Education payroll, and pension management

Schools and Multi-Academy Trusts deserve a personal payroll service

Specialist payroll and pensions delivered by people who actually understand education

You shouldn’t have to chase your payroll provider for updates. Or wonder if your staff will be paid correctly. Or feel like just another account number.

Ascend Education delivers specialist payroll and pension services for schools, academies and Multi-Academy Trusts — with the personal attention that’s become so rare in this sector.

A dedicated team

No call centres. No hiding behind ticket systems. No offshoring. Just real people, based in the UK, who know your payroll inside out and actually pick up the phone when you need them.

People who understand schools

Our team has over 75 years of combined experience in education payroll, and pensions. We know what you’re dealing with, and we know what is important to schools and Trusts.

Proactive, not reactive

We spot issues before they become problems. We keep you informed, and our goal is to make the entire process as stress-free as possible.

Complete expertise, completely managed

We handle everything education payroll and pension throws at us — multiple contracts, term-time only roles, backdated pay awards, dual pension schemes, complex leave calculations, funding splits, and MAT-wide processing.

The technical complexity is ours to manage, not yours.

Our systems and processes are designed around how schools actually work. Our compliance standards mean your pension submissions, statutory reporting, and audit trails stand up to scrutiny every time.

Your staff are paid correctly. Pensions filed accurately. Questions answered. Problems prevented. Peace of mind delivered.

Because isn’t that the whole point of outsourcing in the first place?

Handling the complexity of education payroll and pensions

Many payroll providers underestimate the importance and complexity of school payroll and pension filing. They think they can be managed using the same processes, systems and software as a corporate business payroll.

This is where problems often arise.

Schools are under financial pressure, so it is understandable that when looking for value for money, cheap per-payslip prices can look appealing. However, when considering what is involved in actually delivering a quality service for managed payroll and pension filing, these cheap contracts can soon become a costly headache.

Some of the issues and complexities facing school payroll and pensions include:

Multiple contract types and term-time only roles
Teachers' Pay and Local Government Pay Scales
Backdated pay awards and retrospective adjustments
Teachers' Pensions and LGPS filing
Complex leave calculations and annualised pay
Multiple funding streams and cost centre splits
MAT-wide payroll across multiple schools

Looking for a better service?

We’re now taking enquiries from schools and MATs looking to switch from April 2026.
If your current provider is letting you down, we’d love to talk.

Get in touch, and we’ll arrange a call to discuss your needs and how we can assist you.

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