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BookSmart: First Employee, UK Payroll, Pensions and HR
New
100 students

BookSmart: First Employee, UK Payroll, Pensions and HR

Hire your first employee the right way: costs, contracts, payroll, pensions, holiday and sick pay for UK employers
Created byNargas Forster
Last updated 10/2026
English

What you'll learn

  • Tell the difference between an employee, a worker and a contractor, and why it matters
  • Work out the true cost of an employee, including employer NI, pension and holiday
  • Do right to work checks and give a written statement of terms by your employee's first day
  • Register as an employer with HMRC and set up payroll software
  • Run your first pay run, send RTI submissions and pay HMRC on time
  • Meet your auto-enrolment pension duties and choose a workplace pension
  • Handle holiday, statutory sick pay, family leave, leavers and payroll year end

Course content

7 sections • 18 lectures • 32m total length

  • Employee, worker or contractor?1:48
  • What an employee really costs1:57
  • Checks before day one1:54

Requirements

  • You run, or are about to start, a small business in the UK
  • No payroll or HR knowledge needed. Everything is explained step by step

Description

This course contains the use of artificial intelligence.

This course contains the use of artificial intelligence.

Taking on your first employee is a big step, and the rules can feel overwhelming. This course takes you through everything a UK small business needs to do, in plain English, in about 30 minutes.

You'll learn what an employee really costs, the checks to do before day one, how to register as an employer and run payroll, and how pensions, holiday, sick pay and family leave work, all with 2026/27 figures.

Every lesson is short and practical, with the exact steps and the numbers you need, so you can hire with confidence and avoid the common mistakes that lead to fines, back pay or disputes. By the end you'll have a clear checklist of what to do before, during and after your first hire.

What's covered

  • Module 1: Before you hire. Employee, worker or contractor, the true cost of an employee, and right to work checks.
  • Module 2: Getting set up. The contract, registering with HMRC and setting up payroll.
  • Module 3: Running payroll. Your first pay run, RTI and paying HMRC, and minimum wage records.
  • Module 4: Pensions. Auto-enrolment duties and setting up a workplace pension.
  • Module 5: Time off. Holiday, statutory sick pay and family leave.
  • Module 6: Leavers and year end. When someone leaves, payroll year end and your employer checklist.

Downloads included

  • Employee cost calculator (Excel): the full cost of a salary, including NI and pension
  • Payroll calendar 2026-27 (Excel)
  • First employee checklist (PDF)

Figures are for the 2026/27 tax year and checked against official government guidance. This course is general guidance, not legal or tax advice.

Your instructor, Nargas Forster, is a finance director and Xero and QuickBooks ProAdvisor who helps UK small businesses set up payroll and grow their teams.

Who this course is for:

  • UK sole traders and company directors taking on their first employee
  • Small business owners who want to run payroll themselves
  • Anyone who has just hired someone and wants to check they are doing it right
  • Office managers and bookkeepers picking up payroll and HR for the first time

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