HR & Payroll Assistant

Location: Bedford

Contract: Mat Cover from mid-Feb

Hours: Mon - Fri, 8.30am - 4.30pm

Salary: £34,000 - £36,000

Our client is seeking a Payroll & HR Assistant to support operations within a busy HR function. This is a hands-on role combining payroll administration with wider HR support, ideal for someone who enjoys working with detail, deadlines and people.

Reporting into the HR Manager, you will be responsible for managing payrolls across multiple entities, alongside delivering comprehensive HR administrative support. You will act as a key point of contact for payroll-related queries and contribute to the smooth running of HR processes across the employee lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage monthly bureau-assisted payrolls, including starters, leavers, changes, absence and statutory payments
• Act as first point of contact for payroll and pay-related queries
• Maintain accurate HR and payroll records in line with GDPR
• Administer employee benefits and support pension schemes (UK & Ireland)
• Assist with recruitment administration, onboarding and offboarding
• Monitor sickness absence and support occupational health processes
• Produce HR and payroll reports and support the wider HR team

Requirements:

• Experience supporting or running a bureau-assisted payroll (c.100+ employees)
• Highly organised with strong attention to detail
• Confident handling confidential information
• Good Excel skills (including VLOOKUPs and pivot tables)
• Able to manage deadlines in a fast-paced environment
• Experience with ADP payroll
• Exposure to UK/Ireland payroll or pensions
• Working towards or part-qualified CIPD