13 Oct 2020
Payroll processing - dream or nightmare?
Within the Education sector the decision to outsource payroll can be based on the need to address ever increasing complexities in payroll legislation. Annual changes in tax codes and NI bands as well as a number of statutory payments and deductions all have to be processed through the payroll. The workload to stay abreast of and ensure compliance with legislation is a mountain for payroll staff. Add in the pressure of maintaining pension auto-enrolment and Real Time Information reporting to HMRC and processing the payroll becomes a relentless challenge for the time poor and resource stretched payroll team.
If the events of recent months did not cause stress in payroll terms, you are probably happy with your current arrangements. However, if mention of CJRS, Furlough and Business Continuity are something you would be happy to forget, perhaps now is the time to consider outsourcing your payroll to a specialist provider?
Making the decision to outsource payroll processing to a third party provider commonly sees a return on investment through the reduction in costs of having appropriately skilled employees in-house and the hardware and software needed. Plus, if security and transparency are a concern, outsourcing your payroll doesn’t have to mean losing touch with your data. Depending on the chosen service level, it is possible for your staff to have access to payroll information, with both the data and creating output available in real time and via a range of devices.
A specialist payroll service provider can deal with HMRC and employee queries and produce management information and output required by third parties, such as pension providers. Or, if preferred, users can be given access to the inbuilt reporting tool. Payslips, P60 and P11D can be generated and delivered according to your preference – hard copy, electronic or both. Furthermore, an experienced provider such as Frontier Software Payroll Services can further enhance the service through the addition of Human Resource management software and Self Service, giving employee access to pay history and payslips. Furthermore, as a provider that specialises solely in the provision of Payroll/HR software and services, Frontier can handle key outputs such as LGPS, TPS and the Schools Workforce Census. All generated by the system as standard.
A further consideration for the education sector is the shared services model, using one platform and one provider across multiple schools. A shared solution will give each participant a path through the myriad accountability, reporting and legal burdens that running a payroll presents and can reduce costs by £000’s at individual school level.
Frontier Software Payroll Services is a provider to all market sectors and organisations of all sizes. Our SLA can be changed at any time to suit you. A team of payroll experts is always on hand to help make the business of running a payroll less stressful and your time more productive. With a range of service options from bureau to fully outsourced, you can select the level and preferred method of operation to suit your needs now, with flexibility and scalability to meet changes in the future.
Getting the payroll right is vital and getting it wrong will impact on staff morale and their level of commitment to you, their employer. So, if running your payroll is the stuff of nightmares, consider a change to payroll services and start living the payroll dream!
Originally published on Education Today October 2020.