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Head of Finance -
Housing & Social Investment

Salary: £87,546 - £100,194 per annum

Department: Financial Management 

Section or service: Business Partnering

Grade: K

Responsible to: Director of Financial Management 

Employees directly supervised: Up to 6 business partners depending on the service

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Job purpose

Provide high-quality financial accounting, strategic management accounting and procurement advice to a major service within the council, including the relevant Lead Members, Strategic & Operational Directors, senior managers, and others, on behalf of the council’s finance function. 

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Advise on all elements of strategic finance and planning on behalf of the department for the council’s business planning process, and the development and delivery of departmental projects including capital programmes. 

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Strategically manage the relationship between the department and other bodies and other local authorities with regard to meeting the council’s financial remit and financial priorities. 

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Advise on all major relevant contracts. Advising Council Members and Officers at all levels on an extensive range of financial issues covering procurement and contract letting.

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Description of duties

  • Lead and manage a portfolio of services in alignment with both corporate and departmental aims and priorities. 

  • Plan the delivery of financial management, financial reporting, financial advice and support to the lead members, Strategic and Operational Directors, departmental service heads, capital programme managers, budget holders and others as required covering both short and long term financial planning to benefit the delivery of the services to the Council. 

  • Advise teams of officers and Members, across the Council, on the most cost effective way to deliver the service and work with them to deliver that contract.

  • Prepare affordability & VFM financial models.

  • Develop a strategy to ensure the finance team can support all services of the department in providing best value and maximising efficient use of financial resources, both in terms of revenue and capital expenditure, over both the short and long term. 

  • Devise and ensure delivery of a comprehensive programme of financial monitoring reports to allow effective monitoring and planning by managers at both a strategic and operational level on all aspects of the use of financial resources (revenue and capital). 

  • Provide advice to Strategic and Operational Directors, and departmental service heads on all aspects of budget forecasting during the business year and ensure, on behalf of the department, all forecasts as far as practicably possible are accurate and robust. 

  • Provide relevant financial implications, input or commentary to all reports produced for the Leadership Team, scrutiny, council assembly, and other formal council meetings, and any reports required for external bodies. 

  • Support the development of capital and revenue business cases from strategic outline to full business case delivery, through assessment of the financial and resource implications of options being considered in support and delivery of the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the directorate.  

  • Develop and implement opportunities for maximising income.  

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Equal opportunities

Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to Council policies in relation to Equal Opportunity, Customer Care and service delivery, and the ability to implement these policies in the workplace. 

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Qualifications

​Essential:

  • Educated to degree level or equivalent 

  • Qualified Accountant (Preferably CIPFA) 

  • Evidence of significant relevant Continuing Professional Development (CPD). 

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Skills, experience and attitude  

  • Extensive knowledge of: 

    • accounting principles, policies and practices 

    • the council’s budget processes and requirements 

    • various forms of local government funding 

    • the Government’s funding regime, grant calculation and factors affecting the council’s allocation. 

  • Awareness of commercial contract negotiations, including sub contract relationships 

  • Knowledge of the major factors, influences and legislation facing local government 

  • A working knowledge of project management methodology, EU procurement and VAT requirements 

  • Track record of achievement at a management level in a similarly large and complex organisation including: 

    • delivering customer focused services and service improvements managing demands and pressures on the service and tight deadlines 

    • ensuring that the service is effectively resourced to deliver to the required standard 

    • planning for a minimum of one year anticipating priorities, changing landscape and predict the future service; 

    • preparing business cases and commercial rates of return on various opportunities working as part of the part of the top management team; 

    • delivering radical new ideas which lead to major change in the organisation, services offered and the wider political landscape. 

    • implementing business process transformation projects and delivering financial saving. including opportunities to maximise income. 

    • delivering a holistic approach to business, with understanding of importance  of service and operational functions in both local government and commercial operations; 

    • managing and implementing the financial arrangements for outsourced operations working in partnership with partnering organisations; 

    • implementing financial systems and integrating with operational and customer databases. 

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Download the full, detailed, job description here.

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