Regional Finance Director

Regional Finance Manager (London Primaries)

Reports to: Regional Finance Director

Location: Currently operating hybrid working in our West London office

Contract: Permanent

Pattern: Full Time (standard hours 9am – 5.30pm)

Closing date: 10am on Thursday 30^th May – we reserve the right to close the early depending on the level of response.

Salary: £40,000 - £47,000 (depending on experience and qualifications)

Interviews: Interviews will be arranged as suitable candidates are identified, so early application is strongly advised

About the role:

Becoming a Regional Finance Manager at Ark Schools is an opportunity to weave financial narratives that resonate with the heart of education. Your role encompasses more than numbers; it’s about “telling the story” of each academy’s finances.

As a Regional Finance Manager, you’ll play a crucial role in ensuring high standards of financial integrity across Ark’s primary academies in London.  

You will be based out of Ark’s Head Office in West London and will be supporting several Primary academies in the surrounding area.

You will work closely with another Regional Finance Manager and together you will oversee the work of 3 Regional Finance officers. You will also work with the relevant Principal and Operations Leads in the school(s) you support. You will manage the monthly financial processes, ensuring compliance with the requirements of the Academies Financial Handbook, leading financial planning and partnering with the Principal and other senior staff to ensure effective strategic decision making.

Your work directly impacts the education of our pupils, making it an exciting and rewarding opportunity.

Key Responsibilities: 

• Ensure timely production and issue of financial reports, cash flow forecasts and returns as required, including ad hoc review and projects.
• Prepare the management accounts and related analysis, posting of month end journals, ensuring bank and control account reconciliations are carried out monthly in line with the Ark month-end pack.
• Prepare the monthly financial reports, analysis and updates for the Local Governing Body (LGB) and present at the meetings where required. Prepare the annual budget and reforecasts for approval by Ark Schools’ Risk and Audit Committee.
• Take responsibility for the academy’s accounting procedures, ensuring all policies and procedures are adhered to within the academy, including review of academy payment runs and payroll.
• Take responsibility for and line management of the school’s finance support staff, including arranging appropriate training and development, conducting induction, probation and performance management reviews.
• Partner with the Principal and other senior staff to ensure effective financial management, adherence to budget and strategic decision making.
• Drive forward change and initiatives which promote regularity, propriety, value for money and best standards, and ensuring best practice is implemented across the region.

Key Requirements:

• Experienced part-qualified accountant or fully qualified accountant (ACCA, CIMA or ACA).
• Experience of running effective administrative and financial systems, ideally within a school environment.
• High level of proficiency with PSF (accounting system), Concur (invoicing system) and IMP (budgeting system) (desirable)
• Experience using financial databases and confidence and interest in learning new technologies.
• Line management experience (desirable).
• Experience in managing and negotiating contracts, tenders and agreements (desirable).
• Understanding of relevant legislation, policies and procedures and the ability to apply this understanding to real situations.
• Professional integrity and resilience, being resourceful and solution-oriented.

About Ark

We’re an international charity, transforming lives through education. We exist to give every young person, regardless of their background, a great education and real choices in life. In the UK, we’re a network of 39 schools, educating around 28,500 pupils in areas where we can make the biggest difference and we’re recognised as one of the highest achieving academy groups in the country. We want to change the lives of children everywhere, not just in our own schools. So, we create and incubate Ventures designed not only to help pupils in Ark schools, but also to improve education systems.

You’ll be joining a group of like-minded, ambitious individuals who work collaboratively and are all committed to our core mission, that every child has the potential to succeed. Having just celebrated our 20^th anniversary, we are shaping our goals for the next 20 and there has never been a more exciting time to join us.

Benefits:

• 27 days annual leave plus bank holidays, rising with each year of service up to 30 days after 3-years’ service. This entitlement is pro rata for part time employees. This entitlement excludes bank holidays
• Full office closure between Christmas and New Year
• Hybrid working, with currently two days a week in our state-of-the-art office in West London working alongside colleagues
• Regular social events, monthly free breakfast, and daily fruit
• A flexible approach to working with understanding and consideration for work life balance and personal commitments
• As an Ark employee, you will have the opportunity to be part of the TPT (The Pension Trust) scheme, our workplace pension scheme where we make an 11% contribution; you are not required to contribute towards this scheme unless you choose to. Depending on your role you may also be entitled to LGPS/TPS which is a defined benefit scheme where you contribute a percentage based on how much you earn (as do we) in exchange for a guaranteed amount in your pension pot every year
• Access to high-quality professional learning throughout your career, offering both face-to-face sessions and a bespoke online learning platform
• Access to Ark Rewards scheme offering savings from over 3,000 major retailers, interest-free loans available for season tickets or a bike, gym discounts offering up to 40% off your local gym and free eye tests

How to Apply:

Apply with a CV and cover letter on our online recruitment portal. Applications to be submitted by 10am on Thursday 30^th May but please note: we will be reviewing applications on an on-going basis and this advert may close earlier than advertised depending on the level of response.

This ATS application form should take no longer 20 minutes to complete. At any time, you can pause, save, and log back in. If you have any difficulty with meeting the deadline for application, please contact recruitment@arkonline.org

Interviews will be arranged as suitable candidates are identified, so early application is strongly advised.

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.  

Ark requires all employees to undertake an enhanced DBS check. You are required, before appointment, to disclose any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Non-disclosure may lead to termination of employment. However, disclosure of a criminal background will not necessarily debar you from employment - this will depend upon the nature of the offence(s) and when they occurred. To read more about Ark’s safer recruitment process, please click this link. 

We aim to build a diverse and inclusive organisation where everyone – staff and students – can do their best work and achieve their full potential. We want to reflect and represent diverse perspectives across our organisation because we know that doing so will make us stronger and more effective. To know more about Ark’s diversity and inclusion commitments, please click on this link.