Secretariat administrator jobs

The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) is the world’s largest alliance of national societies of obstetrics and gynaecology, bringing together professionals from more than 139 countries and territories. For over 70 years, FIGO has collaborated with the world’s top health, rights and donor bodies. We are in official relations with the World Health Organization and consultative status with the United Nations.

FIGO is dedicated to the improvement of the health and rights of women and girls and to the reduction of disparities in health care, as well as to advancing the science and practice of obstetrics and gynaecology. We pursue our mission through education, research implementation, advocacy and capacity building with our member societies.

The Head of Secretariat plays a pivotal role in supporting the governance, strategic coordination, communications, and operational effectiveness of the charity. This position ensures that the FIGO Board, FIGO Council, committees, and the FIGO member societies are well-supported, informed, and engaged, and that the charity’s governance and decision-making processes are transparent, inclusive, and compliant with legal and regulatory requirements.

We’re looking for a dynamic Head of Governance & Business Administration to play a pivotal role in ensuring our organisation runs with integrity, transparency, and impact. This is an exciting opportunity to influence how one of the UK’s most ambitious cultural organisations operates as we grow and evolve.

In this role, you’ll lead on governance, risk management, and compliance, acting as Company Secretary and Data Protection Officer. You’ll oversee business planning and reporting, legal and insurance matters, procurement, and organisational policies – ensuring everything we do meets the highest standards.

You’ll work closely with our Executive Director, Board of Trustees, and senior leadership team, building strong relationships and driving change that supports our vision for equality, inclusion, and sustainability.

JOB SUMMARY

To ensure that efficient governance, operational systems and controls are in place to manage Factory International’s Governance and Business Administration function.

This includes governance and acting as Company secretariat, data protection and acting as Data Protection Officer, accountable for Business Plan Reporting, internal communication, oversight of Legal & Compliance, Risk Management, Insurance, Policies & Procedures and Procurement

The key responsibilities for the Head of Governance & Business Administration include;

Governance & Risk

• Ensure robust governance frameworks and compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements
• Coordinate Board and Committee meetings, including scheduling, agenda preparation, and distribution of papers
• Maintain statutory registers and ensure timely filing of returns and documents with regulatory bodies
• Support FI Executive and Board in proactively managing risk, and accurately reflecting via the Company Risk register, working closely with Directors to ensure quarterly updates are shared with the Executive Leadership and Board of Trustees (including relevant sub-committees)
• Maintain consistency and compliance for all internal communication channels

Business Planning & Reporting

• Act as the organisational lead for Business Plan Reporting, ensuring alignment across all key grant funding agreements and business plan KPIs
• Oversee the annual cycle of statutory reporting to both public sector funders and trustees including all ad-hoc reporting requests across the business
• Attend key external stakeholder meetings with the Executive Director (e.g. MCC, ACE, GMCA) relating to reporting against grant agreements etc
• Work closely with key Directors, Commercial Leads (including the Trusts & Foundations Manager) on funding bids ensuring that commitments are consistent with our agreed internal Business Plan targets and objectives

Legal, Insurance, Data Protection & Compliance

• Ensure legislative and regulatory compliance in all systems and procedures around business administration
• Acting as lead organisational contact and budget holder for external legal support ensuring consistent processes are followed and value for money is achieved to meet the strategic needs of the business
• Ensure adequate data protection in place, devise and implement any additional process and/or training, and act as DPO, accessing external advice as appropriate
• Where required, support the achievement of essential consents such as Planning, Licence variations, Building Control, etc
• Manage the relationship with FI’s insurance broker, working with the Executive Director and Finance Director to ensure appropriate cover and regularly review policies. Overseeing the appropriate claiming of all losses

Procurement

• Acting as lead organisational contact for all Procurement Activity – working closely with the Executive Director to ensure consistent processes are followed and value for money is achieved to meet the strategic needs of the business
• Maintain oversight of the register of planned Procurement as well as responding to un-planned procurement requirements – working closely with relevant Directors and Executives

Policies & Procedures

• Overall responsibility for control and oversight of the organisation’s suite of policies and procedures, including requests for new procedures
• Ensure that key policies are updated by business owners and renewed as per the agreed schedule – ensuring a consistency of tone, content and that relevant checks/approvals have been managed at the appropriate level (Exec, Trustees etc)

We are The Trust Partnership; a fast growing and innovative social enterprise helping charitable foundations and almshouses to be better managed and to use their resources more effectively for the benefit of the wider public.  In short, we are having a big impact in philanthropy sector. 

We are excited that we’ve not only been able to build a thriving business, but to do so on strong ethical foundations. The way we look after our staff, our clients and other stakeholders is important to us. We believe it’s possible to be a good business and a profitable one at the same time.

We are looking for someone special to join our growing business. You will be responsible for a portfolio of trusts who require clerking and supported by specialists in grantmaking and administration.  Experience of working with boards of Trustees is essential.

You need to be able to access London easily, sometimes at short notice.Occasional visits to our office in Gloucestershire will also be necessary. You will also be required to undertake a DBS check.

We are looking for a motivated individual with an exemplary work ethic and a professional attitude.  Accuracy is essential and an eye for detail that is balanced with an ability to see the bigger picture. Respect, integrity and emotional awareness are central to the role.

Working with us you will receive the following benefits

·Career progression opportunities 

·Flexible working environment 

·Professional development

·Membership of an employee benefits platform

·Charitable Giving matching up to £200 per annum

·25 days’ holiday per annum plus Bank holidays (FTE)

·Christmas shutdown (included in above)

·Additional day’s contractual leave entitlement after each fifth year of service (up to a total of six days)

·Eyecare voucher scheme.

We’re seeking an innovative Finance Officer to support our work and
build a strong internal resources team. If you enjoy looking for better ways of working, process improvement and
the challenge of integrating emerging technology into everyday finance, this may be the role for you. You will work closely with the Secretariat, providing cross-cover support, facilitating our teams to deliver our Impact goals, strengthen locally led action, and help shape our global positioning for children and families.
If you’re an innovative, pro-active, finance professional we’d love to hear
from you!

Location:  Remote, home based within the UK

Contract type:  Permanent

Working hours:  24.5 / 0.7 FTE (flex up to 0.8 FTE per week)

Grade:    C

Reporting to:    International Finance Manager

Line manager for:  N/A

Job Purpose:

This role sits within Family for Every Child’s (Family) Sustainability team, providing comprehensive support for all aspects of financial management.  The Finance Officer will work closely with the Secretariat, providing a central support function for the Sustainability, Impact, and Innovation teams.  This role will support the International Finance Manager (IFM) in building an internal finance function and will work with Family’s outsourced financial service provider in the UK to transition support in-house, ensuring efficient income and expenditure processing, reconciliation and reporting.

This role includes study support to become a qualified accountant (ACCA) with the potential for role development linked to successful exam progression. Family offers a study leave policy of 10 days over a rolling 12 month period (pro rata for part time staff).

Scope and Limits of Authority:

The post holder is expected to organise their own day-to-day activities according to the overall priorities and timescales set, and to exercise sound judgement in many critical decision-making areas.

• Purchase delegation of £1,000; invoice approval delegation of £2,000

• This role does not have budgetary or line management responsibility

• Processing of personal and confidential data

Key Responsibilities:

Finance administration

• Principal point of contact for staff and suppliers (purchasing, expenses and payments).

• Managing and organising the finance inbox, ensuring queries are answered in a timely manner and ensuring good supplier relations are maintained.

• Processing all invoices and expenses onto the accounting system, ensuring correct coding and allocation of costs.

• Preparation of domestic and international payment runs, ensuring international payments are compliant with local requirements and following up on any issues.

• Working closely with the Programme Officer to track the status of grants and ensure outgoing payments are received.

• Managing the prepaid cash cards and monthly sign off of spend, supporting staff with purchases and expenses, checking and updating expense claims prior to processing of payment.

• Bank reconciliations, monitoring bank activity, ensuring invoices/expenses paid by direct debit are processed and approved as required, maintaining supplier details up to date.

• Preparation of monthly journal entries for review and approval by the IFM.

• Acting as the main point of contact for staff to provide guidance on all operational financial policies and procedures.

• Leading on continuous improvement to operational finance processes, including the use of AI technology to streamline processes and improve efficiency.

Payroll

• Preparation of monthly UK payroll.  Working closely with the HR Officer to ensure all adjustments are processed.

• Preparation of monthly UK pension submissions within the required deadline.

• Processing all pension changes, including auto-enrolment and adjustments to contributions.

• Checking calculations for EOR and international payrolls.

• Preparation of monthly payroll allocation journals for review and approval by the IFM.

Financial budgeting and reporting

• Supporting and coordinating the budgeting process with the International Finance Manager and budget holders, updating the budget templates and checking the draft budget for accuracy and completeness.

• Supporting the production of monthly and quarterly financial reports and cash flows, reviewing trial balances prior to accounts consolidation, carrying out income reconciliation  review by the International Finance Manager, and completing sample checks of the financial reports.

• Supporting the preparation of the accounts for the annual audit and financial report

• Supporting the Impact team by reviewing project budgets, re-forecasts and financial reports prepared by members

Income processing and reporting

• Carrying out the income reconciliation between the Bank and Salesforce, working with the Database Officer and Analytics & Process Officer to ensure the necessary adjustments to the database are made.

• Ensuring income recognition is in line with accounting standards and preparing and uploading draft journals for recognition of income to Xero.

• Preparing and completing HMRC Gift Aid submission files, monitoring the Gift Aid debtor balance and receipts from HMRC

• Assisting the IG Finance Manager in administering and reporting on legacy income 

• Carrying out financial analysis and reports as needed for donor reporting, forecasting and financial modeling.

Cross Cover support

• HR:  Managing the monthly payroll process with the outsourced provider including provision of data, and checking reports and calculations, for UK payroll and all international payrolls

• HR: Maintaining day to day liaison with line managers and any outsourced payroll and employment providers (EOR).

• Fundraising:  Assisting the Supporter Care team with income processing, including regular payment processes

• Impact:  Assisting the Programme Officer with purchase orders and grant management as needed to cover periods of leave and heavier workloads (i.e. during events, etc…)

Self management

• Bringing a results focused, open and collaborative way of working to all you do to include agility, flexibility and an innovative approach, supporting colleagues to thrive in a remote working environment

Undertaking any other reasonable duties as required to support effective financial support across the Secretariat and wider Alliance.

The Key Responsibilities above set out the priorities for this role which will shift and develop to respond to the evolving nature of Family.

Family for Every Child is evolving and in order to support the Alliance the role of the Secretariat has to adapt and respond to the changing needs of the members.  This has an impact on each and every role within the Secretariat, therefore flexibility is key and the ability to respond to change, shift responsibilities and work collaboratively underlies the approach all staff need to take.

Person Specification:

Education, qualifications, knowledge and experience

Essential

• Proven experience of working within a finance function.

• Working knowledge of UK accounting standards, bookkeeping and finance administration

• Advanced IT literacy, with strong knowledge of Microsoft Excel

• Experience of using accounting software, ideally Xero with ezzybills and ApprovalMax

• Excellent numeracy and analytical skills with a high level of accuracy and attention to detail.

• Confident use of fundraising databases and/or customer relationship management systems

• Willingness to undertake professional qualification in accounting (ACCA).

Desirable

• Qualified AAT level 3, HNC or equivalent bookkeeping/finance experience 

• Experience of working remotely or with remote-working colleagues and of working as part of an international team across different timezones.

• Experience of working within a network organisation.

• Experience of working in a multicultural setting

• Experience of working with Google Apps

• Knowledge of Charity SORP, Power BI, Salesforce

• Payroll qualified or ability to take on payroll training.

• Willingness to explore the use of AI and other technologies to improve and enhance the finance function.

Skills and personal attributes

Role specific skills

• High standard of numeracy and analytical skills

• Strong organisational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritise a high volume of work and meet deadlines.

• Excellent reconciliation skills, with a systematic and rigorous approach

• Quick and accurate keyboard skills, and attention to detail, with the ability to maintain high standards of accuracy under pressure

• Ability to manage delays and solve problems

• Ability to maintain a high degree of confidentiality in relation to a range of information

The following skills and personal attributes are expected of all staff

• Flexible and adaptable; willing to contribute to other streams of work and across teams

• Bringing a results focused, open and collaborative way of working to all you do to include agility, flexibility and a ‘can do’ mentality, supporting colleagues to thrive in a remote working environment.

• Highly skilled communicator, in different formats, capable of working across languages and cultures with a high level of fluency in English (using translation and interpretation support as relevant)

• Flexibility to work outside typical working hours and days and across time zones

• Highly organised and self-motivated, able to manage and deliver on multiple concurrent tasks

• Competent IT proficiency across a range of packages, able to learn quickly and troubleshoot problems independently

• Ability to use initiative and work without close supervision, working both as part of a team and as an individual

• Excellent command of English (oral and written) is a must, but working knowledge of Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic or French is appreciated to broaden the range of language skills within the Secretariat 

Travel

• Limited to annual team planning day (UK)

Canterbury Cathedral is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All post holders and volunteers are expected to share this commitment.

We are looking to recruit a dynamic and visionary individual to join Canterbury Cathedral as a Governance Officer. Providing strategic leadership of governance across the organisation, ensuring compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements, promoting best practice, and supporting the effective operation of the Board (Chapter) and it's committees.

As a Governance Officer, you will ensure that the organisation operates within the legal, regulatory, and best practice frameworks applicable to the charitable, religious organisations.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide authoritative guidance and advice to Chapter, Committees, SLT and staff members on governance best practice and interpretation of governing documents.
• Act as Clerk to Chapter and our Senior Leadership Team, ensuring agendas are focused, meetings are compliant, and decision-making supports strategic objectives, taking responsibility for communicating these throughout the organisation.
• Lead the development and delivery of the organisations governance strategy, ensuring structures, policies and processes are effective, proportionate, and aligned to the strategic plan and community values.
• Review, develop and maintain governance policies and procedures (e.g. conflict of interest, whistleblowing, risk, delegation of authority), ensuring they are up to date and prepared for audits as required.
• Produce the Cathedrals Annual Governance Statement for approval by Chapter.
• Support recruitment, induction, and training of Chapter and Committee members, fostering an informed and engaged governance community. Oversee systems for board and committee effectiveness reviews including commissioning of external reviews where required.
• Maintain statutory and regulatory compliance: ensure filings with the Charity Commission, Companies House (if relevant), and other regulatory bodies are completed accurately and on time.
• Monitor developments in charity law, regulation, and governance best practices; ensure the organisations governance practices are aligned.
• Check reports for completeness and quality assurance in terms of content and format, and dispatch agenda in accordance with agreed deadlines.

What We're Looking For

• Good understanding of charity governance, legal and regulatory requirements (e.g. Charity Commission, Companies House, relevant legislation).
• Experience in policy drafting and implementation.
• Knowledge of risk management practices.
• Some legal or compliance training or professional qualification.
• Understanding of the requirements of the Charity Commission.
• Ability to collate accurate and relevant performance data.
• Articulate with excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Resilient and flexible.
• Ability to influence others to achieve required outcomes.

Please see the full job description and person specification for further details.

Interviews will be taking place on the 16th December 2025 in person at Canterbury Cathedral.

For your application to be considered, you will need to complete the attached application form.