Interim UK Payroll Coordinator

Confidential; Greater London; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

Confidential is seeking an experienced Payroll Specialist to join a fast-paced UK payroll team. You will manage end-to-end UK payroll processing for a large employee base, ensuring accuracy and on-time payments.

The role focuses on compliance with PAYE, NI, Auto Enrolment, RTI, GDPR and continual improvement through data analysis and stakeholder collaboration. SAP payroll experience is a plus, and strong Excel skills are essential for reconciliations and reporting.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience processing high-volume UK payrolls (thousands of employees).
• Strong knowledge of UK payroll legislation, NI, PAYE, pensions, Auto Enrolment, RTI.
• Proven ability to perform payroll reconciliations and HMRC reporting.

Responsibilities

• Manage end-to-end UK payroll processing and ensure on-time payments.
• Support audits, process improvements and junior team development.
• Maintain data accuracy, GDPR compliance and data confidentiality.

Skills

UK payroll processing

Payroll legislation

Payroll reconciliations

Excel (PivotTables, VLOOKUP)

Stakeholder management

Education

Payroll qualification

Tools

SAP payroll

Job description

Handle are currently working with a global media and entertainment brand who are looking for an experienced Payroll Specialist to join a busy, fast-paced payroll team.

This is an excellent opportunity for a payroll professional with strong technical knowledge, excellent attention to detail and experience managing complex, high-volume payrolls. You'll play a key role in ensuring accurate and compliant payroll delivery while supporting continuous improvement and building strong relationships with internal stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• - Manage end-to-end UK payroll processing, ensuring employees are paid accurately and on time.
• - Ensure compliance with PAYE, National Insurance, statutory payments, pensions, Auto Enrolment and RTI requirements.
• - Review payroll inputs, maternity cases, manual calculations, overpayments and final payments.
• - Investigate payroll discrepancies, analyse variance reports and support payroll reconciliations.
• - Manage payroll queries, resolve escalations and liaise with internal teams and external payroll providers.
• - Support payroll audits, process improvements and the development of junior team members.
• - Ensure payroll data accuracy, confidentiality and compliance with GDPR.

What We're Looking For

• - Proven experience processing high-volume UK payrolls, ideally covering 3,000+ employees.
• - Strong knowledge of UK payroll legislation, statutory payments, pensions and employee benefits.
• - Experience with payroll reconciliations, HMRC reporting and payroll compliance.
• - Advanced Excel skills, including PivotTables and VLOOKUPs.
• - SAP payroll experience is advantageous but not essential.
• - Excellent analytical, organisational and problem-solving skills, with the ability to work accurately under tight deadlines.
• - A proactive team player who can support colleagues, manage competing priorities and drive continuous improvement.

A payroll qualification is desirable, alongside a genuine interest in developing your payroll career.

Handle actively welcomes applicants from under-represented backgrounds - we pride ourselves on attracting the best talent for every opportunity through a commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.