I had not used Grace previously however i'm glad I did thanks to Hollie. She took the time to learn what was important to me when finding the right person for the role and ensured each candidate she put forward had the key characteristics we were looking for.

Hollie will certainly be my go to recruiter for candidates moving forward.

Thank you Hollie for all your hard work and always keeping me updated.
Rebecca, Apprenticeship Manager
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The team at Grace are so professional and dedicated to searching and placing you into the right role and found me my current role in a prestigious global organisation, where I’ve been extremely successful.

The support given is second to none in the lead up to the interview and the interview coaching is an added bonus. I can’t recommend Grace highly enough to any job searchers looking for the best representation from a professional and super friendly team.

Following my recommendations to our HR Business Partner we now source our requirements through Grace. Thank you for everything Grace Personnel.
Suresh, Finance Advisor
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My thoughts on Grace Personnel… professional, determined, caters to the demands of the business, a company that thoroughly vet candidates before sending to interviews, finally…..feedback from candidates to me have expressed that they also enjoy working with Grace, appreciating their personal touch and not being treated as just a number. Other agencies can learn from them.

Having worked with Grace over the last few years, the experience has been nothing but remarkable and are always my first port of call when I have a vacancy. It’s down to your hard work and determination, a very big thank you for your support over the last few years. I look forward to working with you and the rest of the team going forward!
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Looking to work with us or got a burning question? We’d love to hear from you!