From April 2026, a new organization – the Fair Work Agency – will begin to reshape the way employment rights are enforced across the UK.

Back office teams at schools and trusts need to know what this entails. While this is not in itself a change in employment law, it does represent a change in how the law is actively enforced.

The Fair Work Agency will provide tighter scrutiny of organisations, support for aggrieved staff and sanctions for wrongdoing.

In this article, we look at what powers this agency has, who runs it, and what areas it could tackle first.

What is the Fair Work Agency?

The Fair Work Agency was established as part of the government’s Make Work Pay programme. It was created by the Employment Rights Act 2025.

The ambition is to bring together three agencies: HMRC’s National Minimum Wage Enforcement, the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS) and the Gangmasters and Labor Abuse Authority (GLAA).

It also has additional powers to review furlough pay and the possibility of expanding its areas of control.

This Fair Work Agency actively investigate, inspect and enforce compliance directly, rather than relying on complaints.

Does this new Fair Work Agency affect schools and trusts?

Absolutely. The Fair Work Agency’s mission is to review employers in the public and private sectors.

This agency will apply across the UK. Where specific rules differ in devolved countries, this will be reflected in the guidance. Simply put, most schools and trusts in England should assume that they fall squarely within the agency’s scope.

Why was the Fair Work Agency created?

The creation of the Fair Work Agency reflects a clear policy direction. Ministers highlighted persistent underpayment of wages, withholding of holiday pay and exploitation of workers, as well as weak and inconsistent enforcement, as reasons for its introduction.

The aspiration behind the Fair Work Agency is twofold:

• HAS better protect workersparticularly in sectors with complex salary arrangements
• HAS level the playing field for employers who already comply with the law but are compromised by those who do not

It is worth remembering that this is not about creating new employment rights overnight. It is rather a matter of enforce existing rights more coherently and visibly. To do this, it will use the powers of the state, instead of relying on individuals to challenge non-compliance in court.

Who runs the Fair Work Agency?

Matthew Taylor CBE is the first chairman of the Fair Work Agency.

He is the author of the influential Taylor Review of Modern Working Practiceswhich laid the foundations for many of the changes currently being made through the Employment Rights Bill. He also served as Director of Labor Market Enforcement and has extensive experience in public policy, labor markets and workforce reform.

What areas does the Fair Work Agency cover?

Initially, the Fair Work Agency will enforce a defined set of employment rights, many of which are highly relevant to schools and trusts. These include:

• Public holiday payincluding paid leave for irregular hours and part-year staff
• National minimum wage and national living wageincluding record keeping
• Statutory sick pay
• Rules for employment agencies and temporary workers
• Gangmasters and labor market violationsif applicable
• Non-payment of compensation or Employment Tribunal settlements

Among these changes, paid leave stands out. Historically applied almost entirely through individual claims, it will now be subject to state enforcement.

What the Fair Work Agency doesn’t cover (yet)

Not all employment rights fall within the jurisdiction of the Fair Work Agency. Areas such as unfair dismissal and discrimination will, for the time being, continue to rely largely on the employment tribunals. However, the law gives the government broad powers to extend the agency’s powers in the futurethis landscape can therefore continue to evolve.

Which areas will be affected most quickly?

Although the Fair Work Agency will have a broad mandate, commentators have suggested that National minimum wage and holiday pay are likely to be part of the top enforcement priorities.

For schools and trusts this is important as risks often arise in the following areas:

• Fixed-term contracts only
• Staff all year round and irregular hours
• Overtime, overtime and casual arrangements
• Agency and Procurement Staff

It goes without saying that accurate payroll and impeccable record-keeping have never been more important.

What enforcement powers does the Fair Work Agency have?

The Fair Work Agency will have a single and reinforced set of enforcement powersinspired by and expanding those used by existing organizations. These include the ability to:

• Inspect workplaces and request documents
• Require employers to provide information and evidence
• Issue notices requiring reimbursement of underpaid wages or vacation pay
• Impose financial sanctions
• To recover execution costs non-compliant employers
• Bringing cases to employment tribunals on behalf of workers
• Use labor market enforcement commitments and orders, with criminal sanctions for violations

What this could look like in practice for schools

In practice, the application will probably start with requests for informationrather than surprise inspections. Schools and trusts may be asked to produce:

• Payroll records
• Calculation of leave entitlement and payment
• Records of hours worked
• Contracts and Policies

For multi-academy trusts, engagement will most likely take place at the level of trustwhich makes consistent processes and central monitoring particularly important.

Governance and reputation risk

Non-compliance is a legal problem, And this can expose boards and directors to serious governance and audit questions. If underpayment becomes public, a school’s reputation may also be at risk.

Checklist: how to prepare your school for the Fair Work Agency

Preparation does not require radical change, but it does require trust in the fundamentals. So, which areas should you address now and in what order?

1. Audit salary and leave compliance. Pay particular attention to paid holiday benefits for staff working part-time, part-year and irregular hours. Make sure you meet the national minimum wage. Check statutory sick pay and family leave entitlements.
2. Review and update policies. This includes salary, leave and temporary workers. Ensure that policies reflect the statutory rights and enforcement powers of the Fair Work Agency.
3. Strengthen record keeping. Ensure hours, pay and time off are accurate and recoverable.
4. Train HR and payroll staff. Make sure they are aware of the powers, application and risk areas of the Fair Work Agency. Train them on how to calculate holiday pay, as well as management agency and umbrella company arrangements.
5. Prepare for checks. This includes appointing a compliance officer and agreeing on internal processes.
6. Communicate clearly with staff. Inform them of the rights and channels for reporting internal information. Let them know how they can raise concerns internally.
7. Integrate Compliance into Governance. Add Fair Work Agency risk to records and audit cycles.

Starting this work now reduces the likelihood of urgent corrective action later.

Temporary workers, outsourcing and shared responsibility

Remember: you are still responsible, even if you outsource payroll or use agency staff.

Clear oversight, robust contracts and confidence in payroll calculations are essential, especially as contingent workers and flextime are likely to come under early scrutiny.

Prepare with confidence

The Fair Work Agency represents a significant change in the way employment rights are enforced. For schools and trusts, the message is: enforcement is likely to be more active, more consistent and more focused on pay and leave.

With the right systems, records and expertise in place, this need not be a cause for concern. At IRIS, we support schools and trusts with specialist education payroll and HR solutions, including outsourced payroll designed to manage the complexity of part-time, part-year and irregular hours staff.

If you want to confidently prepare for the Fair Work Agency and reduce the risks of non-compliance between now and 2026, now is the right time to act.

Discover our Every By IRIS solutions, and simplify your life.

Also:

Find out how to outsource to education payroll specialists.

Or contact and message our HR specialists directly at HR-DP@iris.co.uk

This flew under most radars, but we underestimate the changes to FRS 102 in January at our peril.

The changes are significant and poor lease accounting can have serious repercussions. This includes possible audit failures, inaccuracies, poor financial decisions, covenant violations, reputational risk and inefficiencies that harm the business.

So, what progress are companies making to meet this challenge? Just as importantly, what should they do between now and January?

What happens to leases under FRS 102 from January 2026? A little reminder…

Changes to FRS 102 will transform the way businesses in the UK and Republic of Ireland deal with leases. The aim is to further align reporting with the international accounting standard IFRS 16.

This will affect most leases, impacting approximately 3.4 million businesses in the process.

The biggest change is that almost all leases must be reflected on the balance sheet both as right-of-use assets and lease obligations. Linear rental costs will be a thing of the past. Instead, reporting will be more complex. Companies will now record depreciation on leased assets and interest on lease liabilities – this means we can expect the income statements to be similar. very different.

The effect of this change on your business metrics

What you report to stakeholders will change.

Your EBITDA will likely increase. Indeed, rental costs, which will be reclassified as depreciation and interest, will not be taken into account in this calculation.

On the other hand, declared net debt will increase with the addition of rental debts.

Understand exactly where we are with FRS 102 and what needs to be done

If you want eye-opening insights and expert commentary, the best place to attend was our recent webinar (watch it on demand here).

Called Compliance with lease accounting FRS 102 and beyondI was lucky enough to be joined by:

• Sarah Hughes, accounting consulting partner, CFO Solutions, Grant Thornton United Kingdom
• Fran de Gioia​, Lease Accounting Solutions Specialist, Office of the CFO, IRIS software​ Group

In this webinar we established:

• How many finance professionals have started adapting lease accounting in accordance with amended FRS 102
• What are the wider impacts for businesses
• The importance of controlling stakeholder expectations
• Hidden problems caused by the new FRS 102
• The possible opportunities that the changes bring
• Why spreadsheets don’t cut it

The bottom line: With very little time, most businesses failed to prepare

During the webinar, we asked nearly 200 finance professionals if they had started preparing for the new FRS 102 amendments. Of those who responded, only 3% had fully implemented the changes.

About 41% had not started, and 38% were in the early stages.

So what should they 79% Are financial specialists preparing?

What are the wider impacts of the FRS 102 changes for your business?

Earlier we saw how changes to FRS 102 will affect your metrics from 2026. This means possible consequences for debt covenants and bonus schemes that rely on these figures. This also means that early engagement with lenders and HR teams is essential. if you want to avoid unexpected violations or disputes.

It’s a major change, which means you need to adjust your expectations

The changes will test your company’s change management skills. First, teams will need to work together on leases like never before. Finance, IT, procurement, and operations must work together to identify all leases and update systems. They must also ensure that their judgments and estimates are consistent.

During our webinar, Grant Thornton’s Sarah Hughes said: “The changes are far-reaching. You need to consider whether you actually have a lease. You need to put systems in place to enable you to comply with the standard, and you need to start thinking about all those judgments and estimates that you just haven’t had to think about in the past.”

At the same time, good communication with stakeholders will make a huge difference. Investors, lenders and internal teams will need to know why the numbers presented to them will be different.

Fran De Gioia of IRIS Software Group said: “Engage early with your lenders and manage your investor narrative. The data you are forced to extract for compliance reasons is your best tool for managing market perception.”

Why Lease Changes Will Cause More Accounting Work

It is important to anticipate change, and this is one of the key lessons learned from adopting IFRS 16. Sarah Hughes said: “The situation with FRS 102 is very, very similar – it’s about starting early. It is so important that you do not underestimate how difficult it is to get the information you need. It’s not as easy as it seems.

Finance teams should remain on the ground once they have adapted to the updated standard. Changes to the terms, payments or scope of the lease – often due to renegotiation, termination or restructuring – require careful consideration to decide whether you count the resulting agreement as a new lease or adjust an existing lease. How these changes are recorded depends on their nature, and misclassification can cause you compliance issues.

The new devil in the details – services and leases

One challenge will be identifying hidden leases in service contracts. If a contract names an asset, gives control over its use and conveys its benefits, it can be considered a lease – for example the purchase of electricity from a dedicated solar farm.

This problem can also happen the other way around: many contracts combine asset leasing with services like maintenance or support.

Do not treat each part separately will have consequences because your reports will not be accurate.

What listeners will want

Listeners will have high expectations. They will want a clear written record of accounting policies, judgments and estimates. They will also want to see how leases were identified and recorded.

Grant Thornton’s Sarah Hughes said: “Auditors will review documentation relating to significant accounting policies and key judgments you have made. They will look for consistent application across companies and groups.”

“So it’s very important to standardize the process and the data points.”

How to seize an opportunity: the strategic advantage of changes to FRS 102

This amended accounting standard comes with some good news.

Because you consolidate all leasing information across properties, fleet, IT, and other assets, you’ll gain better visibility into your company’s leasing obligations.

In our webinar survey, 42% of financial professionals considered this to be the biggest gain of the changes to FRS 102.

This enthusiasm for better data makes perfect sense. This means you can develop more effective sourcing strategies. You’ll be able to approach suppliers with a complete view of rental expenses, negotiate better terms, and avoid costly defaults or automatic renewals.

There is a good chance that your managers will thank you too. All of this data allows leaders to make informed decisions when it comes to strategic planning.

Of course, this only seems likely if you have the right tools.

Why financial professionals seem to be moving away from spreadsheets

We spoke with financial professionals earlier in 2025, and now – much closer to the January 2026 changes.

One thing became clear: dedicated software is now the rising star. A much larger proportion of respondents (now 40%) think this is the way to go. These tools automate complex FRS 102 calculations, such as present value, expense splitting and dual-track accounting.

This is not the first time we have seen this change. Fran De Gioia of IRIS Software Group recalls how companies implementing IFRS 16 quickly discovered that spreadsheets could not handle this complexity. He said: “When implementing IFRS 16, most businesses initially relied on complex spreadsheets and manual processes, but these immediately failed when they had to manage lease changes.

“Each change in scope or renewal option of rent review triggers a complex mandatory reassessment. This has quickly turned into a chaotic, recurring end-of-month nightmare.”

So if you’re considering sticking with worksheets, it’s worth asking yourself: Is all the extra time, risk, and effort worth it?

Get all the information – watch the full webinar

One blog post can barely scratch the surface of what was – thanks to Sarah and Fran – 50 minutes of high quality information on all the changes to FRS 102.

SO watch the webinar to find out a lot more, because with leases it will all be a question of details.

The job interview has changed. Gone are the days of rushing across town to chat for 30 minutes. In their place is a new type of selection: the AI-powered virtual interview. For many, the idea of ​​talking to a camera rather than a person seems strange, even intimidating. What if this change was not an obstacle, but a step forward?

AI-led interviews level the playing field, giving every candidate a fair and equal chance to prove their worth. Forget biased first impressions or the stress of scheduling conflicts. It’s about giving you the opportunity to show what you can do, on your terms.

We introduce the Recruiting Agent, an AI-powered colleague who helps companies conduct their first interviews. It is designed to be fair, consistent and transparent. Understanding how it works is the key to not only participating, but also excelling. This guide will show you how to master virtual interviewing and make technology your biggest professional advantage.

What is an AI-powered virtual interview?

An AI-powered interview, like the one run by our recruiting agent, is a structured, recorded video interview. Instead of a live conversation, you’ll be presented with a series of predefined questions on your screen and you’ll record your answers one by one.

This is not a secret test designed to surprise you. It’s the opposite. It is a system designed to eliminate inconsistencies and unconscious bias from the hiring process. Every job candidate answers the exact same questions and is evaluated using the exact same criteria. Your success depends on the substance of your answers, not how well you clicked with the interviewer that day.

For candidates, this means:

• A fair cliché: Your skills and experience are measured equally.
• Total flexibility: You can record the interview when and where it suits you, within a set time frame (usually seven days). No more need to juggle work or personal commitments.
• Total transparency: You know exactly what is required and can prepare accordingly. No surprise questions or trickery.

This process gives you the power to present the best version of yourself, without the pressure of a traditional face-to-face meeting.

How to prepare for your AI interview

Preparation is everything. Just because you don’t meet someone in person doesn’t mean you can just wing it. Use the flexibility of the process to your advantage and prepare to shine.

1. Understand the technology and setup

First of all, configure your technical configuration correctly. A poor connection or poor lighting can distract from your brilliant answers.

• Check your equipment: Test your webcam and microphone beforehand. Make sure you are happy with the video and audio quality.
• Find your space: Choose a quiet, well-lit location where you will not be interrupted. A neutral background is best: a white wall is better than a messy room.
• Master your framing: Place the camera at eye level. Sit up straight and look directly at the camera lens when you speak, not at your own image on the screen. This creates a direct and engaging connection.

2. Decode the job description

The questions you will be asked are not random. The AI ​​generates them based on the job description. This is your cheat sheet. Break down the role into key skills, responsibilities and company values. Your answers should directly relate your experience to these points.

The hiring agent typically asks a mix of four types of questions. Prepare examples for each:

• Motivation : “Why do you want this job?” They want to see genuine enthusiasm and alignment with their mission.
• Behavioral: “Tell me about a time when you faced a difficult challenge.” Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method to structure your answer.
• Situational: “How would you handle an unhappy customer?” » They test your problem-solving skills and judgment.
• Role specific: “What experience have you had with [specific software/skill]”Be direct and provide clear evidence of your expertise.

3. Practice, don’t memorize

Record yourself answering practice questions. You can use your phone or your computer. Look at it and ask yourself:

• Do I speak clearly and at a good pace?
• Is my body language confident and open?
• Do I look at the camera?
• Is my answer concise and directly answers the question?

The goal is not to create a perfect script. It will seem robotic. The goal is to familiarize yourself with the format so that your natural confidence and personality can shine through.

Succeeding in the Interview: Tips for Recording Day

When it comes time to record, you’ve done the hard part. Now it’s about execution.

Speak with clarity and confidence

The AI ​​will transcribe your words, so clear articulation is vital. Speak at a measured pace, neither too fast nor too slow. Use pauses for emphasis and enunciation of your words. Your tone matters too. Let your passion for the role shine through. Show energy and enthusiasm.

Structure your answers to have an impact

Don’t ramble, make sure you provide direct and helpful answers. The best answers are clear, structured and precise. The STAR method is your best friend for behavioral questions.

• Situation: Briefly describe the context. (for example, “In my previous role as project coordinator…”)
• Stain: Explain what you needed to achieve. (for example: “…my task was to solve a budget deficit.”)
• Action: Detail the specific steps you took. (For example, “I initiated a full spend audit and renegotiated with two key suppliers.”)
• Result: Describe the positive outcome. (For example: “As a result, we went 10% over budget and the project was delivered on time.”)

This framework provides concrete evidence of your capabilities, which is exactly what hiring managers want.

Let your personality shine

An AI interview is not a robot test. The hiring manager will always watch your videos. They want to see who you are. Smile, use natural hand gestures and let your personality shine through. This is your chance to show them why you would be a great addition to their team culture.

Embrace the future of recruiting

The recruiting landscape is changing and technology is breaking down old barriers. AI-powered interviews are designed to make the process fairer, more efficient, and more respectful of your time. By giving each candidate an equal chance to be heard, they allow you to compete solely on merit.

This is not just another hurdle to overcome. This is your opportunity to take control of your story and present your skills with clarity and confidence. Stop being afraid of the new and start using it to your advantage. Prepare, practice and show them what you’ve got.

Ready to find your next role? Harness the power of AI and discover a better way to get hired.