Head of Finance

Job Description

Reporting to:

Director of Finance and Resources

Salary:

c.£43k per annum (inclusive of London weighting), depending upon experience and contributory pension scheme

Location:

Willcox House, 140-148 Borough High Street, London SE1 1LB (moving to Edinburgh House, Kennington September 2018)

Holiday entitlement:

25 days plus 3 discretionary days between Christmas and New Year and Statutory holidays

Working conditions:

Full time and permanent

The post holder may be required to work some evenings and weekends. Time off in Lieu will be given in line with the charity’s policy.

Job Summary

Reporting directly to the Director of Finance and Resources, the Head of Finance leads the running of the charity’s finance operations, to provide an efficient, professional, accurate and robust service to maximise the use of resources and achieve the charity’s strategy, supporting a growing charity, and the vision to make a direct difference for people affected by bowel cancer.

This involves working closely with the Director of Finance and Resources and the rest of the leadership team, as well as being part of the charity’s management team, to act as a finance business partner, supporting and advising where financial decisions are required.

The role requires excellent communication and engagement skills, while ensuring sound accounting principles and best practice are adopted in all circumstances.

Main responsibilities

Finance Business Partner

Work closely with senior leaders and managers to provide support, insight and advice on decisions with financial or commercial implications
Support the Director of Finance and Resources to prepare reports, schedules and papers for the Board of Trustees, Finance and Resources Committee and other committees as necessary

Preparation of annual accounts and returns

Work with the Director of Finance and Resources to ensure annual accounts cycle is managed to prepare annual reporting of accounts to meet required deadlines
Ensure all statutory returns to HMRC, Charities Commission and any other statutory bodies are completed to required deadlines
Work with Director of Finance and Resources to prepare, manage and report on annual external audit process

Business planning, budgeting and reporting

Lead on the annual budgeting and business planning cycle, ensuring involvement and communication with Directors and Heads of all teams
Preparation of monthly management accounts, and ensuring timely and relevant commentary on material variances to budget through regular liaison with Head of teams

Preparation of financial forecasts or management reports as requested

Financial management

Oversee the charity’s finance operational activities, including financial reconciliations and cash flow, Gift Aid claims, banking requirements, invoicing and payment terms, grants funding, income generation and processing activities
Manage preparation of monthly payroll process, including pension contributions and payments to the Inland Revenue
Manage other employee benefit schemes such as life assurance, childcare vouchers, cycle to work scheme etc.
Manage insurance requirements for the charity, ensuring adequate cover and best value for money
Support the Director of Finance and Resources in investment management strategy and performance

Finance team management

Providing leadership, management, guidance and mentoring of the Finance team
Managing and overseeing day to day operational running of the finance team’s tasks and responsibilities
Ensure the Finance team provide excellent financial service and support to the rest of the charity

Finance Systems, controls and procedures

Lead on the management and development of the charity’s finance systems, ensuring they are robust and resilient, and capable of meeting the charity’s requirements through ongoing development and growth
Continually review and seek to improve business processes, controls and procedures to streamline the finance service to the rest of the charity

Other

Involvement in and leadership of any specific projects identified to further the work of the charity
Maintain professional standards and keep up to date with relevant changes in charity and general accounting policies and practices

Person Specification

Qualifications and Experience - Essential

A qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or CIPFA) with experience of the charity sector, especially SORP and the management of restricted and unrestricted funds
Experience of a senior finance role
A proven track record in influencing, managing and developing a highly effective team
Experience of reviewing systems and processes and implementing financial controls

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Confident user of IT systems; ideally, Sage or a similar comparable system and advanced Excel skills
Ability to work to regular reporting deadlines, but also be able to support colleagues across the wider charity especially around budgeting and variance reporting
Shows a high level of personal responsibility and initiative
Works effectively in a fast-paced, hands-on environment
Pro-active and organisation-focused, achieving demonstrable results
Ability to build and maintain effective working relationships at all levels
Ability to establish strong personal credibility and influence
Problem solving and analytical capability with experience of managing ambiguity
Excellent written and oral communication skills with confidence to deliver presentations

Personal Qualities

Energy and drive to be pro-active and work on own initiative
A self-starter who calmly and proactively finds solutions to problems and manages own time well
The gravitas, charm and credibility to work with people at all levels
Strong commitment to the work and mission of Bowel Cancer UK