HR & Payroll Officer

We are currently partnering with a leading Multi Academy Trust based in Surrey, who are recruiting for an HR & Payroll Officer to join their central team on a permanent basis

Our client is a high-performing and growing educational Trust, supporting 11 schools and over 700 employees across primary and secondary education. This is an exciting opportunity for an HR professional to support the delivery of high-quality HR and payroll services across the Trust

This is a full-time, all-year-round position with a salary of £31,000 to £34,500 (subject to experience), with a 3.3% salary increase applying from September 2026. The start date is as soon as possible

Duties will include (but are not limited to):

• Coordinating the full recruitment lifecycle, from vacancy administration through onboarding and pre-employment screening
• Administering employment contracts, contractual amendments and accurate maintenance of employee documentation
• Liaising with external payroll and pension providers, including EPM, to resolve queries and ensure effective service delivery
• Preparing, checking and reconciling monthly payroll data to maintain accuracy and compliance
• Supporting employee relations activity across absence, disciplinary, grievance and capability matters
• Maintaining HR systems, workforce records and compliance documentation, while producing accurate reports to inform Trust-wide decision-making

Experience required:

• CIPD Level 3 qualification - nonessential but must begin CIPD training upon appointment
• Experience working within an HR, payroll or people administration role
• Experience supporting recruitment, onboarding and employee record management

Skills, knowledge and expertise required:

• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail
• Confidence using Microsoft Office and HR/payroll systems
• Ability to prioritise a busy workload and meet deadlines
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills

Rewards and Benefits:

• Teachers' pensions/local gov
• Up to 30 days AL
• Professional development sponsorship opportunities

Working hours:

• Full time, 36 hours per week. 9:00-5:00 with some flexibility
• Permanent

Please note that you require recent experience to apply for this role

James Andrews is acting as an employment agency and business in relation to this role

At James Andrews Recruitment Solutions we try to respond to all applications personally, however, due to the high volume of applications this is not always possible. If you have not heard back from us within 72 hours, please assume that your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion

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