Payroll Project Specialist

Essex County Council; Chelmsford; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government organization is seeking a Payroll Project Specialist to enhance payroll processes and reporting. The role requires strong expertise in payroll, with attention to compliance with UK legislation, specifically surrounding Teachers' Pensions and Local Government payments. You will work on tasks like payroll element reviews and statutory absence configurations. This role offers hybrid working arrangements and the opportunity to make a significant impact on payroll efficiency and accuracy.

Qualifications

• Experience in payroll with attention to detail.
• Capable of calculating PAYE and National Insurance manually.
• Understanding of statutory absence and payments in the UK.

Responsibilities

• Review and update payroll elements and test for accuracy.
• Configure and test improvements for statutory absence payments.
• Streamline Teachers' Pension reporting processes.

Skills

Extensive payroll experience

Ability to manually calculate PAYE and National Insurance

Solid understanding of UK legislation

Experience with Local Government and Teachers' Pensions

Confidence in User Acceptance Testing

Oracle Fusion knowledge

Job description

Payroll Project Specialist x2

£148.88 PAYE / £193.782 Umbrella daily rate
Up To 6-Month Fixed Term (with potential extension)
Essex County Council - Hybrid working

Closing Date: Monday 5th January 2026

Interviews: W/C 12th January 2026.

Start Date: Mid-January 2026

Are you passionate about payroll and love getting into the details? Do you enjoy solving complex problems and making processes better? If so, we'd love you on our team!

We're embarking on an exciting project to update absence and pension configurations, Teachers Pension MCR Reporting and LGPS Reporting in our payroll system-and we want your expertise to make it happen.

What You'll Bring

• Extensive payroll experience and a keen eye for accuracy
• Ability to manually calculate PAYE and National Insurance
• Solid understanding of UK legislation on statutory absence and payments
• Experience with Local Government and Teachers' Pensions (including assumed pensionable pay and deduction tiers) (preferred)
• Confidence in User Acceptance Testing and providing clear, detailed feedback
• Oracle Fusion knowledge

If you're curious, love investigating issues, and appreciate payroll's critical role in an organisation, this is the perfect opportunity for you.

What You'll Work On

• Element Updates & Testing: Review and update payroll elements with our software provider; test for accuracy in payroll entry and employee self-service.
• Statutory Absence: Configure and test improvements for accurate statutory and occupational absence payments, ensuring HMRC reporting compliance.
• Teachers' Pension Reporting: Streamline reporting processes for service, salary, and contributions, ensuring accurate data and configuration.
• Local Government Pension Reporting: Transition to automated LGPS reporting by reviewing and testing processes to meet all monthly requirements.

Why Join Us?

You'll play a key role in a project that impacts every employee, ensuring payroll runs smoothly and compliantly. This is your chance to make a real difference while working with a supportive team that values expertise and innovation.

Please note that Essex County Council has determined that the off-payroll working rules will apply to this assignment and where a worker elects to provide their services through an intermediary (such as a personal services company) then income tax and primary national insurance contributions will be deducted at source from any payments made to the intermediary.

What you should do next

If you are interested in finding out more about this role, we would love to hear from you. Please apply via the Working for Essex website. If you have any queries relating to this post please email [e-mail]