Principal Accountant (Financial Planning)

Working on behalf of a Local Authority, Aatom Recruitment has an opportunity for Principal Accountant (Financial Planning) on a 6 month contract with a possibility of an extension.

This position will be a total of 36 hours per week, with hours from 09:00am – 17:00pm.

Job Purpose:

To support the development and management of the Council’s annual budget, ensuring the delivery of value for money to our residents. To support the monitoring of the budget and to develop and co-ordinate processes across the accounting function.

Job Specific Accountabilities:

• To be responsible for the development and performance of senior accountants within the Financial Planning team in line with the Council’s HR policies.
• To ensure all team members receive the appropriate level of communication to maintain engagement with the Council’s strategic financial priorities.
• As the lead Principal Accountant for budget production, to ensure that Senior Managers in Finance and accountants at all levels are fully informed of all the MTFF and budget production process and understand their responsibilities in the process.
• To support the development of effective external working relationships with other appropriate public and private bodies to ensure the service has the knowledge and expertise to continuously improve its budgeting performance.
• To manage and develop the Council’s budget production process and to develop and co-ordinate the annual budget review exercises linked to the development of the Council’s MTFF. To be responsible for the production of the Council’s annual budget book.
• To collate and produce the Council’s monthly budgeting monitoring report, clearly linking financial information with the impact on residents and service users. And to continue to develop the report and the reporting process in line with the Council’s transformation agenda.
• To maintain the financial model to forecast future General Fund revenue and capital expenditure and funding levels, based on analysis of local government finance settlements and intelligence of all funding announcements.
• Communicate the deadlines within those timetables to the wider accounting function to enable understanding and response levels.
• Please refer to section 3 as the main purpose of this role is effective financial management of the Council’s finances.
• To ensure all purchasing and procurement is conducted in line with the corporate guidelines with appropriate use of the Council’s financial systems.

Knowledge, Qualifications and Experience:

• Fully qualified Accountant
• Evidence of post qualification development
• Attendance at evening Committee meetings as required.
• A minimum of two years post qualification experience working in a local authority accounting team
• Demonstrable understanding of local government finance
• Demonstrable understanding of equal opportunities in employment and service delivery within a large and complex organisation
• Evidence of a clear understanding of the legal, financial and political context of management within a local authority.
• Proven analytical skills and ability to clearly present financial information.
• Ability to effectively utilise IT packages, including Microsoft software spreadsheets and word processing packages.
• Strong organisational and time management skills, proven track record in meeting tight deadlines.
• Sound understanding of accounting principles and practices and the financial issues affecting local authorities.

To get more information about this role and how to apply please contact Jordan.