Payroll and Systems Officer

Application Deadline: 21 January 2026

Department: People

Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time

Location: London

Compensation: £35,800 per year + benefits

Description

Are you an experienced Payroll professional, with experience of preparing and reconciling payroll data and a good knowledge of employee benefits? Do you have excellent systems and IT skills, including an advanced knowledge of Excel? We are recruiting for a Payroll and Systems Officer to take responsibility for the smooth day‑to‑day running of all Dogs Trust payrolls, including ensuring all associated payments and paperwork are administered appropriately. This will include checking complex work, answering queries and monitoring and administering all staff benefits on behalf of Dogs Trust. The Systems and Payroll Officer also has a key role in the administration and development of the HR/Payroll System, Iris Cascade.

What does this role do?

• Be responsible for the accurate delivery of the monthly payrolls for all Dogs Trust employees for the UK, and the outsourced international payrolls.
• Undertake day‑to‑day administration as required, and provide support and training for the Payroll Administrators who deliver the payrolls, where necessary.
• Be responsible for complicated manual calculations in line with Dogs Trust policies, and for ensuring statutory regulations are included correctly.
• Be the main contact for these calculations and processes for managers and ensure budget holders and managers know the payroll deadlines and submit complete instructions, liaising with managers and the HR team when there are gaps in the information.
• Undertake both sample and regular checks of all payroll changes such as leave payments, deductions and correct adjustments as necessary. Also undertake auto‑enrolment and salary sacrifice processes and ensure the regulations are being processed correctly.
• Be a system administrator for the HR / Payroll system. This will include configuration, maintenance and troubleshooting of the HR, Payroll and Training elements of the system.
• Maintain, liaise and process paperwork for pension contributions and all other staff benefits, ensuring a good working relationship with the external providers.
• Run, audit and reconcile the necessary end‑of‑month reports and provide with supporting documentation to obtain approval for payment of the payroll. Responsible for subsequent end‑of‑payroll letters, documents and both scheduled and ad hoc reports as part of Period and Year End processes.
• Answer queries relating to all areas of payroll for managers and colleagues in person and in writing.

Could this be you?

To be successful in this busy role you’ll have experience in a similar position, with demonstrable working knowledge of UK payroll legislation and statutory requirements, including pension regulations. You’ll be highly numerate and able to understand and explain detailed payroll and tax information. You’ll have experience of preparing and reconciling payroll data, and a good working knowledge of staff benefits, including those managed through salary sacrifice. You’ll be highly IT literate, with experience of using an integrated payroll and HR database (ideally Iris Cascade), and the ability to assist in the development of the system at a technical level. You’ll also have excellent communication skills, with advanced knowledge of report writing and the ability to produce clear and detailed reports from both HR and Payroll systems.

What does this team do?

The Payroll Team is part of the People function and is responsible for the upkeep and management of the Dogs Trust payrolls to ensure all salaries are paid accurately and on time. It is important that the postholder is able to pay all payrolls in the absence of the payroll manager, alongside the HR Operations Manager and the People Director.