Payroll Officer

Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust; Wakefield; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 34,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

NHS pension plan

Generous holiday allowance

Employee health and wellbeing services

Cycle to work scheme

Flexible working options

Job summary

Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust is seeking an experienced Payroll Officer to join our Payroll Team and support the accurate and timely delivery of weekly and monthly payrolls across the Trust.

You will bring hands-on payroll experience, apply NHS Terms and Conditions with minimal supervision, and help ensure employees are paid accurately and on time.

Qualifications

• Sound educational background including Maths GCSEs.
• NVQ Level 3 in Payroll or equivalent experience.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office, email and internet.
• Knowledge of ESR payroll system.
• Experience in a busy office handling competing demands.
• Awareness of NHS Terms and Conditions of Service and Agenda for Change.
• Substantial payroll officer experience with UK payroll legislation.
• Knowledge of Data Protection Act and handling confidential data.
• Understand payroll systems and current legislation (PAYE, NIC, SMP, etc.).

Responsibilities

• Provide accurate payroll and pension service; input into ESR timely.
• Analyse and interpret complex payments; resolve discrepancies.
• Ensure correct tax, NIC, pension, and statutory deductions.
• Maintain sickness absence records and pensionable pay as required.
• Ensure changes to employee details follow authorised procedures.
• Check payroll inputs and reports; resolve financial discrepancies.

Skills

Attention to detail

Organisational skills

Discretion with data

Education

GCSEs including Maths

NVQ Level 3 in Payroll or equivalent

Tools

ESR system

Microsoft Office

Job description

Contact information

For further information about this role, please email Sharon Simpson (Head of Payroll) via [e-mail]

About the role

**Previous applicants need not apply**

We are seeking an experienced Payroll Officer to join our Payroll Team and support the accurate and timely delivery of weekly and monthly payrolls across the Trust.

This role is ideal for someone with hands‑on payroll experience who can work confidently and independently, applying NHS Terms and Conditions and statutory payroll regulations with minimal supervision. The successful candidate will play an active role from day one, helping to maintain service continuity and ensure employees are paid accurately and on time.

Main duties

• To provide an accurate payroll and pension service to the Trust, ensuring that data is prepared and input into ESR in a timely and accurate manner and within the timetables set within the payroll processing calendar, ensuring that all employees are paid in a timely manner
• To analyse and interpret complex payments (for example, following pay awards, organisational change, re-gradings, etc). Investigate pay queries and analyse detailed data to identify errors and discrepancies. Inform individuals of overpayments and negotiate how monies are recovered
• Using under-pinning knowledge ensure the processing, correct application and calculation of tax, national insurance, pension, sickness, maternity, paternity and statutory deductions (e.g. court, council tax, child support deductions) etc are accurate and complies with statutory and organisational requirements escalating and liaising with internal & external bodies where necessary
• To maintain accurate sickness absence and entitlement records for each employee. Advise the employee and manager of any half and no‑pay situations and maintain a deemed pensionable pay record as necessary
• To ensure that changes to employees details and pay and any payments made, are done so in line with the correct authorisation procedures detailed within the department, by means of the Trust’s authorised signature list
• Check and verify payroll and associated input/output prior to distribution of payslips and related documentation and check exception reports for items of materiality, taking any necessary action to make good financial discrepancies, which will in turn ensure budget reports are an accurate reflection of expenditure/income

Essential person specification requirements

Qualifications:

• Sound educational background (4 GCSEs, grade C or above including Maths)
• NVQ Level 3 in Payroll or equivalent relevant experience

Experience:

• Experience of working with computer software programmes such as Microsoft Office, e‑mail and internet.
• Knowledge of ESR system.
• Experience of working in a busy office environment and responding to competing demands
• Awareness of NHS Terms and Conditions of Service, including Agenda for Change and Medical and Dental
• Substantial experience working as a Payroll Officer, with a strong knowledge of UK payroll legislation

Knowledge and Awareness:

• Understanding and knowledge of dealing with sensitive and confidential issues, work policies and procedures (Data Protection Act)
• In depth knowledge and understanding of payroll systems, procedures and current legislation (manual and computerised), including calculating payroll payments from gross to net.
• Knowledge of statutory regulations – PAYE, NIC, SSP, SMP, SAP, SPP

Be part of MY team

We are an acute trust caring for over one million people in Wakefield and Kirklees. Our 10,000 staff work in patients’ homes, the community, and our three hospitals in Pontefract, Dewsbury, and Pinderfields (Wakefield). We prioritise our people and values so we can deliver the best possible care to patients. Our team is friendly, passionate, and innovative, always seeking better ways to work.

We support work‑life balance and foster a diverse, inclusive environment where everyone belongs. Our staff networks offer safe spaces to share ideas and concerns so we can increase awareness and appreciation of equality, diversity, and inclusion. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and especially encourage members of the LGBTQ+ community, ethnic minority groups, and people with disabilities or neurodivergence to apply, as they are currently underrepresented in the Trust.

If you value caring, high standards, improvement, and respect, join the MY team to make a difference every day.

Our benefits

• Access to the NHS pension plan
• Generous holiday allowance of 27 days plus bank holidays, increasing with 5 and 10 years of service
• Exceptional employee health and wellbeing services
• Extensive benefits and support, including:
• Onsite nurseries and childcare salary sacrifice scheme
• Home electronics scheme
• Cycle to work scheme - subject to eligibility criteria
• Car lease salary sacrifice scheme - subject to eligibility criteria
• Working carers support and advice, carers network and carers passport
• Flexible working options and family and carer-friendly policies
• Established staff networks, including LGBTQ+ and Race Equality
• Career progression, training and support

Skilled worker sponsorship

You can find out more about skilled worker and health and care visas on our careers site.