Payroll And Pensions Lead

Sellick Partnership; Devon and Torbay; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

Sellick Partnership is recruiting a Payroll and Pensions Lead for a 3-month contract in Plymouth. The role is hybrid (2 days onsite) with an emphasis on delivering accurate, compliant payroll and pensions services across the organisation and external clients.

The post-holder will oversee a Payroll and Pensions team, provide training, manage performance, and ensure SLAs and statutory requirements are met. Urgent closing date for CVs.

Qualifications

• Professional qualification in Payroll, Pensions or Finance (e.g. CIPP Diploma) or significant equivalent experience.
• Strong knowledge of payroll legislation and pension regulations.
• Experience with payroll platforms such as ESR or comparable systems.
• Experience leading Payroll and Pensions in a complex organisation, preferably public sector.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Payroll and Pensions function to deliver high-quality, compliant service.
• Act as senior SME for payroll and pension matters; resolve complex queries.
• Develop and manage the Payroll and Pensions Team through coaching and appraisal.
• Ensure on-time, accurate payroll services meeting SLAs and statutory requirements.
• Build relationships with Shared Business Services and handle escalations.
• Interpret and implement new payroll/pension legislation and policies.
• Oversee pension administration and liaise with the Pensions Agency.
• Monitor performance using MI and KPI data; drive continuous improvement.
• Review processes to improve efficiency and support digital transformation.
• Lead payroll and pension projects and new ways of working.
• Provide expert guidance to managers, employees, and stakeholders.

Skills

Payroll expertise

Pensions expertise

Leadership

Communication skills

Education

CIPP Diploma

Tools

ESR

Job description

Role: Payroll and Pensions Lead

Location: Plymouth - Hybrid (2 days a week)

Duration: 3 Months

Full Time

Hourly rate: up to £165 UMB per day

Sellick Partnership are currently recruiting for a Payroll and Pensions Lead join our reputable public sector organisation based in Plymouth. This is a contract for 3 months, with a possibility to be extended, and is offered on a hybrid basis with a minimum of 2 days onsite.

The Payroll and Pensions Lead will lead the delivery of an efficient, accurate and compliant payroll and pensions service, ensuring employees receive a high-quality service and support.

The appointed candidate will oversee the management of the Payroll and Pensions Team, providing training, coaching and performance management

The duties of the Payroll and Pensions Lead will include:

• Leading the Payroll and Pensions function, ensuring the delivery of a high-quality, compliant and customer-focused service across the organisation and external clients.
• Acting as the senior subject matter expert for payroll and pension matters, providing specialist advice and resolving complex queries, calculations and casework.
• Managing, motivating and developing the Payroll and Pensions Team through recruitment, induction, performance management, regular one-to-one meetings and development planning.
• Ensuring payroll and pension services are delivered accurately and on time, meeting all Service Level Agreements, statutory requirements and key performance indicators.
• Building and maintaining effective relationships with Shared Business Services (SBS), acting as the key contact for escalations, performance reviews and service improvement initiatives.
• Leading the interpretation and implementation of new payroll and pension legislation, ensuring policies, processes and systems remain compliant with regulatory requirements.
• Overseeing pension administration and act as the main liaison with the Pensions Agency, ensuring adherence to national standards and reporting requirements.
• Monitoring service performance, analyse management information and KPI data, investigate variances and implement corrective actions to drive continuous improvement.
• Reviewing, developing and streamlining payroll and pension processes to improve efficiency, enhance customer experience and support digital transformation initiatives.
• Leading payroll and pension projects, including system improvements, process changes and the implementation of new ways of working.
• Providing expert guidance to managers, employees, clients and external stakeholders on payroll, pensions and statutory obligations.
• Co-ordinating and delivering training to payroll and pension staff, ensuring knowledge, capability and compliance are maintained across the service.
• Representing the service at meetings, working groups, project boards and staff engagement activities as required.
• Ensuring effective communication and implementation of local, national and statutory changes affecting payroll and pension services.
• Maintaining business continuity within the service, ensuring resources are effectively managed and workloads are distributed appropriately across the team.
• Supporting the development, review and management of Service Level Agreements to ensure services continue to meet business objectives and client expectations.

The Payroll and Pensions Lead ideally should have:

• Relevant professional qualification in Payroll, Pensions or Finance (such as CIPP Diploma) or significant equivalent experience in payroll and pensions management.
• Strong working knowledge of payroll legislation, pension regulations and statutory requirements, including defined benefit pension schemes
• Excellent knowledge of payroll and HR systems, with experience using ESR or comparable payroll and pensions platforms
• Experience of implementing process improvements, change initiatives and service transformation projects.
• Proven experience managing a Payroll and Pensions function within a complex organisation
• Experience within the Public Sector (NHS, or Local Authority) would be beneficial.

The Payroll and Pensions Lead will need to have excellent communication skills and effectively be able to communicate to stakeholders of all levels. Furthermore, the ideal candidate will have an impeccable eye for detail and accuracy to ensure all workload is carried out effectively and efficiently. They will also need to able to prioritise their workload and be efficient and effective to meet unpredictable deadlines and deal with conflicting demands, whilst working in a high-pressured environment.

The closing date for CVs is Monday 12th October due to the urgent requirement of this role. The closing date may be bought forward should suitable applicants apply.

Sellick Partnership is proud to be an inclusive and accessible recruitment business and we support applications from candidates of all backgrounds and circumstances.

Please note, our advertisements use years' experience, hourly rates, and salary levels purely as a guide and we assess applications based on the experience and skills evidenced on the CV.

For information on how your personal details may be used by Sellick Partnership, please review our data processing notice on our website