Board Member And Governor Jobs in Bushey, Hertfordshire
Educational Grants & Relationships Manager
The Merchant Taylors' Company is looking for an exceptional person to lead on its educational grant-making and its education-related relationships. The grant-making is delivered primarily through the Merchant Taylors' Foundation. It’s partly about schools but also potentially any setting in which education improves lives – for example, offender rehabilitation, or our Early Years joint programme with the Leathersellers’ Company.
You’ll sustain vibrant relationships between the Company and schools throughout England and Northern Ireland with which it has close links. Some are state-maintained, some in the independent sector, and you’ll love both types.
You’ll lead on education-related volunteering opportunities for the Company’s membership, a vibrant community of people whose birth decades span the early 2000s back to the 1930s.
You’ll also lead on relationships with all the stakeholders affecting our education-related work. You’ll ensure those relationships are flourishing and mutually advantageous, and you’ll lead on identifying and building new ones to increase our impact.
You’ll support fundraising work for the Foundation, for example through creating compelling pieces for social media and hard copy publications.
You’re a fast learner and clearly very able. You are clever, proactive, pragmatic and financially astute. Your influencing and diplomatic skills are strong. Your social skills are brilliant with people of all ages and walks of life. Your oral and written communication skills are excellent, and you’ll need them for working with Merchant Taylors’ boards and committees and communicating with the Company’s membership. You’re not afraid of taking responsibility, or being accountable. You are a strategic thinker. You’re great on the big picture as well as the detail. You’re confident with figures and financial information. You’re also confident with IT and, given we’re a small team, you’ll love using IT applications to help us work efficiently.
You don’t need a professional background in education. The qualities above are much more important. This job could suit someone with great potential who is looking for the next step up, or someone who can already demonstrate experience of everything from their career to date. Either way, the selection process may include skills tests.
For more information including how to submit a valid application, please see the instructions in the Candidate Information Pack.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
- Director of Finance for prestigious Surrey independent private school
- ACA/ACCA/CIMA qualified accountant - All sectors considered
About Our Client
The Director of Finance is responsible for the financial management of St George's Weybridge, a £30m business with over 500 staff. The post holder will fulfil a wide range of responsibilities and roles in connection with the financial strategy, accounting and general financial management of the School. The post is the most senior finance professional on the staff and reports directly to the Bursar, who is effectively the CFO/COO. As such, the Director of Finance has frequent direct contact with Governors and the Heads and attends the Governors' Finance and Risk Committee meetings.
The Director of Finance is a member of the Business Senior Management Team and leads a team of 8 staff, comprising the Management Accountant, Payroll and People Accountant, Fees Controller, Interim Project Accountant, Purchase Ledger Assistant and two Finance Assistants. A new role of Financial Accountant has been established and the successful candidate will have the opportunity to influence this role and appointment.
Job Description
- Formulate the financial strategy of the School alongside Governors and the Executive Leadership Team (consisting of the two Heads and the Bursar).
- Attend meetings of the Finance and Risk Committee of the Board of Governors, preparing financial reports and papers and leading on financial items tabled for discussion or decision.
- Attend and contribute to ad-hoc Governor meetings and discussions as required.
- Alongside the Bursar and the Heads, implement the School's strategic financial plans.
- Work closely with ELT to formulate operational spending plans and priorities.
- Work closely with the Director of HR on people strategies.
- Exhibit the behaviours and standards befitting a senior leader of St George's Weybridge, demonstrating and promoting the School's ethos and values.
- Lead and manage the staff in the Finance Department.
- Bring financial risks and opportunities to the attention of the Bursar and Governors.
- Conduct modelling and feasibility studies as appropriate.
- Review and implement changes to the system of financial control and reporting.
- Oversee production of monthly management information and bring appropriate matters to the attention of the Bursar, Heads and budget holders.
- Prepare papers for, attend, and contribute to the dealings of the Finance and Risk Committee.
- Prepare financial appraisals and reviews of major projects.
- Prepare long term forecasts and sensitivity analysis.
- Undertake competitor analysis and benchmarking studies.
- Retain financial awareness of external changes and development and provide recommendations and advice to the Bursar, including a thorough knowledge of relevant accounting requirements, such as GAAPs, FRSs and the Charity Commission SORP.
- Proactively investigate and promote ways of improving value for money.
- All accounting functions including nominal, purchase and fee ledgers, fixed asset register and the payroll.
- Oversee the staff and systems delivering all aspects of payroll.
- The accurate and timely production of management and financial accounts.
- The internal control environment.
- Management and control of fee collection.
- Preparation of the consolidated statutory accounts for St George's Weybridge and subsidiary companies.
- Liaising with external auditors on all matters connected with the annual audit of the School's accounts and other external accountancy advice.
- Preparing annual budgets and termly forecasts, including cash flow projections for the current and future years.
- Maintain, review and ensure compliance with the School's Financial Procedures Manual.
- Preparation of internal financial management reports, accounts and briefing papers, including monthly management accounting information to include cash flow statements and forecasts.
- Control of the treasury management function in order to ensure the most efficient and secure deployment of cash.
- Ensuring compliance with external regulators, including HMRC, the Charity Commission and Companies House.
- Being responsible for accurate and timely tax returns and tax reclaims, with professional advice where necessary, preparing recommendations for mitigating potential VAT and any other tax liabilities.
The Successful Applicant
- Formal Accounting qualification and experience of working in the commercial, educational or charity sectors.
- Experience of compliance with legislation and regulations relevant to the position
- Experience of contract negotiation
- Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.
- Ability to analyse and manipulate financial data.
- Competent in the use of IT, notably MS Office applications and the ability to use modern financial software tools.
- Proven experience of managing a team within a complex organisation
- Empathy with the ethos and values of St George's Weybridge.
- Personal warmth, tenacity and a transparent collaboration style.
- A 'can-do' attitude with a sense of humour and proportion.
- A flexible approach to work, both in terms of responding to changing or unforeseen circumstances and being willing to work outside of regular hours as the need arises
What's on Offer
Hybrid working opportunity
Flexible working
Generous pension scheme
School fee child remission of 50%
Life & personal accident insurance
Free meals and parking
Employee loans
Medial support and employee assistance programme
Local retailer discounts
Where specific UK qualifications are required we will take into account overseas equivalents. All third party applications will be forwarded to Michael Page.