Pension Payroll Operations Lead

equiniti; Crawley; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension match 10%

EAP access

Life cover 4x salary

Employee discounts

Flexible benefits

29 days holiday

Volunteer days

Recognition rewards

Learning platform

Job summary

EQ Retirement Solutions, part of Equiniti, is seeking a Payroll Operations Specialist in the UK to support the Payroll Operations Manager with pension payroll processing and payroll taxation activities, ensuring accuracy, timeliness and compliance.

The role focuses on day-to-day payroll operations, PAYE/RTI compliance, and managing relationships with HMRC and internal stakeholders, all within a regulated environment to deliver high-quality service to clients and pension members.

Qualifications

• Experience in pension payroll administration and/or payroll taxation activities.
• Strong knowledge of UK PAYE legislation and RTI reporting requirements.
• Ability to identify, understand and address knowledge gaps relating to non‑UK tax jurisdictions.
• Experience leading, supervising or coaching operational teams.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation abilities.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills.
• High attention to detail, particularly when reviewing payroll outputs, reconciliations and spreadsheets.
• Ability to manage stakeholder relationships with clients, colleagues and external agencies.
• Experience working within a controlled, regulated and audit‑focused environment.

Responsibilities

• Support the Payroll Operations Manager with day-to-day payroll and taxation operations.
• Act as delegate during periods of absence or peak workload.
• Allocate work, manage priorities and support delivery against SLAs and KPIs.
• Assist with recruitment, onboarding and training of team members.
• Oversee the accurate processing of periodic pension payrolls, lump sum payments and supplementary payrolls.
• Review, validate and authorise payroll outputs prior to release.
• Act as the first point of escalation for complex payroll queries and payment issues.
• Oversee PAYE, RTI and tax remittance activities for HMRC, ROS and Crown Dependency jurisdictions.
• Ensure payroll reconciliations, tax submissions and payments are completed accurately and on time.
• Manage relationships with HMRC and other tax authorities, supporting payroll admins and analysts with technical queries.
• Build strong client relationships and engage Relationship Directors or Relationship Managers where appropriate.
• Ensure compliance with SOPs, governance frameworks, audit requirements and regulatory obligations.
• Identify operational risks, control weaknesses and opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Support internal and external audits, remediation activities and regulatory reviews.

Skills

Pension payroll

Payroll taxation

PAYE RTI

Team leadership

Analytical skills

Organizational skills

Communication

Attention to detail

Stakeholder mgmt

Audit readiness

Job description

EQ Retirement Solutions, part of Equiniti, is seeking a Payroll Operations Specialist in the UK to support the Payroll Operations Manager with pension payroll processing and payroll taxation activities, ensuring accuracy, timeliness and compliance.

The role focuses on day-to-day payroll operations, PAYE/RTI compliance, and managing relationships with HMRC and internal stakeholders, all within a regulated environment to deliver high-quality service to clients and pension members.