Payroll Specialist

The Payroll Specialist is the in-house owner of the end-to-end payroll function. The role works in partnership with our outsourced payroll provider, Sona Payroll, to ensure that every employee is paid accurately, on time, and in line with current UK legislation. The specialist will manage the Sona relationship, take ownership of compliance and the more complex elements of payroll (including manual payments, sick pay, and statutory calculations), and drive continuous improvement – including the use of AI and automation to reduce manual effort and risk. This is a key role in stabilising our payroll function, releasing capacity in HR and Finance, and embedding the expertise the organisation currently lacks.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the end‑to‑end monthly payroll cycle, working in partnership with Sona Payroll.
• Act as the single internal point of contact for Sona, managing the relationship, service quality and continuous improvement.
• Review, validate and approve Sona’s output before each pay run is released.
• Manage all manual payments, off‑cycle adjustments and complex calculations that sit outside the standard Sona process.
• Build and maintain clear documentation of how payroll is run between the organisation and Sona, including responsibilities, controls and escalation routes.

Compliance and Risk

• Act as the in‑house subject‑matter expert on UK payroll legislation, including PAYE, NI, RTI, statutory pay (SSP, SMP, SPP, SAP), pensions auto‑enrolment and HMRC reporting.
• Keep up to date with legislative changes and translate them into clear actions for the organisation and for Sona.
• Investigate and remediate the known sick pay calculation risk, and put preventative controls in place.
• Complete year‑end activity including P11Ds, P60s and PSA submissions.
• Maintain robust controls, reconciliations and audit trails.

Continuous Improvement, AI and Automation

• Identify opportunities to reduce manual payments through process redesign, automation and the use of AI tools.
• Use AI responsibly to support tasks such as drafting employee communications, analysing payroll data, sense‑checking calculations, and identifying anomalies – always with human oversight and within the organisation’s AI and data governance principles.
• Lead or contribute to payroll improvement projects, including system enhancements, control improvements and reporting development.
• Share knowledge and good practice with HR, Finance and Sona to raise the overall standard of the payroll service.

Stakeholder Support

• Act as the first point of contact for employees and managers with payroll queries, providing clear and timely responses.
• Free up HR colleagues (currently supporting payroll) to focus on their core HR remit.
• Reduce reliance on Finance colleagues for routine payroll support, enabling Finance to focus on core finance priorities.
• Produce clear management information and reports for HR, Finance and senior leadership as required.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Essential: CIPP qualified or equivalent practical experience at a senior payroll level.
• Desirable: CIPP MSc or other postgraduate‑level payroll/reward qualification.
• Essential: Significant end‑to‑end UK payroll experience, including running payroll for organisations of comparable scale and complexity.
• Desirable: Experience in a multi‑entity or regulated environment (e.g. care, healthcare, education, financial services).

Sona Payroll knowledge

• Essential: Familiarity with Sona Payroll, or strong recent experience managing an outsourced payroll provider with the demonstrable ability to onboard and manage Sona quickly.
• Desirable: Direct, hands‑on experience working with Sona Payroll, including configuration, reporting and issue resolution.

Provider management

• Essential: Proven experience managing third‑party payroll providers, including service quality, SLAs and continuous improvement.
• Desirable: Experience leading provider transitions or implementations.

Legislation and compliance

• Essential: Strong working knowledge of UK PAYE, NI, RTI, statutory pay, pensions auto‑enrolment, P11D and HMRC reporting.
• Desirable: Experience in international payroll or expatriate payroll arrangements.

AI and digital fluency

• Essential: Confident and curious user of AI tools to support day‑to‑day work – with sound judgement on accuracy, confidentiality and data protection.
• Desirable: Track record of applying AI or automation to payroll tasks such as reconciliation, anomaly detection, drafting communications or process documentation.

Systems

• Essential: Strong Excel skills and the ability to pick up new payroll, HR and reporting systems quickly.
• Desirable: Experience with systems such as Workday, ADP, Sage Payroll, or similar.

Personal Attributes

• Essential: Accurate, methodical and discreet. Calm under deadline pressure. Able to challenge and explain payroll matters clearly to non‑specialists.
• Desirable: Comfortable working independently in a part‑time pattern, prioritising effectively and partnering well with HR and Finance.

What We Offer

• Build Your Career: Fully funded qualifications and clear pathways into Team Leader, Deputy and Registered Manager roles.
• Ongoing learning and development through structured programmes and hands‑on experience.
• Opportunities to step up, take on responsibility, and grow within the organisation.
• 24/7 access to confidential support through our Employee Assistance Programme.
• OnDemand GP access.
• A strong team culture where people support each other day‑to‑day.

Work That Works for You

• 28 days holiday (inclusive of bank holidays), increasing with service.
• Birthday Recognition – Celebrating our people on their special day.
• Wellbeing days to support staff when needed.
• Team‑based working patterns.

Be Part of Something Bigger

• Opportunities to get involved in our international projects, including trips to Tanzania supporting local communities.
• A values‑led organisation focused on making a genuine difference — not just commercially, but socially.

The Essentials

• Pension with NEST.
• Access to discounts via Sage Employee Benefits and Blue Light Card.
• Long service recognition awards.
• On‑site parking (where available).
• Relaxed dress code.

About Silver Birch Care Holdings

Silver Birch Care Holdings is a leading provider of high‑quality education, supported accommodation, residential care, and specialist support for children and young people aged 5 to 25 across the UK. Silver Birch Care Holdings is a family owned provider, driven by our commitment to care. This makes us different from other organisations in the sector. Because we are not owned by venture capital investors or corporate shareholders, we reinvest any surplus funds into our services and support charities around the world. Through our family of services – including Silver Birch Care, Silver Birch Care (Residential Services), The Beeches, Benecare, and Clover Childcare Services, alongside our two independent specialist schools – we operate more than 60 children’s homes and supported living services across London, Peterborough, Northampton, Kent, and Norfolk. We are proud that Clover Childcare Services is the UK’s first Dyadic Developmental Practice (DDP) Residential Certified Organisation, reflecting our strong commitment to trauma‑informed and attachment‑focused care. Working in partnership with over 60 local authorities, we support children and young people to overcome challenges, celebrate their achievements, and build the skills they need to live safe, happy, and fulfilling lives. Our experienced and dedicated teams nurture every individual, ensuring they feel safe, supported, and valued.

Safeguarding

Silver Birch Care Holdings is dedicated to safeguarding and promoting the welfare and well‑being of children and young people. Appointments are made subject to the satisfactory completion of safer recruitment employment checks in line with Ofsted regulations. This will include satisfactory references, enhanced DBS from the Disclosures and Barring Service and, where applicable, any international equivalent being obtained.