Job title: Finance Officer

Salary: £29,777 to £31,364 (C3)

Hours: 37 hours

Contract: Full Time

Location: Civic Hall, with opportunity for hybrid working.

Internal vacancy. Applications will only be considered from existing Leeds City Council employees.

We are seeking a self-motivated and enthusiastic individual who is looking to develop further within the Financial Services Team.

This is a great opportunity to move into a financial role which can offer a variety of work in a vibrant and forward-thinking environment. You would be working as part of the team providing a comprehensive financial administration support service to the wider financial management team.

Leeds City Council is one of the largest employers in the region with over 14,000 employees. We seek to recruit and develop talented individuals who embody our council values and ambitions.

About you

As a Finance Officer, you will bring to the role:

• Educated to a minimum of GCSE level including English and Mathematics at grade C or above
• Good communication skills, both verbal and written
• Good IT skills including the use of Microsoft office applications, particularly Excel
• Sound numeracy skills and the ability to work with large data sets
• The ability to work within tight deadlines
• Flexible approach to work demands and team-working
• Ability to respond independently to unexpected problems and situation, and organise your own workload, deciding when and how to carry out the work for which you are responsible.

About the role

Leeds City Council delivers over 500 different services to residents and is dedicated to bringing the benefits of a prosperous, vibrant and attractive city to the people of Leeds. High quality, effective financial management is key to delivering the Council’s ambitions.

This is a great opportunity to work in a financial role at Leeds City Council, where we can offer a variety of work in a vibrant and forward-thinking environment. As our next Finance Officer, your role is integral to both our Operational and Control teams where you would provide a comprehensive financial administration support service to the wider Financial Management Service.

You might be responding to routine financial queries or assisting with the reconciliation of financial information held within FMS to other financial systems or releasing of feeder files into the ledger (FMS). The role includes assisting in ensuring the integrity of our Financial Management System, processing financial transactions and assisting finance officers with annual financial processes including the preparation of budgets and year end accounts, along with assisting in tax returns and assisting system users across the Council, as you might also be delivering training to colleagues or providing them with advice on financial matters.

What we offer you

We take pride in offering the best employee experience, with benefits including:

• a competitive salary and annual leave entitlement plus statutory holidays
• membership of the West Yorkshire Pension Fund with generous employer contributions
• flexible and hybrid working arrangements subject to service requirements

• a clear career pathway and continuing professional development opportunities
• a range of staff benefits to help you boost your wellbeing and make your money go further

How to apply

Please complete the online application form.

Read our guidance for further advice. Please check your information carefully and ensure you complete all sections before submitting your application.

If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the roles please contact Claire Riley (Finance Manager)  Call 0113 5350127 or email Claire.Riley@Leeds.gov.uk  or Stephen Townend (Finance Manager) Call 0113 3788208 or email Steve.Townend@leeds.gov.uk 

We promote diversity and want a workforce that reflects the population of Leeds and the communities we serve. Leeds City Council is recognised in Stonewall’s Workplace Equality Index 2024. We are also an Age-friendly Employer, a Mindful Employer and a Disability Confident Leader.

All new Leeds City Council appointments are made subject to the satisfactory completion of a six-month probationary period.

This role is based in the UK. Employment is conditional on confirmation of the right to work in the UK - either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme or having secured any other relevant work visa. If you do not have the right to work in the UK and the role does not meet eligibility for sponsorship, please consider carefully whether you meet the eligibility to apply.

Job Description

Job purpose:

Working as part of the team providing a comprehensive financial administration support service to the wider financial management team, the post-holder will model the Council’s values and behaviours in order to help us achieve our ambition of being the best council in the country.

Responsibilities

• Assist budget managers and other officers with queries of a financial nature in relation to budget, budget monitoring, year-end and balance sheet accounts.
• Assist with annual financial processes including the preparation of budgets and year end accounts, monitoring and finalising of balance sheet accounts and processing of Treasury Management Transactions
• Support the provision of responses to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, maintaining a directory of all FOI responses.
• Reconcile financial information held within FMS to other financial systems.
• Co-ordinate responses to Councillor questions and other ad-hoc information requests.
• Responsibility for supporting budget holders for lower risk, less complex budget areas.
• Support Finance Managers in the completion of grant claims and returns.
• Support the coordination of responses to financial queries and requests for information and analysis from budget holders and corporate colleagues.
• Communicate new starters/leavers and other workforce changes to the financial management workforce to the BSC.
• Delivering training to budget holders and junior staff on FMS and providing ad-hoc advice re process, coding and other financial matters.

Qualifications

• Educated to a minimum of GCSE level including English and Mathematics at grade C or above.
• Studying towards AAT qualification or equivalent or will be required to study towards AAT if appointed

PERSONAL SPECIFICATION: Method of Assessment will be through one or more of the following Application Form, Test, Interview, and Certificate

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS: It is essential that the Candidate should be able to demonstrate the following criteria for the post within the context of the specific role duties and responsibilities:  Candidates will only be shortlisted for interview if they can demonstrate on the application form that they meet all the essential requirements.

Skills Required

• Good communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Good IT skills including the use of Microsoft office applications, particularly Excel.
• Sound numeracy skills and the ability to work with large data sets.
• Good interpersonal skills.
• The ability to work within tight deadlines.
• Knowledge of Financial Regulations and Contract Standing Orders.
• Flexible approach to work demands and team-working.
• Ability to work quickly and accurately both within a team and on own initiative.
• Ability to deliver training to budget holders and junior finance staff.
• Ability to organise and coordinate various queries to meet tight deadlines.

Knowledge Required

• Working knowledge of accountancy in a financial service background including budget planning, monitoring and closure of accounts.
• Have a sound working knowledge of standard IT applications used in an office environment and the use a computerised financial ledger.
• Understanding of employees’ responsibility for health and safety.

Experience Required

• Experience of the annual financial cycle.
• Experience of maintaining good working relationships in the delivery of financial services.
• Experience of working successfully to strict deadlines.

Essential Behavioural and other Characteristics

• Understand and embrace Leeds City Council Values and Behaviours and codes of conduct
• Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Best City Ambition of Health & Wellbeing, Inclusive Growth and Zero Carbon
• Be aware of and be able to understand and observe Leeds City Council policies.
• Carry out all duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health and Safety.
• Willingness to actively participate in training and development activities
• Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade.
• Participate in appraisal, training, and development activities.
• Be aware of and support difference ensuring equality for all, working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding, equality & diversity.
• Recognise and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment, victimisation, and any form of abuse, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person
• The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and the role will be expected to work within these parameters.

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