Salary Sacrifice
The Flexible Benefits Scheme
The Flexible Benefits Scheme is a way in which you can tailor your benefits package to meet your individual requirements as well as making tax and National Insurance Contribution (NIC) savings. The tax and National Insurance savings are possible because the Flexible Benefits Scheme is delivered to you through an approved HM Revenue and Customs’ scheme.
- Pensions
Please select the correct Pension Scheme for your grade for more information:
- Scottish Widows Pension Scheme - Contracted staff, grades 1 - 6, available from 1 April 2018.
- Aston University Pension Scheme (AUPS) - Contracted staff, grades 1 - 6, this is now a closed scheme to new entrants and future accrual and all existing members now have deferred benefits.
- Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) - Contracted staff, grades 7 and above.
- National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) - Casual staff.
- Cycle to Work Scheme
Cycle to Work is open to all employees. By introducing a salary conversion scheme for the provision of bicycles, we can provide a bicycle for commuting and associated safety equipment free of income tax and national insurance.
Has lockdown inspired you to cycle?
If you’re interested in cycling to work - take advantage of our cycle to work benefit. Provided by Cyclescheme, our benefit lets you save money on a new bike and spread the cost. To find out more, watch this video.
In under 15 minutes, you will find out about…
- The cycle to work scheme
- How you can save 25-39% on a bike
- How you spread the cost interest-freeIf you’re ready to apply, visit www.cyclescheme.co.uk and enter our employer code: beb9a.
- Charitable Giving
We have been looking at ways of promoting charitable giving through the payroll and to provide the most effective way of making tax savings on donations. Set out below are two methods that will enable you to make charitable donations.
Give As You Earn (GAYE) - A way of making donations to a charity of your choice and receiving immediate tax relief
Further information - Charitable Donations Salary Conversion Opt In Form can be found here
If you wish to make donations or require any further information please go to the Charitable Giving Website where you will find full details and an application form to complete if you wish to participate.
Flexible Benefits Scheme - Salary conversion for donations to Aston University to support students.
- Annual Leave Purchase Scheme
The scheme allows you to purchase up to an additional 5 days or 36.5 hours annual leave per year, giving you additional flexibility to planned time off. The other great thing is you can split the salary reductions over a twelve month period, making it easier for you to manage your budget.
Please note that managers can only approve requests which ensure that business needs can still be met.
The scheme is available for all professional support staff whose annual leave year starts on 1st April.
- Annual Leave Purchase Scheme Policy
- Annual Leave Calculator
- Manager Approving Annual Leave Purchase Request Guide
- Employee Annual Leave Purchase Request Guide
- Low Emission Car Lease Scheme
The new Low Emission Car Lease Scheme offers employees the opportunity to be provided with a new car benefiting from corporate discounts and savings on Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions (NIC). The car scheme will only offer cars with low CO2 emissions (120g/km or less).
For more information on this scheme click on the links below and visit the SS4C website.