We’re looking for a kind, compassionate and resilient Senior Payroll & HR Admin Partner to join our Human Resources team at our Head Office in Islington.

£32,000.00 per annum, working 35 hours per week.

(£32,000 per annum on starting increasing to £33,093 once successfully passed probation).

This is a fixed term contract initially up to 10 months.

Want to feel like you’re making a difference? You’ll feel at home here.

Making you feel at home here means helping you thrive in every way. That’s why we offer a wide range of benefits, award-winning Learning & Development and a culture that welcomes all. These aren’t token gestures - we’ve thought long and hard about how best to support our team. After all, our people are doing something amazing: helping to transform lives every day.

Our benefits include:

• Annual leave increasing up to 30 days with length of service
• Free DBS (take this out if BSW advert)
• Exclusive discounts and cashback via Reward Gateway® and opportunity to buy a Blue Light Card
• Fully paid induction programme and further training
• ILM courses and Apprenticeship Programmes
• Healthcare Cashplan through our partner Healthshield
• Cycle to work scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme for 24-7 confidential support
• Online wellbeing resources
• A generous pension – we will contribute up to 4% and life assurance cover up to £10,000 (T&Cs apply)
• Quarterly Staff Awards to reward & recognise our amazing staff’s commitment and contribution

All applicants must be legally eligible to work in the UK by the start of employment as Look Ahead are not able to offer sponsorship.

The Payroll HR Admin Partner is a hands-on role responsible for:

1. Ensuring both the effective administration and checking of the monthly payroll tasks and effectively managing payroll queries and the outsourcing of payroll tasks to MHR. Ensuring the integrity of Look Ahead’s payroll system at all times and ensure accurate, prompt payment to all employees, workers and Board Members (it is envisaged this will take approximately 50% of time)
2. Providing a customer focused, accurate and proactive HR administration service, working closely with a team of administrators to seek opportunities to streamline and improve administration processes (it is envisaged this will take approximately 50% of time)
3. Working Closely with the HR admin and Payroll team to support on general HR queries and inputting of HR payroll changes

What you’ll do: 

Payroll

• Be responsible for the day to day delivery and coordination of the administration of the Payroll function, ensuring a timely and accurate payroll service is delivered to Look Ahead’s employees, workers and Board members, to agreed deadlines
• Produce and review any monthly exception reports to identify and rectify any payroll errors arising
• Work with the HR Admin and Payroll Manager, Director of People and Director of Finance to ensure that payroll data processing reviews are rigorously and independently checked, validated and signed off
• Act as liaison with internal and external auditors and other 3^rd parties (as appropriate) on all matters with regard to Payroll processes, controls and systems
• Act as liaison with MHR, HR department and Business Systems team on all areas of the payroll.
• Maintain the accuracy and integrity of Look Ahead’s payroll database
• Ensure all information, requests and queries received from the HR Department, and Operational Staff is accurately, promptly and professionally dealt with each month so that staff and workers receive accurate salaries by the relevant due date, including overtime, bank worker timesheets, leaver and starter information and any ad hoc payments as required
• Answer staff payroll queries in a timely and effective way
• Work with Finance to ensure suitable controls and handover to Finance for relevant areas are in place
• Ensure all payroll procedures and controls are documented and up to date
• With the HR Admin and Payroll Manager, manage the relationship with the outsourced payroll and pension provider. Ensure all payments and deductions are processed and calculated correctly, and all journals are posted and relevant reconciliations are complete
• Ensure monthly processes including overpayment letters are sent out and any changes to benefits are uploaded
• Maintain effective liaison with external agencies and government offices to ensure deductions are paid by relevant dates, all required statutory returns are submitted by deadline dates and respond to enquiries courteously and promptly
• Ensure effective liaison with Look Ahead’s employees and workers for queries that cannot be resolved by the outsourced payroll provider by dealing with enquiries courteously and promptly
• Engender a culture which is customer focussed
• Comply with the organisation’s policies and practices
• Other ad-hoc tasks and duties as required

HR Admin:

• Acting as the first point of contact for all HR Admin related queries, via phone and email; responding promptly, whilst managing expectations effectively
• Ensure letters for contractual changes for staff are sent out in a timely and accurate way and all relevant systems updated
• Respond to straightforward policy and process queries, providing appropriate advice and guidance in line with Look Ahead policy, ensure that urgent items are prioritised and that any issues are highlighted and resolved as quickly as possible; escalate to the Admin Manager or an HR Business Partner as appropriate
• Ensure that HR systems, files and procedures and other documents are kept up to date
• Undertake administrative duties such as filing, mail outs, mail merges, scanning, photocopying etc when needed
• Ensure a culture of personal ownership where ‘first contact resolution’ is displayed ie ensure that clear and standardised processes are followed that focus on quality and accuracy of work in line with established standards and KPIs and where possible answer queries ‘right first time.’
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement to seek better, faster, more efficient ways of delivering transaction processing services that have customers at the centre of the experience
• Any other duties commensurate with the role.

General:

• Ensure that all diversity and inclusion implications are considered in all work, and in personal conduct across Look Ahead
• Ensure compliance throughout the service with policies, regulatory and legal requirement and ensure data and information is handled in a confidential, safe and secure manner in accordance with GDPR and associated data regulations
• Ensure Look Ahead’s employer branding is demonstrated through all communications and interactions
• Support the work of the HR team with any projects, research or other requirements as needed

This is not an exhaustive list of all the duties and responsibilities that may be required from time to time and is subject to change in accordance with the needs of Look Ahead.

About you: 

• Can work to tight deadlines and deliver accurate work on time
• Strong customer service approach – wants to get things right first time and ensures timely and effective communication with customers
• Good attention to detail with minimal errors 
• Ability to prioritise and manage multiple tasks
• Proactive and enthusiastic in approach to work and improving processes
• Is confident in successfully resolving issues or conflict
• Is respectful, articulate and sensitive in style of communication
• Is motivated towards excellence and improvement of personal performance with a can-do attitude
• Approachable, open & demonstrates professional behaviour
• Excellent at building effective working relationships
• Drives change, enjoys dynamic diverse environments and demonstrates creativity and innovation in finding solutions
• Is passionate and enthusiastic about what Look Ahead does
• Flexibility – due to the size of the team holidays/time off generally cannot be taken around key payroll deadlines
• Is fundamentally calm and resilient, does not let emotion adversely affect them or obscure their judgement
• Good attention to detail with minimal errors
• Ability to prioritise and manage multiple tasks

What you’ll bring:

Essential:

• Excellent attention to detail and high levels of accuracy
• Previous payroll experience
• Experience using iTrent or similar payroll/HR system for payroll purposes
• Experience of monthly payroll processes
• Intermediate or above Level IT competency, particularly in Microsoft Word and Excel
• Experience of dealing with staff payroll and/or HR queries in a timely manner

Desirable:

• Social Housing experience

About us:

Look Ahead is a leading, not-for-profit care and support provider in London and the South East. Our vision is to build better lives through social care and housing in local communities. As an organisation we deliver over 100 services, providing support to thousands of customers each year. Our mission is to co-design and deliver services that offer innovative social care solutions and support people to thrive. We work across mental health, homelessness and complex needs, young people and care leavers and learning disabilities so there are plenty of opportunities to grow and progress your career with us.

We have a strong social purpose and we live and work by our values:

• We focus on Excellence and innovation.
• We are Caring and Compassionate.
• We are Inclusive and Trusted.
• We work in Partnership and are One-Team.

Look Ahead is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults at risk, and expects all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment.

If your application for this role is unsuccessful, but we feel that you would be suitable for another role, we may contact you to discuss alternative opportunities. If this occurs you would not need to submit another application for the alternative role.

We reserve the right to close this advert early if we are able to appoint to the vacancy before the advertised closed date.

We are committed to diversity and inclusion at work and are accredited with Silver in the Inclusive Employers Standard 2021. We are a proud member of the Employers Domestic Abuse Covenant and encourage applications from a diverse range of applicants of all backgrounds.