Why should you outsource your school’s payroll?

Qtac Payroll offer an excellent payroll service for schools – ideal services for academy schools that are more autonomous. We have a wealth of experience in providing a managed payroll service that is accurate, reliable and cost effective.

Outsourcing your payroll to a reputable provider like Qtac will give you confidence, knowing that your payroll is in experienced and safe hands, leaving you free to deal with other important aspects needed to run your school successfully.

Would you use a supplier whose prices were higher than an alternative, Canada Goose who regularly made mistakes that impacted on you and that gave you poor customer service?

Of course not, yet for many schools that contract out their payroll to their LEA, this is the case. The decision to hand over the payroll to an expert managed payroll provider can have far reaching and unexpected benefits for a school.

Common problems with the LEA Processing Payroll

Although not all LEA’s provide a bad service, some schools have experienced a range of problems and issues including:

• Receiving reports for review after pay date, if at all
• Payslips received late
• Payroll amendments processed in arrears
• Leavers continued to be paid
• Part time employees paid full time
• Lack of named contacts

Peace of mind gained from expertise

With the constant stream of new and changing legislation the complexities and demands of today’s payroll are increasing. And there is no getting away from the fact that school payrolls are even more complex than those for a commercial business.

Compliance is essential – having the security of working with education payroll experts means it is one less thing to worry about.

Increased cost efficiency – despite their size and supposed economies of scale, LEA’s are not necessarily the lowest cost option. In a recent online survey of over 2,000 schools the average charge per employee per period was £3.95.  The all inclusive rate from Qtac is significantly lower than this.

Improved payroll accuracy – payroll is time critical. Your staff must be paid on time, every time. If there are inaccuracies with payroll, it will have a direct and negative impact on staff motivation, moral and the finances of the school.  It is not uncommon, when a payroll is taken over by a commercial provider, Canada goose to find long standing inaccuracies including people on the wrong tax code and even leavers who have continued to be paid.

Increased payroll flexibility – it is common for LEA’s to demand payroll information very early in the month which causes delays in processing overtime, sick pay or holiday pay for that month.  It is also not unheard of for schools to not be given payroll reports for approval until after payday or for them to be so limited in information that they are very difficult to check.  Qtac gives more flexibility not only on when data is needed, but also in terms of the approval process.

Improved management information – one benefit of payroll outsourcing that doesn’t come first to mind is the impact it can have on the quality of management information. By choosing a provider that offers tailored management information and reporting, your payroll can bring rich and timely information into your school.  The data on absence, for example, can highlight potential health or morale problems. Departmental reporting can highlight non-core areas such as Saturday Schools, Out of School Clubs or pre-schools. Whilst reports by your school’s ledger codes can help you balance budgets and post elements at both month and year end.

Threats – legislation and Government Policies are frequently changing but must still be complied with or you could incur heavy fines. So, anyone running a payroll must keep abreast of the changes.  Currently, cuts in govt spending are forcing redundancies in Local Government staffing – that means less people to do more tasks and that could potentially affect the quality of LEA service further.

Paying your staff requires your devoted time and commitment, not to mention technical competence, as late payments can create untold problems. Qtac is a fully accredited BACs Bureau so, as part of our fully managed service, we can pay all your staff via BACs transfers from your account to your employee’s bank accounts, simultaneously. So no need to worry, all your staff will be paid on time.

Opportunity – we can ease the burden for you. We offer a professional service that is accurate and on time, every time. With over 15 years experience providing outsourced payroll solutions throughout the UK, we can assure you of a quality service at affordable cost. Whether you are an Academy status or not, outsourcing your Payroll can result in you having more control on your budget, making greater cost savings, and receiving a better service.

Payroll is what we do, nothing else. Dedicated and concentrated efforts have resulted in achieving committed, reliable systems by our uk based payroll staff, who give excellent service and are always happy to go that extra mile to ensure your satisfaction.

Help and Advice

To get specialist help for your Schools Payroll by outsourcing to a managed payroll provider such as Qtac, get in touch with our team who will be happy to help.