Employing staff

Employing staff - Things to think about

For small businesses and start-ups, taking additional members of staff is a big step. It brings added responsibility and cost, so it needs to be given a great deal of thought.

Employing staff - initial steps

1. Decide how much to pay – you must pay your employees at least the national minimum wage:

2. Check if the candidate has the legal right to work in the UK and be aware you may have to do other additional employment checks:

3. Apply for a disclosure and barring service check (DBS check - formally known as a CRB check) if you work in a field that requires one, for example with vulnerable people or security:

4. Think about operating a hybrid working business model. Look at setting up a structure where your workforce can work from home and in the office. This can save costs and also help you meet your decarbonisation plans.

5. Ensure there is health and wellbeing support. Think about introducing health and wellbeing champions into your workforce and ensure colleagues are comfortable having these discussions.

6. Get employment insurance – you need employers' liability insurance as soon as you become an employer:

7. Send details of the job (including terms and conditions) in writing to your employee. You need to give your employee a written statement of employment if you are employing someone for more than one month:

8. Tell HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) by registering as an employer. You can do this up to 4 weeks before you pay your new staff:

Apprenticeships

Apprenticeship training enables new or existing staff to combine working with study, to gain skills and knowledge in a specific job at any age.

Degree level apprenticeships – Enterprising Ashfield

As part of the Enterprising Ashfield project Nottingham Trent University will be working with local small and medium sized enterprises to support their talent needs.

One effective way of injecting expertise into a business is through high level apprenticeships. This can help to alleviate some of the pressures that these businesses experience when looking to access apprenticeships, by providing support with recruitment, facilitating levy transfers and providing free mentor training so they can focus on their business objectives.

 

Apprenticeships - West Notts College

As an employer, not only can you get funding to support apprenticeship training, but there are often additional local incentives too.

With incentive schemes frequently changing, speak to West Notts College's apprenticeship team to get the latest information on funding opportunities.

Graduates

Did you know that graduates bring fresh perspectives, up-to-date knowledge, a strong work ethic, and a range of transferable skills like communication, problem solving, and critical thinking, which can be particularly beneficial for smaller businesses looking to innovate and adapt to changing market conditions. This and a willingness to learn, makes them valuable asset for developing new initiatives and projects within most businesses.

Graduate placements

Small and medium-sized enterprises in Kirkby in Ashfield and Sutton in Ashfield can access 12 week graduate placements with a 50 percent grant of up to £2500 as part of Enterprising Ashfield Project (this must be matched by the business).

These short placements offer small to medium sized enterprises an excellent way to inject some much needed expertise into their businesses, without committing to long term employment.

Summer Internships

The scheme runs over the summer vacation period and lasts between 6 to 12 weeks, full time. The company needs to provide a job description and then University of Nottingham will gather in applications from students. A small grant is also available towards the salary cost.

Post graduates

Postgraduate students at our local universities all actively seek real world projects to help them to fulfil their master's qualifications, and bridge the gap between academic theory and industry practice.

These collaborations are highly valued as they allow students to apply specialised technical knowledge, while gaining professional skills like project management and problem solving. 

Businesses can directly access these specialist skills by contacting the universities directly with specific challenges. Challenges can include market research and business strategy, to advanced product design and engineering.

The universities use dedicated platforms, such as:

  • University of Nottingham’s Postgraduate Placements
  • Nottingham Business School’s Consultancy Projects at NTU
  • University of Derby's DIBS Consultancy Hubs.

Often grants available to pay towards these projects, so its worth exploring if you are looking for consultancy support.

Nottingham University - short term recruitment

Nottingham University work with a recruitment agency called Unitemps which can support local businesses to recruit a part time staff member and they will also run the payroll for you.

So, if you need a graduate to undertake some specialist work such as marketing, product design, website development or similar and this type of work wouldn't fit around the normal duration of an internship or project placement, then this approach is worth exploring. Businesses will be charged on an hourly rate which is invoiced based on timesheet subscriptions.

If you are interested in this, then for further information you can contact:

Page last updated 18 February 2026

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