Job Description

Payroll & Benefits Manager

Full Time / Permanent / Site-based / Stoke

Salary up to 60,000 plus excellent benefits

Reporting directly to the HR Director, Water Plus one of UK's largest water retailers, has an exciting opportunity for an experienced

Payroll & Benefits Manager

to join their HR team, based in Stoke (ST4 4TW).

This is a site-based role, with 4 days a week minimum in our Stoke office.

What is the role?

This is a hands-on role, responsible for running the monthly payroll process for approximately 500 employees, including the administration of benefits and pension related processes.

What are some of the key accountabilities of the role?

Manage payroll processes accurately, on time, compliantly and with 100% accuracy; whilst identifying opportunities to drive efficiencies. Main point of contact for Third party benefit providers, including monitor and manage the services provided Review and oversee HR benefit related processes, undertaking regular checks of employee benefits membership, to ensure Water Plus is offering the right benefits to our colleagues. Ownership of the annual salary review process, working collaboratively with the HR team.

What are we looking for from our Payroll & Benefits Manager?

Essential:

Chartered institute of Payroll Professionals (CIPP) Qualified or a similar payroll qualification Proven hands-on experience managing in-house payroll and employee benefits processes Experience of cloud based HRIS/technology and managing third party relationships. Sound understanding of HR processes and people related legislation Excellent working knowledge and experience of managing salary sacrifice benefit schemes Experience of managing annual salary review process linked to salary ranges and performance Excellent communication skills with the confidence to liaise with colleagues at all levels of the business Highly proficient / expert level competence using Microsoft Excel Strong IT skills and confident using MS Office suite (Outlook, Teams, Word, SharePoint)

Desirable:

HR Generalist experience Compensation & Benefits experience Familiarity with commission-based payroll Knowledge of Job grading and compensation benchmarking Experience using iTrent HR software Working knowledge of flexible benefits platforms

What does Water Plus have offer our Payroll & Benefits Manager?

A competitive salary of up to 60,000 per annum dependent upon experience 37.5 hour working week, Monday to Friday. After your probationary period, you will have the option to work 1 day a week from home. 25 days annual leave (pro-rata if you join us part way through our annual leave year), plus never work your birthday, plus all Bank Holidays Our annual leave year runs from 1st April to 31st March, you will have the option to buy or sell up to 5 days holidays each February Free Healthcare cashback Plan (re-claiming for spend on optical treatment or dental care and more). You can upgrade your membership to include a partner and children. Pension scheme with employer contributions matched up to 6%; Life Assurance. Confidential Employee Assistance Programme Access to discounts and offers from 350+ top brands. Access to Water Plus Academy to develop personally and professionally, incl support with professional qualifications and study leave.

What is a Water Retailer and who is Water Plus?

When parliament approved The Water Bill in 2014, it declared that the water market could become competitive for non-domestic customers. It ruled that water wholesalers could no longer provide the retail element for their non-domestic customer. Water Plus is a Water Retailer, and we went live in 2017 as a joint venture between United Utilities and Severn Trent and our customers range from small independent businesses to some of the biggest names in the UK.

A few years on, we are an award-winning trusted water retail partner for around 350,000 non-domestic customers across England and Scotland. Amongst other accolades, we have recently won the UK Customer Satisfaction Award for Sustainable Customer Service for 2025, for our work with customers and employees - the second UK Customer Satisfaction Award we have won in two years.

Please note

: We may close the advert sooner than the date advertised; therefore, you are encouraged to apply as soon as you can. If you have any questions or issues regarding your application, or would like a copy of the job description, please email us at recruitment@water-plus.co.uk.

Closing Date: 19 June 2025

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Pay: Up to 60,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Free parking
Schedule:

Monday to Friday
Application question(s):

Please briefly summarise your experience relevant to this role. NB: if this question is left unanswered, your application will be rejected. What is your salary expectation? What is your notice period or availability to start in this role?
Licence/Certification:

right to work in UK with no employer sponsor now / in future (required) CIPP Qualification or similar payroll qualification (required) hands-on experience managing in-house payroll (required) compensation & benefits administration experience (preferred) home address near ST4 4TW + can attend office daily (required)
Work Location: In person

Application deadline: 19/06/2025
Reference ID: P0625