Job Details
Job title: Accounting Assistant
Salary/Grade: Career Grade 2-3
Service: Financial Services
Reports to: Senior Business Partner
Manages/Supervises: N/A
Job purpose
Provide support across the finance team in delivering core financial processes, including the preparation of annual estimates, ongoing budgetary control, in‑year monitoring, Reconciliation and year‑end closure activities.
To support the Accounts Payable function when required.
Principal Accountabilities
- Provide comprehensive support to the Finance Team, contributing to the delivery of accurate, timely, and compliant financial services across the organisation.
- Provide high‑quality financial data and analytical support for the completion of grant claims, statutory returns, and government statistical submissions. Ensure all information is accurate, compliant, and submitted within required timescales
- Responsible for the preparation of high-quality financial advice, information, analysis, returns and challenge to budget holders
- Support the production of the Council’s final accounts, contributing to year‑end processes, reconciliations, working papers, and audit requirements to ensure completion by the statutory deadline and in compliance with relevant accounting standards
- Provide flexible support to the Accounts Payable and the Corporate team, including assisting with payment processing, query resolution, government returns and monitoring.
- Provide flexible support to both the Accounts Payable function and the wider Corporate Finance team, including assisting with payment processing, resolving queries, completing government returns, and undertaking regular financial monitoring
- Undertake complex financial reconciliations, ensuring accuracy, resolving discrepancies, maintaining robust audit trails, and supporting the integrity of financial data across multiple systems.
- Assist with the preparation and posting of routine journals, accruals, and prepayments
- Provide basic financial guidance to staff unfamiliar with financial processes, such as raising purchase orders or interpreting simple budget reports
- Lead on the administration and oversight of the Purchase Card process, including cardholder set‑up, monitoring usage, conducting reconciliations, ensuring policy compliance, and providing responsive support to services on purchase card queries and issue.
Corporate Accountabilities
- To take responsibility for maintaining own health and attendance.
- To support, contribute and comply with quality and governance procedures as directed by management.
- To apply and actively promote the principles of the Council’s Equal Opportunities Policy in all areas of employment and service delivery.
- To apply and actively promote the principles of the Council’s Safeguarding Procedure in all areas of employment and service delivery.
- Any other duties as required to support the business, including maintaining business continuity and during civil emergencies. All staff may on occasions be called upon to support the Council to deal with emergency situations affecting the community we serve. In the event of an emergency or a rehearsal for such an event, you may be required to attend at times and at locations outside of the normal hours and duties of the post and to adopt duties directed by the Chief Executive or their nominated representative for the duration of the emergency.
- Any other associated duties detailed by Head of Service or his representative.
- To advise Line manager if, at any time, the above duties and responsibilities cannot be performed.
Skills, Knowledge and Experience
(Tested at application and interview stage)
Experience & Qualifications
- Evidence of a strong academic background with literacy and numeracy skills, ideally with GCSEs or equivalent qualifications at grade 4 (C) or above in core subjects
- Part / Full qualified AAT or extensive experience in a similar role)
- Experience in local government
Skills and Knowledge
- Up to date knowledge and experience in the specialist areas of local government accounting, particularly the requirements of the various CIPFA Codes of Practice and other regulatory requirements in so far as they impact on the service and functional responsibilities.
- Ability to read, interpret and implement regulations, changes to procedures and practices, and changes in accounting requirements
- Able to work to tight deadlines, within an area of conflicting demands and changing priorities
- Good knowledge of financial systems and their use
- Excellent spreadsheet/ financial modelling skills and extensive use of MS Office.
- Able to constructively challenge prevailing views and be creative and innovative in working with services.
- Able to develop and maintain strong working relationships with Senior Management, Service Managers, and Budget Holders, plus external contacts and partners, based on mutual trust and respect.
- Good knowledge and understanding of local government finance, budgeting and accounting, and experience in providing high-level advice, support and challenge on a variety of complex financial and service issues
- Ability to work independently and unsupervised when required, alongside the ability to work cooperatively within an established team.
- Excellent communication skills, both oral and written, including the ability to present a range of complex and detailed financial and related matter to a diverse audience including senior officers and members.
Competencies
(Tested at the interview stage)
Communicating Effectively
Demonstrate the effective use of the range of communication methods available: written, spoken, electronic, and use these methods in appropriate ways suitable to the context and situation
- Present spoken communication in a polite, friendly and respectful manner seeking to ensure mutual understanding
- Listen well and seek clarification and understanding, avoiding jumping to conclusions or making assumptions
- Present information and ideas in a clear and understandable way which avoids jargon
- Seek to understand the communication needs of colleagues and customers, being mindful of equality issues and the diverse needs of the range of people we work with
- Choose the most appropriate method of communication for the situation, seeking to avoid using one fixed style or approach
Performing efficiently and effectively
Promote good performance, developing clear, structured and efficient ways of managing workload and delivering results. Staff should challenge themselves and others to perform well, and to adhere to the Council’s performance management systems.
- Ensure that all work carried out by you is in line with business and service plans and supports the overall aims and ambition of the Council
- Plan your workload effectively, reporting achievements and problems to appropriate managers and project leaders
- See tasks and objectives through to completion
- Approach challenges with drive and enthusiasm
- Strive for continuous improvement in your work and manage your learning and development to enable you to perform to the best of your ability
- Create novel solutions to improve services and ways of working and challenge conventional practices
- Seek out income generating opportunities and efficiencies and aim to provide more for less to achieve the best possible value and high standards of service delivery
- Be enthusiastic about the Council’s services and look for opportunities to promote and sell them
Using and managing resources efficiently and effectively
Demonstrate the effective and efficient use of the full range of resources used in and by the Council including time, finances, staffing, equipment, information, materials, buildings, etc.
- Take responsibility for managing your time, seeking efficient ways to carry out your work, maximising your output and minimising wastage
- Use and acquire materials effectively and efficiently minimising wastage, recycling where possible, and striving for cost effectiveness
- Seek out ways to improve the use of resources
Engaging with the customer
Understand the needs and requirements of other services, to provide excellent service, and to involve others in the improvement of services.
- Provide a helpful and friendly service to customers, both internally and externally
- Take responsibility for following up on enquiries and solving customer issues
- Make efforts to fully understand the customer’s needs and avoid assuming that “we know best”
- Ensure that you have a full understanding of the needs and requirements of the customer
- Seek feedback from internal and external customers on the effectiveness and efficiency of the service you provide
Working well together
Actively foster good working relationships with colleagues in order to collectively achieve the Council’s direction and ambition.
- Co-operate and work well with colleagues at all levels of the organisation, seeking collective responsibility for the achievement of goals
- Demonstrate consideration and respect for other’s feelings and opinions and avoid judging and making assumptions
- Maintain positive working relationships with external contacts in order to maintain the reputation of the Council
- Seek to actively solve problems and avoid passing the issue on to others or leaving the problem unresolved
- Demonstrate self-awareness of your style of working and develop flexibility and adaptability in order to work well with others
Other conditions
- This post doesn't require a DBS check
- This post is not politically restricted
Job Profile Updated
August 2026
Values and behaviours
Our values and behaviours are an integral part of who we are; they are the guiding principles that should inform how we work together, support each other and make decisions.
Our organisation thrives on the dedication and passion of its people and it’s important that we embody these values and behaviours and they become a part of our organisational DNA.
Our vision
We will be ambitious, support each other and work together in new ways to achieve outstanding results
Our core values
We value everyone
- We respect, recognise and support our people, residents and businesses
- We listen to each other, understand and treat everyone fairly
- We care about our people and appreciate the unique qualities in us all
We work together
- We respect, recognise and support our people, residents and businesses
- We work as one team, recognising everyone's contribution
- We build strong relationships and partnerships to deliver better outcomes
We are flexible
- We embrace change and new ways of working
- We are adaptable, open to new ideas and focus on solutions
- We aim to constantly improve, and we are not afraid to challenge the status quo
