Charities and non-profit organisations carry the same payroll obligations as any employer, often with far tighter budgets and more scrutiny over where every pound goes. We take that pressure off your team. Your staff are paid correctly and on time, HMRC is kept happy, and you can point to a clear, modest cost for a job that is done properly.
Cost-effective payroll so more goes to the cause
Every pound spent on back-office admin is a pound that does not reach the people or cause you support. That is why we keep our pricing simple and low. Our fully managed service is £5 per employee, per month (plus VAT), with no long tie-ins and no charge for the people you are not paying in a given period. For a small charity paying a handful of staff, that is a predictable, budget-friendly figure you can put in front of trustees and funders with confidence.
Outsourcing also removes a hidden cost: the hours a manager or trustee spends wrestling with payroll software, tax code changes and pension letters. Handing that to us frees your people to do the work that actually matters. See our outsourced payroll service or view full pricing for the detail.
Mixed teams of staff and volunteers
Most charities run on a blend of paid employees and volunteers, and the line between the two matters a great deal. Volunteers are generally not paid for their time, and paying a volunteer, or reimbursing them beyond genuine out-of-pocket expenses, can accidentally create an employment relationship and a payroll obligation you did not intend. We help you keep that boundary clean.
For your paid team, we handle the full range of arrangements charities tend to use:
- Full-time, part-time and job-share employees paid weekly, fortnightly or monthly.
- Casual, sessional and zero-hours workers whose hours vary from one period to the next.
- Genuine expense reimbursements kept separate from pay so nothing is misreported.
- Statutory pay for sickness, maternity, paternity and adoption calculated correctly.
- Payslips issued and P45s and P60s produced for everyone on the payroll.
A word on volunteers. If you want to thank volunteers with anything more than reimbursed expenses, talk to us first. We will help you understand where a payment could tip someone into being a worker or employee, so you avoid an unexpected PAYE or National Insurance liability.
Auto-enrolment duties still apply
Charitable status does not exempt you from workplace pensions. If you employ staff, the same auto-enrolment rules apply as to any other employer. Eligible workers must be assessed, enrolled into a qualifying scheme and given the right communications, and you must re-declare your compliance to The Pensions Regulator on the usual cycle. Getting this wrong can lead to penalties that a charity can ill afford.
We assess every worker each pay period, enrol those who qualify, handle opt-ins and opt-outs, and manage your contributions and communications so nothing slips. Our auto-enrolment and pensions service is built to take this off your plate entirely.
Restricted funding and complex roles
Charity funding is rarely simple. Grants and contracts often come with restrictions, and a single member of staff may be funded partly from one grant and partly from another, or a role may be paid for by a project that runs for a fixed term. Trustees and funders both need to see that salary costs are being reported cleanly against the right source.
We produce clear, well-structured reports so you can show exactly what each role costs, split by cost centre or funding stream where that helps your reporting. When a funded post ends, we handle the leaver process properly, including final pay and any statutory obligations, so there are no loose ends.
Compliance and data you can rely on
Trustees are personally responsible for good governance, and payroll is one area where mistakes are both common and visible. We give you reassurance on both compliance and data. We are members of the CIPP, ICAEW-affiliated and registered with the ICO, so your organisation's records and your staff's personal information are handled to recognised professional standards.
Real Time Information is filed with HMRC on or before every payday, deductions are worked out and reported correctly, and you have a named contact who answers the phone and explains things in plain English. It is the sort of quiet reliability that lets a board stop worrying about payroll.
Get a no-obligation quote for your charity and tell us how many people you pay and how often. We will come back to you the same day with a clear price and no pressure.