Head of Financial Accounting

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Detailed job description and main responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

Generally, acts under professional review of the Associate Director of Finance throughout.

May undertake any other duties commensurate with grade, as requested; and

Will typically work using a range of PC-based software applications (e.g. MS Excel and Oracle).

Financial Governance and Technical Matters

Alongside the ADF, project managing and being professionally responsible for the accurate and compliant production of various regulatory returns, ensuring they are accurate, timely and satisfy audit requirements. Working across other finance teams for their accurate and timely completion.

Providing expert financial advice to senior managers including directors, liaising with NHSE, Department of Health and Social Care, HMRC and auditors on strategic or technical matters where required.

Business partnering with divisional colleagues to develop and deliver strategic capital planning and reporting. Supporting the Trusts strategic aims and ensuring achievability of plans.

Collating the Trusts annual (and 5-year) capital programme in liaison with care groups and as informed by the Capital Investment Committee for presentation at, and approval by, the Business & Performance Committee. Reporting such plans to DHSC/NHSE, including assessment of capital financing (CDEL).

Enabling the monitoring of actual and forecast capital spend and the identification of slippage remedies, through liaising across stakeholder teams and the formal reporting of opportunities and progress against agreed schemes.

Ensuring that the Trusts capital accounting function appropriately accounts for and reports capital expenditure, depreciation, revaluations, and disposals. Coordinating Trust-wide asset revaluation and verification exercises, and impairment reviews, in line with policy and regulation.

Maintaining the Trusts PFI and leasing accounting models, liaising with the Trusts Corporate management accountant, appropriate Trust managers and leasing / PFI partners where required.

Ensuring that assigned elements of financial reporting for Board / committees / NHSE is compliant, accurate and in line with internal / national deadlines, through the coordination of / liaison with teams during financial month end and designing / operating highly complex financial models. This includes the reporting of actuals and forecasts, analysing variance to plan for the readership, and recommending / implementing actions and solutions where appropriate.

Interpreting complex legislation and accounting standards, using expert knowledge and sector insight to translate wider policy and regulation into Trust policy. Developing Trust-wide financial policies, systems and processes in liaison / partnership with other teams.

Championing the Trusts Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) and other constitutional, policy and financial governance matters.

Developing / managing various technical and revenue budgets.

Developing / operating highly complex models for the Trusts financial plan, taking I&E data through to Statement of Financial Position, Statement of Cash Flows, and regulatory ratios, including sensitivity analysis and scenario modelling, and extension to strategic multi-year models.

Ensuring KPIs, performance standards and timetables are created and cascaded through the sections to effectively coordinate efforts in meeting Financial Services objectives, including meeting of BPPC payment targets for supplier payments, sound credit control procedures, as well as monthly financial reporting.

Ensuring various SOFP / systems reconciliations and other key financial control processes are adequate, completed, reviewed, and tracked.

Modelling and monitoring cash flows, including forecasting, and undertaking proactive cash management processes including borrowings and transfers. Liaison with DHSC/NHSE regarding the Trusts liquidity and compliance with prevailing cash regimes.

Proactively developing each managed service through efficiency (savings and quality) schemes, including benchmarking and liaison with external service providers, working on, and contributing to cases for service transformation or partnership working if judged to be advantageous.

Produce the statutory Annual Accounts for the Head to Toe Charity, ensuring they are prepared in accordance with the Charities Commission guidance and that all external and internal deadlines are met.

TEACHING & TRAINING RESPONSIBILITIES

Providing strategic and operational advice to senior managers, project managers and other operational staff on complex issues through the interpretation of financial information, accounting standards, national guidance and/or statute.

Writing papers for Board / Committees / subgroups. Presenting to Committees / sub-groups as appropriate.

Advising senior managers, clinicians, and partners to comply with the highest standards of financial governance and the Trusts SFIs and subsidiary polices, which may involve conflict resolution, negotiation and persuasion.

Increasing the financial awareness of non-Finance staff.

LINE MANAGEMENT/SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

Leading teams through a conspicuous commitment to quality in all outputs.

Cascading the vision - setting expectations, KPIs, performance standards and so on for each team, ensuring that adequate procedures and policies are in place.

Co-ordinating annual leave and flexi-time arrangements for the teams, addressing disciplinary, capability and grievance issues, management of staff attendance, and mandatory training compliance. Recruiting staff.

Promoting staff development, through active support of the Finance Staff Development Lead. Ensuring that appraisals within the teams are prioritised, timely, linked to Finance objectives and meaningful to staff.

Ensuring that new staff experience suitable induction, and that staff are familiar with Trust-wide issues, and relevant policies and procedures.

Leading in knowledge management, locally and motivating teams in a learning organisation culture within Financial Services.

Managing self and teams, and advising / coordinating with linked teams, in ensuring statutory financial accounts are produced for the Trust and for the Charity, meeting local and national deadlines.

Planning and coordinating the work of each section in liaison with section leaders.

Tracking progress and monitoring delegated work streams.

Managing own time in accordance with relevant (external) deadlines, ensuring all deadlines are met on a timely basis.

Ensuring that projects are delivered within available resources and to agreed timescales.

Operating autonomously to analyse options and make judgements on the most appropriate financial action for the Trust, whilst remaining within departmental guidelines, professional boundaries, and professional review frameworks.

Identifying own development needs and the means of meeting them, in line with the professional codes of conduct applicable to accountancy professionals.

Escalating to and deputising for the Associate Director of Finance as appropriate / required.

PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

As indicated in the Person Specification and above, ongoing evidenced CPD and CCAB body membership are both required. It follows that professional conduct, both technical and ethical, commensurate with such membership, is also required.

Person specification

Education

Essential criteria

• CCAB qualification.
• Evidence of compliance with institute CPD requirements.
• Honours degree or equivalent level of qualification and/or equivalent experience.

Experience

Essential criteria

• Significant senior post-qualification finance experience, working in an NHS or similar organisation to understand complexities of processes.
• Extensive specialist knowledge over more than one Financial Services function acquired through experience.
• Staff management experience including finance staff development
• Previous Finance experience including leading in the production of cash and capital plans and regulatory returns, and leading in the delivery of Financial Services outputs
• Experience of preparing the statutory annual accounts

Knowledge & Skills

Essential criteria

• Highly developed communication skills with the ability to communicate complex financial data to non-finance managers
• Communicate contentious information to an audience that may not be receptive
• Communicate clearly and concisely, both verbally and in writing, including the production of Committee papers
• Strong leadership qualities
• Ability to form judgements and make autonomous decisions guided by policies and procedures
• Confidence in using IT e.g. Microsoft e.g. Microsoft Office, integrated financial ledger system, databases with accurate output

Other

Essential criteria

• Accepts responsibility and accountability for own work and can define the responsibilities of others
• Recognises the limits of own authority within the role

Here at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (CPFT) we are dedicated to providing high quality care with compassion. We deliver many of the NHS services that are provided outside of hospital and in the community such as physical, mental health and specialist services.

We are a health and social care organisation, offering a wide range of services, including:

• Integrated physical and mental health services for adults and older people;
• Specialist mental health and learning disability services;
• Children and young people's mental health services;
• Children's community services in Peterborough;
• Social care;
• Ground-breaking research

We strongly encourage applications from all sections of the community, particularly from under-represented groups including disabled people and members of our ethnic minorities and LGBTQ+ communities. For further information about our positive equality, diversity and Inclusion work, please visit https://www.cpft.nhs.uk/equalityanddiversity.

CPFT is looking to build upon its pool of temporary workers with Temporary Staffing Services (TSS). You will be asked at interview if you would be willing to register with TSS. This is an excellent opportunity for those looking to take on additional hours that are flexible around your personal circumstances.

Please be advised that in line with the WHO Health Workforce Support and Safeguards List, 2020 Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust currently are unable to accept applications from overseas candidates whose country of residence is classed as a 'Red List' country.

Applicants who require entry into the UK will be required to provide a valid police certificate from the relevant authority from each country (except the UK) where the applicant has been present for 12 months or more, 10 years before the date of visa application, while aged 18 or over.

If you are successful at interview you will be subject to pre-employment checks, including a DBS (if appropriate), references and Occupational Health. To ensure a smooth process please bring all identity documents to your interview. A list of required identity documents will be attached to your interview invitation.

All communications will be sent to you via TRAC Systems. By applying for this post you are agreeing to CPFT transferring the information contained in this application to TRAC. If you are made an offer, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

Documents to download

• Head of Financial Accounting JDPS (PDF, 239.5KB)
• CPFT Values (PDF, 114.7KB)
• CPFT Mindful Employers (PDF, 51.3KB)
• CPFT Accommodation (PDF, 296.6KB)