Payroll Associate - Maternity Cover - FTC

Payroll Associate - Peterborough

The Peterborough office are looking for an experienced Payroll Associate to join our successful and growing team on a maternity cover basis, with cover required from approximately August 2026 for 10 months.

The candidate will be allocated their own portfolio of clients, processing multiple payrolls and the role will involve:

• Process all payrolls from start to finish
• Starters, Leavers and Permanent data changes
• Process variable data from clients
• Manage multiple deadlines for variable data and managing clients throughout their pay cycle
• Report processing and sending to clients
• Liaise with client and dealing with salary queries
• Completing monthly pension returns
• Dealing with queries from the client and HM Revenue & Customs
• Processing and calculating statutory payments such as SMP, SSP etc.
• Manually calculating pro-rata payments such as holiday pay, hourly/daily rates of pay etc.
• Keeping abreast of new legislation, supporting the team implement new procedures
• Ad hoc tasks as required

You will have the chance to grow, as well as receive managerial support, and you can expect your responsibilities to increase throughout your time with us. You will work in a friendly and progressive environment, building up your knowledge on all the intricacies of payroll including tax, national insurance, auto enrolment, holiday pay, maternity/paternity/adoption, sick pay and more.

You will also learn the different ways that someone can be paid through salary, hourly pay, overtime, commission, benefits, shares and salary sacrifice.

There are currently eleven members of the Saffery LLP payroll team. This consists of a senior payroll mangers, payroll manager, three assistant managers and six team members that range from trainee up to senior associate.

There is a real focus on development within the team, with the aim being for staff to develop their careers long term within the firm. Alongside a commitment to client service, and excellence in their work, there is a willingness to help each other and succeed as a team.

We offer accounting, audit and assurance, business advisory, tax and VAT services, as well as payroll services acting for businesses and individuals both in the UK and internationally. The portfolio of clients held within the office range from AIM listed clients, large corporate groups to landed estates, with key specialisms in owner managed businesses, property, private wealth and professional practices. Our staff work regularly and closely with their colleagues in our national offices to provide a seamless service to clients, wherever they are located.

• Good working knowledge of payroll systems and Microsoft Excel.
• Good understanding of UK payroll legislation including tax, NI, pensions, and statutory payments.
• Excellent numerical skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple deadlines and work under pressure.
• Strong communication skills for liaising with clients and resolving queries.
• High level of integrity and discretion when handling confidential information.

• A 35 hour working week and a hybrid working policy with a minimum of 2 days in the office (our core hours are 10-4)
• Excellent benefits including; contributory pension scheme, 25 days annual leave, Life Assurance cover and great flexible benefits and family friendly policies,
• Eligibility for the firm's Profit-Sharing Plan. Paid in December.

Equality, diversity and inclusion is a top priority for us. With our ED&I strategy, Everyone Belongs, we are building on our positive work culture and implementing initiatives to improve diversity and strengthen our equitable culture of inclusion, led from the top.

We hope you will apply to us, whatever your background, ethnicity, gender, age, sexuality, disability or neurodivergence, because individual differences equal collective strength. Built on values of excellence, integrity, enthusiasm and collegiality, Saffery is where Potential meets Personal.