Services
Payroll and employee services
Trusted payroll & employee services for every sector
Accurate - Compliant - On time
Armstrong Watson delivers fully managed payroll and employee services for organisations of every size and sector. With 50 years of experience supporting 1,500+ employers, we combine specialist expertise, secure technology and proactive advice to take payroll admin and compliance risk off your plate.
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Why businesses choose Armstrong Watson
- End-to-end payroll: processing payslips, RTI submissions, statutory reporting and year-end.
- Compliance-first: up-to-date with HMRC, The Pensions Regulator and employment law.
- Sector expertise: education (incl. Teacher’s Pension Scheme), construction (incl. CIS), manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, professional services, charities and more.
- Scalable & secure: from 1 to 1000+ employees, any pay frequency.
- Integrated advice: access to in-house employment tax specialists and chartered financial planners.
What our payroll service includes
Payroll processing
- Gross-to-net calculations for salaries, overtime, bonuses and commissions.
- Voluntary & statutory deductions (PAYE, NICs, student loans, AEOs)
- Secure e-payslips, P45s and P60s.
- Tailored management reports by cost centre, department, location.
HMRC reporting & year end
- Real Time Information (RTI) – FPS/EPS on or before payday.
- Year-end P60s; P11D(b) for class 1A NIC where applicable.
Workplace pensions & auto-enrolment
Full auto-enrolment compliance: assess workforce each pay period, enrol eligible staff, manage opt-ins/opt-outs, statutory communications; re-enrolment every three years, and upload of contributions to your provider.
Specialist areas (as needed)
- Teacher’s Pension Scheme returns
- Apprenticeship Levy calculation and EPS reporting
- Gender Pay Gap data support (for 250+ employees)
- CIS payroll and deductions
- Payrolling benefits in kind and Class 1A reporting (including transition to HMRC’s mandatory payrolling of BiKs from April 2027
Need joined-up advice? Our in-house employment tax team advises on salary sacrifice, benefits-in-kind, pay governance and compliance. Our financial planning team reviews or sets up workplace pension schemes aligned to your reward strategy.

An award-winning payroll team
Our qualified payroll professionals are up to date with all current legislation surrounding payroll and automatic-enrolment, and will provide a smooth and pain-free payroll process for you and your employees.
Payroll outsourcing guide
Our practical, jargon‑free guide that helps employers understand payroll outsourcing, avoid compliance risks and streamline their payroll processes.
FAQs for UK employers
Employer-focused payroll help and answers
NLW is the legal minimum for ages 21+; NMW applies to under‑21s and apprentices. Both are set by the UK Government and updated each 1 April. The Real Living Wage is voluntary, not a legal minimum.
From 1 April 2025
- NLW (age 21+): £12.21 per hour
- NMW 18–20: £10.00 per hour
- NMW under 18: £7.55 per hour
- Apprentice rate: £7.55 per hour
From 1 April 2026
- NLW (age 21+): £12.71 per hour
- NMW 18–20: £10.85 per hour
- NMW under 18: £8.00 per hour
- Apprentice rate: £8.00 per hour
(Rates are reviewed every April. You can always check the latest on GOV.UK’s official page.)
Most workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks paid holiday per year (pro‑rated for part‑time).
Holiday pay for fixed hours = a week’s normal pay; for shifts = average weekly hours in the last 52 weeks; for irregular/zero‑hours = average pay over 52 paid weeks (look back up to 104 weeks to find 52 paid weeks).
(You can use the holiday calculator to work out how much leave someone should get.)
2025/26 SSP: £118.75/week for up to 28 weeks, subject to eligibility. [gov.uk]
From 6 April 2026 (Employment Rights Act 2025): waiting days removed and Lower Earnings Limit removed; SSP becomes day‑one and payable at the lower of the flat rate (expected ~£123.25) or 80% of earnings for lower earners.
For 2025/26: SMP/SAP/ShPP/SPP main weekly rate £187.18 (after first 6 weeks at 90% AWE), or 90% average weekly earnings if lower.
Yes, but only the employee can opt out via the pension provider’s process. Employers must not induce opt‑outs and must complete a Declaration of Compliance with The Pensions Regulator. Re‑enrolment is required roughly every three years.
2025/26 thresholds: Plan 1 £26,065, Plan 2 £28,470, Plan 4 £32,745, Plan 5 £25,000 (repayments start April 2026), Postgraduate (Plan 3) £21,000. Deductions: 9% over threshold (plans 1/2/4/5) and 6% for Postgraduate.
2026/27 (from Apr 2026) confirmed thresholds: Plan 1 £26,900, Plan 2 £29,385, Plan 4 £33,795, Plan 5 £25,000.
You don’t have to pay, but many employers top up or continue pay; employees can claim a loss of earnings allowance from the court and will need an employer certificate of loss of earnings.
Based on age and full years of service (½, 1, or 1½ weeks per qualifying year), capped at 20 years.
For redundancies on/after 6 April 2025: weekly pay cap £719; max statutory redundancy £21,570.
You can payroll benefits so tax is collected in real time; employers still account for Class 1A NICs. HMRC will mandate payrolling of most BiKs from April 2027, largely removing P11D forms. Plan your data and software now.
Tax codes are adjusted by HMRC to reflect changes in allowances and taxable benefits, job changes, or multiple employments, our RTI submissions help HMRC keep records current.
Cash bonuses are taxed like salary (PAYE/NICs); non‑cash awards and share plans can have different tax/NIC treatments—speak to our Employment Tax specialists for structuring advice.
Armstrong Watson has developed a wage forecasting tool to assist businesses in estimating their employer wage bill. This includes the increases in National Living/Minimum Wage Rates from April 2026, along with National Insurance contributions.
This free tool, created by our payroll service line and IT team, is designed to be user-friendly, however it does make several assumptions to simplify its use.
Download free forecasting tool
Contact our payroll team
Your payroll is handled by CIPP-accredited professionals using robust, secure systems. Our Head of Payroll, Karen Thomson MScIPP, brings over 30+ years’ experience and contributes to national payroll policy via HMRC and industry forums, keeping you ahead of change.
Get in touch
Get in touch to speak to one of our specialist advisers and explore how we can help you.
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What our clients say
We're committed to delivering the best client experience. Hear from those who have worked with us and discover how we've helped them achieve their goals.
I would like to share some positive feedback about your payroll services, particularly Georgie. Georgie has been fantastic during the onboarding process and what we thought might be complicated, with the help and support of Georgie, who responded quickly at all times, offering helpful advice and ideas has resulted in making our processes so much more efficient and error free first time.
OES Group Ltd
One of TSP Engineering’s priorities is to support the local community and economy, so when the decision was made to outsource payroll it was important that this would be with a local business. We realised the outsourcing was a huge undertaking which brought some uncertainty. It needed to be a seamless transition with no negative impact on our employees and our first thought was how many parallel runs would it take before we had it right. Through our meetings with Armstrong Watson’s payroll team any apprehensions we had soon disappeared. Their professionalism, knowledge and continual engagement throughout the set up period provided the reassurance we were looking for, so much so that we went live with no parallel run and not a single error. I look forward to the continuing relationship with the payroll team which now feels like an extension of our team.
Sue McCarten
Head of HR and Business Support, TSP Engineering
Goodwin Development Trust outsourced payroll to Armstrong Watson around 2 years ago and have been very impressed with the service we receive from them as our payroll suppliers. We have a dedicated professional who ensures that our payroll is implemented smoothly. Checks are undertaken and our adviser regularly emails throughout the payroll period to establish that all changes are correct leading to a very accurate payroll system. We are so impressed with our current adviser that we emailed her manager to tell them and as a result, our adviser was successful in obtaining Employee of the Month earlier this year
When a review of the working agreement was required, Armstrong Watson provided us with assurance that all payroll checks would be undertaken in accordance with our policies and procedures. Our dedicated adviser was changed to suit the needs of our business and this was done seamlessly with an excellent handover between colleagues.
An all round excellent service that we would highly recommend
Lynne Stothard
Senior HR Adviser, Goodwin Development Trust
Armstrong Watson has been the school’s preferred Payroll service provider since April 2002.
During that time we have developed a very strong working partnership built on mutual respect and trust. I have found them to be extremely efficient and professional in all aspects of payroll.
There is always a member of their payroll team on hand, whether it be via email, telephone or face to face, to provide advice and support when needed. This, together with their continued efforts to maintain a high level of customer service whilst providing a bespoke payroll service for each of their clients, is a great strength.
This high level of customer service and the continual self-evaluation of that service ensures they provide value for money.
Mabyn Goodfellow
School Business Manager, Inglewood Junior School,
Armstrong Watson have been my accountants since becoming a businesses owner 6 years ago. They helped me throughout the set up and since. The firm has been able to keep me fully informed of any changes in legislation and were a great help in providing advice and set up for staff pensions. Through the hard work of the staff at Armstrong Watson I am able to relax and know that my accounts, pay roll and staff pension are correctly and professionally dealt with leaving me to concentrate on running the best businesses I can.
I would highly recommend Armstrong Watson to sole traders and limited companies alike who are looking for a professional and dedicated accounting firm.
Christopher Sherwin
Church Street Dental Practice
Armstrong Watson have provided our payroll services for a number of years. The team there are excellent; the whole process is user friendly, extremely efficient and very cost effective – everything I need. Any questions I’ve asked have been answered straight away (even daft ones) and they are terrific at dealing with last minute amendments!
I would thoroughly recommend the payroll team at AW to businesses of all shapes and sizes and look forward to continuing to work with them.
Scott Garson
Practice Manager, Cartmell Shepherd Solicitors
Our family business has been supported by Armstrong Watson over the past 40 years, this alone is testament to the quality service and invaluable advice they provide us. They are only a phone call away, whether it be about tax, pensions, payroll, accounts or personnel queries.
We know that we can pick up the phone and our queries will be promptly dealt with in a professional but friendly manner. To be quite frank we would be lost without them.
Fontana's Fish and Chips
We use Armstrong Watson for all our VAT, Payroll and other accounting needs due to the excellent advice we recieve. Grant Smith is more than just an accountant, he gives sound practical business advice and and we value that.
Helen Mullinder
Owner at the Sandwich Club, Carlisle
Since changing Accountants a little over 18 months ago, we can honestly say that Armstrong Watson have been excellent.
Richard Askew has been brilliant in dealing with our accounts and very supportive in helping us convert to the Xero Accounting software and nothing has been to much hassle for him. The Payroll Department have also been amazing too, especially Lisa Grainger, who deals with our wages.
I would happily recommend Richard and Armstrong Watson to anyone looking for a proactive firm of Accountants and Business advisers
Kelly Hunter
Living for Life (Cumbria) Limited
I’ve been with Armstrong Watson for over 20 years and have worked with them on quite a range of things from accounts, corporation tax, self-assessment returns and general compliance.
What sets Armstrong Watson apart from other accountants is the personal relationship we have developed. They always go the extra mile and are always there when I need help and advice.
I trust Armstrong Watson. They always act in my best interest - and having that feeling of security is priceless.
Ben Peters
Managing Director, BHP Associates, Harrogate
Armstrong Watson have looked after our payroll for a few years now and have been an absolute pleasure to work with. The service is prompt and efficient, there's always someone available to answer any questions and it's great to know that they're looking after everything. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend them.
Aimee Scaife
Aftersales Manager, David Hayton
I have done the payroll at Dumfries & Galloway College for 11 years now, all of them through Armstrong Watson. We have a payroll of approximately 270 staff and use the front end service through the bureau.
We continue to work with Armstrong Watson as the service we receive is always of a high standard and there is always support available. The front end service allows us the flexibility to process our own payroll data without having to worry about producing payslip or HMRC reporting at year end.
Above all, the entire service is such great value for money which is hard to beat these days!
Helen Cronie
HR Officer, Dumfries & Galloway College
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