"Finance Assistant" Jobs
- 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.
For more than 30 years, War Child has been driven by a single goal – ensuring a safe future for every child affected by war. We aim to reach children as quickly as possible when conflict breaks out and stay long after the cameras have gone to support them through their recovery. We work with local communities and governments to help protect and educate children, and support them to heal and learn, for a safer, brighter future.
Last year, War Child UK agreed to come together with War Child Holland, War Child Germany, War Child Sweden and Children in Conflict in the USA, each of whom previously operated as independent NGOs, to form the War Child Alliance, which went live in January 2024. The new Alliance now runs our overseas projects, our research, scaling and advocacy programmes on behalf of us all, utilising our collective power and influence to have the greatest possible impact for children affected by war. As a member of the new Alliance, War Child UK is now a highly effective and innovative fundraising entity, raising crucial funds and awareness of our work globally.
Join us as our Director of Finance and IT at War Child UK, a pivotal role within our Leadership Group reporting directly to Helen Pattinson, CEO. Your role is to lead our finance and IT, but as a member of our leadership group to take joint responsibility with other Directors for leading the organisation.
As Finance and IT Director, you'll lead the optimisation of our finance and IT systems to streamline recording and reporting of financial transactions. Your analytical skills will be essential as you explore cost and income centres, supplying vital data necessary to significantly enhance our fundraising efforts.
Beyond day-to-day operations, you'll play a strategic role in long-term financial planning, fostering collaboration across the War Child Alliance. Together with fellow leaders, you'll steward the wider organisation, ensuring War Child UK is ready for success and equipped with ambitious financial investment frameworks.
Success in this role also entails ensuring our IT systems maintain the highest standards of excellence, delivering accurate and timely financial performance insights. You'll contribute to a vision where War Child UK achieves extraordinary results within a financially sound Alliance, empowering members to maximise their impact while being accountable for every penny raised.
You will be a qualified accountant with exceptional strategic and operational experience. You do not necessarily need to have prior international development experience, although you will need to demonstrate that you can build effective working relationships with overseas counterparts. Experience of working within a complex fundraising environment would be highly advantageous though. For this role, we are also as keen to hear from experienced directors who are excited by what we do as we are from those for whom this would be their first senior leadership role.
Tall Roots is acting as an employment agency partner to War Child UK. If you would like an informal discussion about the role, please email Mark Crowley at Tall Roots.
Interim Head of Finance | 3 Month + | £300 - £350 per day (outside IR35) | Hybrid | Croydon
For a small but vital refugee charity, we are recruiting an Interim Head of Finance for 3 + months, starting ASAP. Reporting to the CEO, the main accountabilities will focus on providing insightful monthly management accounts and reporting to the Senior Leadership Team and Trustees / Board, and to ensure the correct allocation of expenditure to a high number of grant funds. This role will oversee the Finance Assistant and the day-to-day finance transactions, including expenses, payroll, and balance sheet reconciliations.
Main Duties:
- Produce regular management accounts and financial reporting
- Support the Leadership Team, Finance Committee and Board with long-term financial planning
- Lead and review budgeting, reforecasting and cashflow management
- Review and re-negotiate all contracts, including office premises, IT, grants, and services
- Oversee the Finance Assistants day-to-day work including transactions and payroll processing
- Work with the Head of Fundraising and Senior Leadership to ensure income generation and fundraising strategy is in line with long-term goals
What will you bring to this role?
- Qualified Accountant or QBE with solid experience
- Strong knowledge and experience of Charity SORP, Grant funding and restricted and unrestricted funding
- Strong experience of management accounts and reporting within a small but complex charity organisation including budget preparation and year-end accounting and Audit
- Strong IT skills including Xero and Excel
- Experience of contracts, facilities management, HR processes and IT would be desirable
- Solid experience of managing and motivating staff
________
As an employer, we are committed to ensuring the representation of people from all backgrounds regardless of their gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, disability status, or any other aspect which makes them unique. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds to apply and would encourage you to let us know if there are steps, we can take to ensure that your recruitment process enables you to present yourself in a way that makes you comfortable.
We are proud to be partnering with a National trade union body to find an outstanding National Officer’s Secretary.
You will have an understanding of member-based organisations, servicing committee meetings, expense processing, and usual undertaking of secretarial duties. Also, you will have to provide full PA support to the National Officer (NO) including establishing a clear understanding of the NO’s sector- specific responsibilities and contacts. The National Officer’s Secretary will deal with correspondence on behalf of the NO, including liaising with other departments where necessary. This job requires you to be involved in accurate preparation of paperwork, maintaining diary and organising meetings when necessary plus occasional travel to quarterly meetings. You will be providing advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office software, including up to date Word applications, Excel and other database facilities, Outlook and Internet. The National Officer’s Secretary will be making travel and accommodation arrangements in liaison with Finance Department and eternal providers as necessary. You will also be managing discreet projects on the NO’s behalf.
This role is an immediate start and will be a temp role for up to 3 months with scope to become permanent. Office based near Holborn.
At Prospectus we invest in your journey as a candidate and are committed to supporting you with your application. We welcome all candidates to apply, regardless of age, sex/gender, disability, race, religion, sexual orientation, marital status or pregnancy/maternity.
In order to apply please submit your CV in the first instance. Should your experience be suitable, we will arrange for a call to brief you on the role. We are looking forward to connecting with you.
St Paul’s Cathedral School are pleased to be exclusively partnering with Robertson Bell in search of a new Financial Controller to join their team on a permanent basis. St Paul’s Cathedral School is an independent, co-educational boarding and day school for boys and girls aged 5 to 13 (Reception to Year 8).
The Financial Controller will report into the Bursar and be responsible for for the whole of the School’s day-to-day accounting function to ensure effective procedures and robust controls are in place for all aspects of the function.
The organisation:
Situated in the heart of the City of London, at the East side of the Cathdral, the School enjoys state-of-the-art facilities for academic work, music, performing arts and sport in a single-site campus. With around 275 pupils (with up to 36 Cathedral Choristers who are boarding pupils), the School is small enough to ensure that each pupil receives individual attention, yet large enough to offer an array of academic and extra-curricular opportunities that a Prep school could deliver. There are 84 members of staff, comprising teachers, teaching assistants, music instructors and a support team.
The role:
- Assist the Bursar to seek commercial income opportunities and monitor and advise on school investments through liaison with external investment managers.
- Deputise for the Bursar in all finance matters and at governor committees, or at SLT meetings when requested by the Head.
- Support the Bursar’s financial and audit responsibility.
- Check Income & Expenditure (I&E) variances and explain and compare findings to previous year, to budgets and to forecasts.
- Prepare weekly cashflow forecast and monthly management accounts.
- Compile and analyse the annual school budget, setting and monitoring.
- Prepare initial input data for new arrivals, departing staff, music teachers and additional overtime payments.
- Modernise the finance IT package and update the finance manual.
- Oversee and administer school fee collection, process supplier payments and invoices.
- Prepare and present the annual accounts for the annual statutory audit and liaise with the auditors and implement audit findings.
The successful candidate will be:
- A fully qualified Accountant (ACA, ACCA, or CIMA) or at Finalist level.
- Experienced in budgeting, forecasting and producing management accounts.
- A fantastic communicator.
- Experienced in developing and implementing financial systems and internal controls.
- Confident assisting with annual audits and in the preparing of annual accounts.
This position will be based officially at the head office in central London next to St Pauls Cathedral and will require the postholder to work from the office with occasional hybrid working. The closing date for applications is 23rd April, with interviews taking place the week commencing 29th April.
Applications will be under constant review before the closing date, so please submit your application to our exclusive search agent, Robertson Bell. Apply now to be considered!