Deputy Employee Services Manager in Wolverhampton

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic, highly motivated and experienced Deputy Employee Services Manager. The role is a fixed term contract to cover maternity leave. Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust provides a Payroll, Expenses and Pensions Service to 4 Trusts and an ICB across the Black Country and beyond, processing circa 40,000 employees per month. This is a fast paced and busy department that prides itself on the standard of service it delivers and the excellent customer care it provides. The Deputy Employee Service Manager is responsible for the day to day management of a large team and ensuring the timely, accurate payment of all employees in accordance with statutory and NHS Regulations.

Job Responsibilities

• To send the weekly and monthly BACS payment on time in line with the deadlines, handling up to circa £22m, ensuring all necessary checks and resolving any issues.
• Line manage the team, including recruitment, selection, appraisals, personal development, sickness absence policy and disciplinary issues, ensuring Trust HR policies are adhered to.
• Effectively manage and plan own and departmental workload to ensure the provision of a comprehensive payroll service which complies with all relevant regulations and statutory requirements while embracing departmental, Trust and Shared Service Client objectives.
• Engage in forward planning to anticipate potential service issues and work with the Trust, Shared Service clients and Service provider to mitigate risk.
• Review payroll processes and ensure effectiveness and efficiency, making improvements where required, following ESR Best Practice guidelines and introducing and managing improvements to systems and services, including the implementation of electronic systems.
• Liaise with all levels of staff within the Trust, Shared Service Clients and external organisations providing expert guidance on payroll legislation, expenses legislation, NHS Pension and the Trust’s alternative Pension scheme provider (NEST).
• Resolve highly complex payroll, tax and pension queries promptly and effectively, making decisions and authorising and documenting adjustments.
• Plan, in conjunction with the Head of Employee Services, the best way to implement legislative, procedural and system changes and ensure that standard procedures are developed and maintained.
• Assist in training of new staff and training in legislative updates.
• Communicate important and complex changes in legislation, processes or elements affecting pay to all trust staff using presentations, emails, face‑to‑face conversations, payroll messages, training guides and information packs.
• Record and implement actions from contract management meetings.
• Ensure all Trust procedures and SFIs are strictly adhered to when dealing with payroll and pension matters by providing expert advice to other staff.
• Ensure the rules on statutory payments for sick, maternity, adoption, shared parental, paternity leave, along with occupational payments, are adhered to for the Trust and Shared Service Clients.
• Manage the payroll element of the auto‑enrolment process.
• Ensure local pay scales and local pay elements are created, maintained and ended as required in line with authorisation received from the Trust or Shared Service Client.
• Liaise with auditors to ensure the efficient completion of internal and external payroll audits and implement audit recommendations.
• Process statutory and non‑statutory returns in accordance with appropriate timescales.
• Ensure all relevant monthly and annual reconciliations are carried out accurately and on time, submitting and maintaining records in line with NHS and Statutory Regulations, including but not limited to the administration of P60s and P11Ds.
• Ensure the appropriate deductions for HMRC and NHS Pensions are correctly administered.
• Manage the control and reconciliation of other payroll deductions.
• Support finance through month‑end and year‑end reporting activities with query resolution as required.
• Develop and maintain excellent working relations between the Trust and Shared Service clients.
• Responsible for continuous improvement in Trust practices, procedures and policies affecting payroll, expenses and pension provision, recommending and contributing to implementations and suggesting cost‑effective improvements.
• Involved in planning projects such as e‑forms, e‑payslips, employee self‑service, e‑expenses, e‑doctors roll‑out.
• First point of escalation for disputes around overpayments, liaising and explaining causes with tact and sensitivity, and advising on recovery processes.
• Responsible for raising and authorising invoices and credit notes for Shared Service Clients.
• Actively monitor overpayment causes and identify and rectify gaps in Trust processes to reduce overpayments.
• Give sign‑off to all emergency (CHAPs)/Advance payments made by the provider.
• Maintain discretion and confidentiality when dealing with or privy to sensitive, personal or private information.
• Write and supply reports from ESR as required.
• Manage and administrate the salary sacrifice car scheme within the Trust.
• Ensure continuous professional development within payroll, expenses and pensions and remain up‑to‑date with legislation.
• Ensure adequate training is provided to Employee Services staff within the Trust.
• Delegate tasks within the department as appropriate.
• Deputise for the Head of Employee Services where appropriate and required.
• There may be a requirement to undertake other similar duties as part of this post, in order to provide a quality service. These will be consistent with the level of responsibility outlined above.

Person Specification

Essential Qualifications

• Educated to Degree Level or Equivalent
• Specialist Knowledge of NHS Payroll & Pensions
• Specialist knowledge of ESR

Essential Experience & Skills

• Experience of working in a Senior Payroll Role
• Expert knowledge of NHS Terms and Conditions
• Experience Managing a Payroll Team
• Excellent analytical and IT Skills
• Excellent organisational skills

Desirable

• Experience Managing an NHS Payroll Team

Communication

• Excellent communication skills
• Ability to adapt communication skills to all levels of staff

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.