Senior Finance Officer Job Tameside area,Dukinfield England UK,Finance & Banking

Location: Dukinfield

Senior Finance Officer | Manchester | Permanent Opportunity to be part of a Finance Team in a growing Academy Trust

Grade 7 Actual Salary £33,712 - £35,406

Term Time Only Plus 2 weeks (40 working weeks in a year)

35 hours per week

Membership of Local Government Pension Scheme, offering generous employer contributions

On site Parking

Employee Assistance Program + More Benefits

Manchester based, with travel across Greater Manchester to support our schools.

Join a Trust Where People Matter

Ambition Community Trust is seeking an experienced and proactive Senior Finance Officer to join our growing central Finance Team.

This is an exciting opportunity to play an important role in delivering a high-quality finance service across our schools. Working closely with the Head of Finance, Headteachers, budget holders and school-based colleagues, you will provide practical financial support and advice across a range of areas including budgeting, management accounts, financial accounting, payroll, income and funding, financial controls and reporting.

At Ambition Community Trust, relationships are at the heart of everything we do. We believe schools flourish when kindness, inclusion and collaboration are embedded in everyday practice. As a Senior Finance Officer, you will contribute to a positive and supportive workplace culture while helping ensure our schools have effective financial systems and processes in place to support excellent outcomes for children and young people.

This post is based at Castlefield Campus, working alongside the Trust Central teams, with travel to our schools across Greater Manchester as required.

About the Role

Working under the Head of Finance, the key responsibilities of the Senior Finance Officer are:

Support the Head of Finance and schools with annual budget preparation, budget monitoring and financial forecasting.

Prepare and analyse monthly management accounts, budget monitoring reports and other financial information, highlighting trends, variances and areas requiring attention.

Provide day-to-day financial advice and support to Headteachers, budget holders and school-based colleagues, helping them understand their financial position and responsibilities.

Maintain accurate financial records, including processing journals, accruals, prepayments and other accounting adjustments, and completing bank reconciliations.

Support month-end and year-end processes, investigating discrepancies and ensuring financial information is accurate and up to date.

Maintain strong financial controls by reviewing purchase orders, invoices and expenditure, supporting BACS payment processes, monitoring cash flow and maintaining appropriate audit trails.

Coordinate and monitor payroll information submitted by schools, checking payroll reports and reconciliations and resolving discrepancies with schools and the payroll provider.

Monitor income, grants and other funding, ensuring income is accurately recorded and reconciled, and liaising with local authorities and funding bodies where required.

Monitor outstanding debts and support schools with debt recovery, following up differences between expected and actual income.

Maintain accurate information within the Trust's finance systems, produce financial reports and analysis, and identify opportunities to improve systems, processes, reporting and data quality.

Support compliance with the Trust's Financial Regulations, Scheme of Delegation, Academy Trust Handbook

About You

We are looking for an experienced finance professional who is accurate, organised and committed to providing a high-quality, responsive service to our schools and Trust colleagues.

Qualifications: You will be working towards, or be willing to work towards, AAT Level
4. GCSE English and Maths at Grade C/4 or above, or equivalent, are essential, alongside a commitment to relevant continuing professional development. AAT Level 4 or an equivalent relevant finance qualification or experience, and part-qualified or qualified accountant status (ACCA, CIMA, CIPFA or ACA), would be desirable.

Finance

Experience:

You will have significant experience working in a finance environment, including budget monitoring, financial…