Cleaning company payroll
Payroll Services for Cleaning Companies
Weekly payroll for commercial and domestic cleaning companies with part-time, multi-site teams, from £2.50 + VAT per payslip.
Cardiff-based payroll bureau. Serving employers across the UK.
- Since 2011
- 500+ clients
- 5.0 on Google (16 reviews)
- ICO registered
- Hiscox insured
Cleaning company payroll is high volume and low margin. Most staff work part-time, many work at more than one site, hours change with every contract won or lost, and a weekly payroll leaves little time to put mistakes right. Payroll Service (UK) Ltd is a Cardiff payroll bureau that has run payroll for UK employers since 2011. You send us the hours, we handle the calculations, HMRC, payslips and pensions, and your supervisors stay on site.
Why cleaning company payroll is different
Contract cleaners, office cleaning firms and domestic cleaning companies all run on tight hourly rates and part-time teams spread across many locations.
Travel between sites
When a cleaner travels from one site to another during the working day, that travel is working time for minimum wage purposes. Travel from home to the first site, and home from the last, generally is not. Unpaid travel between sites can pull average pay below the legal minimum.
Minimum wage on tight rates
From 1 April 2026 the National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over, and £10.85 for 18 to 20 year olds. Where staff are paid at or near the rate, deductions for required uniform or equipment, or unpaid training time, can take pay below it.
Holiday pay for irregular hours
Cleaners whose hours vary week to week are irregular-hours workers. For leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, holiday can accrue at 12.07% of hours worked, or be paid as rolled-up holiday pay at 12.07% of pay, shown as a separate item on each payslip.
High staff turnover
New contracts bring new starters; lost contracts and short-term cover bring leavers. Every starter needs the right tax code and a pension assessment, and every leaver a P45. We do not charge extra for any of it.
Many sites, one payroll
Contract cleaners often want labour costs split by client or site to see whether each contract pays its way. Setting staff up by department lets payroll reports show costs for each site, alongside payroll journals for your bookkeeping.
Sick pay for part-time staff
Since April 2026 there is no minimum earnings level for statutory sick pay, so low-paid part-time cleaners can qualify. SSP is the lower of £123.25 a week or 80% of average weekly earnings, which needs working out correctly for every eligible employee.
Weekly payroll without the weekly scramble
Most cleaning companies pay weekly, often with a cut-off only a day or two before payday. Timesheets arrive from supervisors and clients in different formats, hours are added for cover, and someone always starts or leaves mid-week.
We keep the routine simple. You send us one summary of hours for each employee, split by pay rate and, if you want site reporting, by site. We process the payroll, submit the FPS to HMRC, deliver secure online payslips and send you the payment report. You stay in control of payments and pay your staff from your own bank account.
Many cleaning companies pay different hourly rates for different contracts, or a higher rate for evening, weekend or specialist work. We set up each rate once, so you only need to send hours against it. If you pay travel between sites as its own line, it shows separately on the payslip. Starters added mid-week and leavers who finish before payday are dealt with in the same run.
What we handle for you
Everything a cleaning company needs from a payroll bureau, run by a named team in Cardiff.
- Weekly, fortnightly, four-weekly and monthly pay runs
- Multiple hourly rates, paid travel time and premiums set up as separate pay elements
- Holiday pay calculations, including rolled-up holiday pay for irregular-hours staff
- Department reporting by site or contract
- PAYE, National Insurance and student loan deductions
- RTI submissions to HMRC (FPS and EPS) every pay run
- Secure online payslips for every employee
- Starters, leavers and P45s, at no extra charge
- Pension auto-enrolment: assessment, enrolment, re-enrolment and contribution files for NEST, Smart Pension, People’s Pension and others
- Statutory pay: SSP, SMP, SPP and ShPP
- Attachment of earnings orders
- P60s and year end
- Payroll journals and reports for your bookkeeping
- A payment report so you stay in control of paying staff
How it works
Four steps, then the same simple routine every week.
Send us your details
Your employees, pay rates and pay frequencies, PAYE reference and pension scheme. Switching mid-year? We bring your year-to-date figures across.
Set up within 24 hours
Your payroll is set up within 24 hours of us receiving the information. We take over from any payroll software or provider.
Send hours each pay run
Send us hours for each employee by pay rate, plus paid travel, holiday taken and any starters or leavers.
We process and report
We calculate pay, submit RTI to HMRC, deliver payslips and send you the payment report. You pay your staff; we handle the pension submission.
Simple per-payslip pricing
One price per payslip, so a large weekly part-time team stays affordable.
- No setup fee and no contracts
- No extra charges for starters, leavers, P45s, P60s or year end
- Pension auto-enrolment included in the per-payslip price
★★★★★
“Rhys and the team provide an absolutely exceptional service…”
We run payroll for employers in every sector. Businesses with mobile, part-time workforces, such as cleaning companies and home care agencies, benefit most from a specialist, because travel time and variable hours are easy to get wrong. See all our payroll services or read how we work as a UK payroll bureau.
Cleaning company payroll questions
Do cleaners have to be paid for travel between sites?
For minimum wage purposes, travel from one work site to another during the day is working time, but travel from home to the first site and from the last site home generally is not. How you pay for travel is your decision, but total pay that counts for minimum wage, divided by total working hours including travel between sites, must meet the rate for each worker’s age.
Can we use rolled-up holiday pay for our cleaners?
For irregular-hours and part-year workers, in leave years starting on or after 1 April 2024, yes. Rolled-up holiday pay is calculated at 12.07% of the worker’s total pay in the pay period and must be shown as a separate item on each payslip. It is not permitted for staff on regular hours. We apply the method you choose.
Do you charge for starters and leavers?
No. Starters, leavers and P45s are included in the per-payslip price, however high your staff turnover.
Can you run a weekly payroll for a large part-time team?
Yes. Weekly and fortnightly payrolls are from £2.50 + VAT per payslip, with no setup fee and no contract. See our payroll pricing for details.
Can you show labour costs by site or contract?
Yes. Tell us which site or contract each employee works on and we set staff up in matching departments, so payroll reports show the cost of each. Staff who work across several sites can be allocated to their main site.
Do part-time cleaners need to be enrolled in a pension?
Every employee must be assessed for auto-enrolment each time they are paid. Those who meet the age and earnings conditions are enrolled, and others can ask to join. We assess every pay run and produce the contribution files, included in the price. Read more about our pension auto-enrolment service.
Can you take over from our current payroll provider mid-year?
Yes. We take over from any payroll software or provider, at any point in the tax year, and bring your year-to-date figures across. Setup is within 24 hours of receiving the information.
Do you pay our staff?
You stay in control of payments. We give you the payment report for each pay run and you pay staff from your own bank account.
Payroll that keeps up with your contracts
Tell us how many staff you pay and how often, and we will send you a clear per-payslip quote. You can also email us at sales@payrollserviceuk.co.uk.