A simpler way to manage your Direct Payment in Edinburgh

PPL use a digital platform called Virtual Wallet to support individuals in managing their SDS funding. 

Each individual has their own Virtual Wallet account which is used to monitor funding, approve time-sheets and manage invoices, in a single secure platform. 

Whilst PPL will support the individual to manage their account, the individual or an approved representative is able to have their own access to their Virtual Wallet account, ensuring full visibility at all times. 

Where an individual chooses to use PPL's FMS support in addition to PPL Payroll, all PA timesheets will be submitted, reviewed, managed and approved online using Virtual Wallet. 

To learn more about Virtual Wallet, visit Virtual Wallet | PPL UK 

If you would like to register to use Virtual Wallet for FMS, you can fill in the short form available via this link and a member of our onboarding team will be in touch.

For any individuals who choose Option 1 Self Direct Support and employ their own personal assistants, PPL is able to offer a comprehensive payroll only solution.

Using Virtual Wallet, individuals and their personal assistants have access to submit, review and approve electronic time-sheets. Once time-sheets are approved, the PPL Payroll team will process payroll inline with the agreed schedule, before making pay slips available to the individual for payments to be made to their PAs. For more information on PPL Payroll visit Payroll Services | PPL UK

If you would like to register to use PPL payroll, you can fill in the short form available via the link here and a member of our onboarding team will be in touch.

All PAs use their own Virtual Wallet account login details to submit electronic timesheets to their employer for approval. 

If you have provided your PAs contact details to us, then we will have created an account for your PA and sent them an email asking them to activate their Virtual Wallet account, along with instructions on how to submit electronic timesheets. 

If your PA hasn't received an email, or you need to register any additional PAs, please contact us. 

Once a PA submits a timesheet, their employer receives an email notification advising that there is a timesheet awaiting review and approval.

The employer either approves the timesheet from the link contained within the email or can log into their own Virtual Wallet account to review and approve the timesheet. 

Employers also have the option to reject any timesheets that do not accurately reflect the hours worked by the PA. 

Once the employer approves a timesheet, it is made available to the PPL Payroll team for processing in line with the agreed payroll schedule. 

A proposed payroll schedule has been sent to all employers via email. 

The next timesheet submission and approval deadline is 19th January 2026, for the period up to and including 18th January.  

Timesheets submitted and approved by this date will be processed and pay slips made available to employers on 23rd January. 

Where PPL are providing a Financially Managed Service, PAs will receive payment on Friday 23rd January.

Any timesheets submitted after the submission deadline will be processed on the next scheduled pay run, which is usually every 4 weeks. 

To help avoid this situation, we advise PAs to submit, and employers approve timesheets at the end of each working week.

We understand that in an effort to avoid disruption to PAs pay, some employers may have chosen to make interim payments to PAs, without these hours being processed via payroll.

To ensure the correct HMRC and pension payments can be calculated, PAs should submit timesheets for all hours worked since their last payroll processed by Fife Business Services. 

Once payroll has been calculated and timesheets produced by PPL payroll, the employer will need to deduct the value of any advanced payments from the net amount showing as owed to each PA on their pay slip.

Our onboarding team are actively working through the list of individuals provided to us by CEC. 

If you have spoken to the PPL onboarding team and confirmed your intention to transfer to Virtual Wallet, but have not received login details by Monday 22nd December, please contact the PPL Onboarding Team by email - onboarding@myvirtualwallet.co.uk or telephone.   

Currently, we are working hard to support replicate the level of support provided to individuals by their previous support provider.

Typically, a Financially Managed Service is made available to individuals following an assessment by their CEC social worker that indicates an increased support need.

If you feel that you would benefit from or qualify for this additional level of support, please contact your social worker in the first instance. 

If you have a Financial Managed Service: Your funding will be sent to PPL by City of Edinburgh Council in line with your established funding schedule. 

Once PPL receive the funding, it will be allocated to your Virtual Wallet account, and the balance will update.

If the value of funding loaded to your account is different to that which you were expecting, please contact your Social Worker or SDS to discuss this with them directly.

If you have a ‘Payroll Only’ service: Funding will be made available to you by City of Edinburgh Council in the established manner - i.e. paid onto a pre-paid card.

As a result, the balance on your Virtual Wallet account balance will always be £0, as PPL do not hold funding on your behalf.