Assistant research analyst jobs

Looking for a role where your budgets, forecasts and insights don't just inform decisions, they directly drive life-changing impact? 

As a Financial Planning Analyst within our Financial Partnering, Planning & Analysis (FPP&A) team, you'll play a vital role in ensuring every pound at Alzheimer's Society is deployed where it creates the greatest impact. This role is about giving teams across the organisation the financial clarity and confidence they need to make decisions that change lives.

Working across Finance and with budget holders throughout the Society, you'll support strategically aligned, financially disciplined planning through dynamic budgeting, forecasting and management reporting. You'll be at the heart of our financial planning processes, transforming complex data into actionable insights that drive our mission forward.

Reporting to the Financial Planning Manager and line managing the Financial Planning Assistant, you'll collaborate with Finance Business Partners and colleagues across the Society to maintain a single point of truth. Providing the tools and insights that enable faster, better, more confident decisions in our fight against dementia.

About you

We're looking for a part-qualified or AAT Level 4 qualified accountant with hands-on experience working within a finance function. You'll have practical experience supporting budgeting and forecasting activities and thrive on turning financial data into meaningful stories that drive action.

You're passionate about leveraging technology to work smarter, not harder. Minimising manual processes, streamlining workflows, and continuously raising the bar on quality. You celebrate solutions and progress over activity, and you come alive when collaborating across teams to solve complex challenges.

You'll have

- Part-qualified accountancy qualification or AAT Level 4 (with support available for further training).
- Hands-on experience working within a finance function on budgeting, forecasting and financial planning activities.
- Advanced Excel skills with confidence building models, manipulating large datasets (like GL transaction listings), and creating reports that tell a clear story. Power Query knowledge and experience is a bonus.
- Strong track record producing compelling management reports in Excel and PowerPoint (Power BI experience is a bonus, or you're eager to learn).
- Proven ability to communicate with and influence colleagues across a large organisation, working seamlessly across team boundaries.
- Experience of managing and developing junior colleagues, supporting their learning, career development and performance.

What you'll focus on:

- Delivering end-to-end support for organisation-wide budgeting and forecasting processes.
- Creating engaging, user-friendly management account packs and reports that empower budget holders and business partners to make informed decisions.
- Line managing and developing the Financial Planning Assistant, building a culture where high-challenge meets high-support in an environment of continuous improvement.
- Being a champion for change, constantly improving processes, tools and products, using technology to eliminate manual work and create a truly streamlined, single source of truth.
- Building trusted relationships across Finance and the wider Society, becoming a go-to person for financial planning expertise.
- Supporting sophisticated financial modelling and analysis that shapes our budgeting and forecasting approach.
- Developing meaningful metrics and reporting that drive quality and performance improvements across the team.

Are you ready to bring your financial planning expertise to an organisation where every insight drives impact? Could you be the analytical thinker and collaborative problem-solver who helps us plan our way to a world where dementia no longer devastates lives?

Important Dates

- The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Sunday 11th January 2026.
- Interviews will begin week commencing 19th January 2026 and will take place virtually.
- There will be a pre-interview task to complete should you be invited to interview.

Please note: This post will be subject to a satisfactory Criminal Records Check, from either the Disclosure and Barring Service (England & Wales), Disclosure Scotland Check (Scotland) or AccessNI (Northern Ireland). If you require further information regarding Criminal Records Check, then please contact: [email protected].

About Alzheimer's Society

Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. One in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime.

At Alzheimer’s Society, we’re the UK’s leading dementia charity and the only one to tackle all aspects of dementia by giving help and hope to people living with dementia today and in the future. We give vital support to people facing the most frightening times of their lives, while also funding groundbreaking research and campaigning to make dementia the priority it should be.

Together with our supporters, we’re working towards a world where dementia no longer devastates lives.

Our values make sure that our focus is clear for the challenges and opportunities ahead and remind us of what we all stand for.

Our commitment to Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging

We need to ensure the voices around our table better reflect and understand the communities we exist to serve. We strongly encourage individuals to apply who have a disability, impairment or health condition or individuals who identify as Black, Asian or from another minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Alzheimer's Society.  

We want everyone we work with, as a colleague, volunteer, supporter, or someone we support, to feel included and that they belong at Alzheimer's Society. 

Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy here along with our internal employee forum and Employee Lived Experience network groups help us promote inclusion and belonging, becoming an engaged and inclusive organisation for all our people. 

Our hiring process

During your recruitment process we want to make sure that you bring your whole self and can be at your best. We are working hard to ensure our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible, so please do inform us of your experience and anything you think we could do better by completing our candidate survey when you apply.  Please also contact Alzheimer’s Society Talent Acquisition Team via [email protected] for application support or any adjustments you might need.

To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value it truly adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to showcase them in your own voice.

We try to avoid closing roles early where possible, however if we receive a high volume of applications, we may close earlier than the advertised closing date. Should this occur, we will aim to provide you with at least 48 hours' notice.

We are committed to safer recruitment and ensuring the welfare of those we work with, due to the nature of some of our roles, we might need to carry out a DBS check at the relevant level.

Giving back to you

Our employees work hard every day to make a true difference in people's lives. We are proud to support them with a range of benefits, recognition and many options for working agilely, all contributing to a strong work life balance. We also have various learning programmes to support you in your development and help you grow to realise your potential and shape a career with Alzheimer's Society. 

You can also visit our Working for Us pages, which give you more information about what it’s like to be an employee at the Society.