Payroll Assistant

Sewell Wallis; Sheffield; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

28 days annual leave

Pension Contribution

Job summary

Sewell Wallis is partnering with a South Yorkshire social care business to recruit a Group Payroll Assistant in Sheffield. The role oversees payroll for 150+ staff across multiple payrolls, ensuring accuracy, deadlines, and compliance while supporting rostering and workforce reporting.

Ideal candidates will have 5+ years in payroll, strong Excel skills, and a professional payroll qualification. A full UK driving licence is desirable and the team works in a central finance office environment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years' experience in payroll.
• Strong knowledge of payroll legislation relating to statutory payments.
• Experience with staff rostering and scheduling.
• Payroll qualification or professional credential.

Responsibilities

• Process end-to-end payroll for 150+ employees across multiple payrolls.
• Maintain accurate payroll records for starters, leavers, changes and deductions.
• Process statutory payments (SSP/SMP) and payroll reconciliations.
• Prepare and submit BACS files and payroll reports for finance and operations.
• Support HR with rostering, annual leave, and workforce reporting.
• Respond to payroll queries and manage annual leave and pension changes.

Skills

Payroll processing

MS Excel

Communication

UK payroll law

Attention to detail

Education

Payroll qualification

Job description

Sewell Wallis is delighted to be working with a fantastic South Yorkshire social care business to recruit a Group Payroll Assistant to join their central office team in Sheffield.

This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced payroll professional who enjoys working in a varied role and is confident managing payroll from start to finish, while also supporting the wider operational requirements of a growing care group.

Reporting directly to the Group Financial Controller, you will take ownership of payroll for 150+ employees across multiple payrolls, ensuring everything is processed accurately, efficiently and within critical deadlines. Alongside payroll, you will play an important role in staff rostering, annual leave administration and workforce reporting.

What will you be doing?

• Processing end-to-end payroll for 150+ employees across multiple payrolls.
• Maintaining accurate payroll records, including starters, leavers, contractual changes, salary amendments and deductions.
• Calculating and processing statutory payments including SSP and SMP.
• Completing payroll reconciliations and appropriate pre-payroll checks.
• Preparing and submitting BACS payment files within agreed deadlines.
• Producing payroll and management reports for finance and operational teams.
• Working closely with HR to review and process FWR received across the business.
• Responding professionally and promptly to employee payroll queries.
• Managing the full annual leave process for the business.
• Monitoring pension enrolment, opt-ins, opt-outs and other pension changes.
• Preparing and uploading pension contribution information to the relevant provider.
• Reconciling pension deductions and contributions.
• Supporting the preparation and maintenance of staff rotas across the care services.
• Ensuring rotas reflect staffing requirements, availability and contracted hours.
• Coordinating rota changes relating to sickness, absence, annual leave and additional staffing requirements.
• Liaising with managers and employees to resolve rostering issues and identify staffing gaps.
• Ensuring hours worked and additional shifts are accurately captured for payroll.
• Producing regular payroll, pension, staffing and rostering reports.
• Assisting the Group Financial Controller with payroll analysis, reconciliations and audits.
• Providing supporting information for audits and undertaking other reasonable finance and administrative duties.

What skills are we looking for?

You Will Ideally Have

• At least 5 years' experience in a payroll-focused position.
• Strong knowledge of employment legislation relating to payroll, annual leave and statutory payments.
• Experience of staff rostering and scheduling.
• A payroll qualification or relevant professional qualification.
• Strong MS Excel skills, alongside good knowledge of Word and Outlook.
• Excellent communication skills and the confidence to explain findings and deal with payroll queries.
• GCSE English Language and Maths at Grade C or equivalent.
• A full UK driving licence would be desirable.

The person

This role would suit someone who takes real ownership of their work and enjoys being the go-to person for payroll queries.

You’ll need to be accurate, methodical and highly organised, with excellent attention to detail and the ability to remain calm when priorities change. You’ll also be someone who is proactive enough to identify issues and find solutions, rather than waiting for problems to escalates.

Given the confidential nature of payroll, discretion and trustworthiness are essential. You’ll be equally comfortable working independently and as part of a wider team, and you’ll have a professional and approachable manner when dealing with employees and managers.

Most importantly, you’ll be committed to supporting the delivery of high-quality care through effective workforce administration.

What's on offer?

• A competitive salary of up to £35000
• 28 days annual leave
• Pension Contribution

If you're an experienced payroll professional looking for a role where you can make a real impact and become a valued member of a central finance team, we'd love to hear from you.