What a Gamekeeper payslip looks like
A typical UK gamekeeper payslip is paid monthly and shows a basic pay line at the top. A gamekeeper manages game, habitat and shoots on a sporting estate, controlling predators and rearing birds. The line items below depend on grade, shift pattern and contractual additions, but the structure usually mirrors HMRC's recommended payslip layout: a payments block, a deductions block, a year-to-date column, and a net pay summary.
Common employers in this occupation include sporting estates, shooting syndicates, private landowners. Each employer runs payroll slightly differently, but the underlying PAYE computation against tax code 1257L and Class 1 National Insurance is identical across the UK (excluding Scotland for income tax). The biggest variability between two gamekeeper payslips at the same gross will be in the additions block: Mostly PAYE, often with a tied cottage - frequently tax-free as job-related accommodation where living on site is required, but otherwise a benefit-in-kind. Dog, clothing and vehicle allowances are usually tax-free where they reimburse genuine costs, while shoot-day tips are taxable.
Year-to-date columns are critical to verify on this role because the additions and salary sacrifice items change month to month. If your YTD gross divided by months elapsed in the tax year does not match your expected annual run-rate, that is the single best signal that something is mis-coded.
Applies to some of this work
Agricultural wages orders and the accommodation offset and gamekeeper pay
The tied cottage and the dog allowance land on the same payslip and pull against each other. Wales and Scotland both pay £11.18 a week for each dog you are required to keep and feed, Scotland up to four, and it sits outside the rate your minimum is measured against. Scotland then values a house provided without charge at £1 a week for the purposes of the wages order, and the value drops to nothing while a local authority notice says the house is unfit for habitation. That is a separate figure from the National Minimum Wage offset, which works the other way: free accommodation adds £11.10 for each whole day to the pay counted towards the minimum wage rather than reducing it. A keeper's house only cuts into minimum wage pay where the employer charges for it and the charge runs above £11.10 a day. Whether an order reaches you at all turns on the definition of agriculture, which is a list of land uses, so a keeper on a mixed holding and a keeper on a pure sporting estate are not in the same position.
- National Minimum Wage accommodation offset
- £11.10 a day, £77.70 a week
- When the offset counts for a day
- Only a whole day
Educational only. Whether this reaches your own pay turns on your contract and how you are engaged, and tribunal and claim time limits are short. Check the limit that applies to you before relying on a date.
Agricultural wages orders and the accommodation offset: the rates, the payslip lines, what goes wrong and the 32 primary sources. National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 and the devolved agricultural wages orders, in force 1 April 2026 for the rates and offset.
Gamekeeper salary bands (UK 2024)
ONS ASHE 2024 full-time gross pay. Net figures use 2026/27 PAYE bands and assume 5% of qualifying earnings (£6,240–£50,270) under a net-pay arrangement — before income tax, but not before National Insurance.
| Band | Gross / year | Net / year | Net / month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25th percentile | £22,500 | £19,069 | £1,589 |
| Median | £26,000 | £21,449 | £1,787 |
| 75th percentile | £31,000 | £24,849 | £2,071 |
Common deductions for a Gamekeeper
- PAYE income tax.Calculated against tax code 1257L. Cumulative coding means refunds can appear if you start mid-year.
- National Insurance (Class 1).8% between £12,570 and £50,270 of annual earnings, then 2% above. Period-by-period method is standard.
- Pension.Auto-enrolment minimum 5% employee on qualifying earnings (£6,240 - £50,270), unless your employer runs a more generous scheme such as the NHS, Teachers Pension or Civil Service alpha.
- Salary sacrifice patterns.Common in this occupation: cycle-to-work, electric-car salary sacrifice, additional pension contributions, and where applicable workplace nursery vouchers (still tax-efficient via pre-existing schemes).
- Union or professional body.Tax-deductible for HMRC-listed bodies. Gamekeepers commonly hold subscriptions covered by section 344 ITEPA 2003 (List 3).
Gamekeeper payslip FAQ
What is the average Gamekeeper salary in the UK in 2024?
According to ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2024 for SOC code 5119, the median full-time gross annual salary for a Gamekeeper in the UK is approximately £26,000. The 25th percentile sits at £22,500 and the 75th at £31,000.
What is take-home pay on a median Gamekeeper salary?
On £26,000 gross with the standard 1257L tax code and 5% of qualifying earnings into a net-pay pension, monthly take-home is approximately £1,787 after PAYE income tax, Class 1 employee National Insurance and auto-enrolment pension. Actual figures vary if you have student loan, salary sacrifice or a non-cumulative tax code.
What is unusual about a Gamekeeper payslip?
Mostly PAYE, often with a tied cottage - frequently tax-free as job-related accommodation where living on site is required, but otherwise a benefit-in-kind. Dog, clothing and vehicle allowances are usually tax-free where they reimburse genuine costs, while shoot-day tips are taxable.
Which tax code should a Gamekeeper typically be on?
Most people in this role on standard PAYE will see 1257L. Check the prefix and suffix carefully: a K-prefix means deductions exceed your allowance (often after a bonus or P11D benefit), 0T means you have no allowance left at this employer, and BR means basic rate on the whole job (common in second jobs).
Salary estimates: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) 2024, full-time gross annual pay by SOC 2020 occupation. Figures rounded to nearest £100.