If you have a holding account or information only account for your Direct Payments, you will be making use of our payroll services.

• With a holding account, the payroll team manages your transactions and paperwork for you. We will only make payment when you tell us to
• With an information only, the payroll team handles most of the paperwork and advises you how much to pay to various parties but you make the actual payments from a bank account that you control.

Read on for further information about the payroll service.

Find out about different types of Direct Payment accounts

Is there a charge for the Direct Payments payroll service?

There is no charge if you do not employ someone to care for you and only need us to pay an agency or settle other invoices.

If you employ someone to care for you we will charge the lower of:

• 15 per cent of your annual Direct Payment budget
• £300

This fee will be deducted from your budget in one payment at the start. This is because of the work involved in complying with tax and National Insurance liabilities.

What payments will the council deal with?

We will make all the payments you ask us to make, but we must have written instructions unless there are exceptional circumstances. All the payments will come from your Direct Payment holding account.

In the case of information-only accounts, you make all the payments yourself.

What if I employ a carer or personal assistant?

We will deal with his or her payroll on your behalf. If you send us a completed time sheet we will:

• pay the carer's or personal assistant's wages
• send them a wage slip
• notify Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
• make quarterly payments to HMRC.

How will you pay them?

We will make a Direct Debit (BACS) payment to his or her nominated account five days after his or her time sheet has been submitted, unless there are insufficient funds in the account or the time sheet is submitted late, in which case the payment will be delayed. All employees are paid four-weekly.

How will my employee know when to submit his or her time sheet?

We will give you a year's supply of time sheets and a payments calendar. Your employee will need to complete his or her timesheet every four weeks, in line with the payroll calendar.

What does my employee do about holidays?

Your employee should agree his or her holiday dates with you and mark them on his or her time sheet. All employees are entitled to 5.6 weeks holiday (pro rata) per annual leave year. Your employee's remaining holiday will be shown on his or her wage slip.

If I employ someone, do I need liability insurance?

Yes. Liability insurance not only covers your employee but also covers you as the employer. The Royal Borough of Greenwich has negotiated a very competitive deal with Fish Insurance, but you are welcome to use another insurance provider.

If you have a holding account we will set up a Direct Debit payment to your insurance provider, but it is your responsibility to tell the provider and the Royal Borough if your circumstances change or you stop employing people.

If you have an information only, or own account, you are responsible for arranging liability insurance.

Should anyone I employ have a Disclosure and Barring Service check?

A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check has replaced the Criminals Record Bureau (CRB) check. While you do not have to have a check carried out, we strongly recommend that you do so in order to safeguard yourself.

Making other payments

As well as running your payroll for you, we will make any other payments for you if you have a holding account.

It you want us to make a payment you must ask us in writing and give us the bank details of the supplier. The payment must be in support of the agreed outcomes detailed in your support plan.

We will make all payments by the Faster Payments Service within ten working days of your request, although most will be made within five working days.

You are responsible for your budget, so each payment request we receive must be signed and dated by you. If you don't do this we will return it to you asking that you sign and date it. This means it is important you ask for an invoice up front when buying goods and services.