Head of Finance

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join a charity with an ambitious and exciting vision set in the heart of Portobello, West London, supporting and enhancing the lives of people in the local community.

Westway Trust is seeking a qualified accountant to join as our Head of Finance who will lead on all aspects of the finance function to achieve the Trusts goals.  You will also manage a small team and will offer strategic finance support across the range of activities undertaken by the organisation.

You will have significant experience operating at a senior level within a complex organisation and registered charity, and will possess the right blend and balance of strategic, communication, innovation and people skills.

Key responsibilities of the role include but not limited to:

• Lead, manage and improve the Trust’s finance function and provide accurate, timely and relevant financial reports as required by the CEO, Executive Team and the Trust Board.
• Be the Executive Lead of the Finance Audit and Risk Committee, ensuring timely papers to the CEO and to the Committee and Board as required and liaising with the Head of Governance and HR as required.
• Ensure the provision and reporting of financial accounts, forecasting and large-scale project/programme budgets, estate development plans, and the associated reporting.
• Oversight of the legal and financial statutory processes in line with the Charity Commission and Companies House requirements, including the Annual Audit. Allocating tasks for timely responses and keeping all colleagues abreast of progress.
• Monitor, cash flow, reserves, analysis of performance against the organisation’s annual business plan and dashboard as it relates to the finance function.
• Contribute to the overall leadership of the Trust and to the Trust’s future strategic and operational planning. Support Executive Team colleagues as required on the delivery of cross-team initiatives.
• Line management of the Senior Finance Manager, the Debt Recovery Consultant and the Development Partnerships Lead.

Essential Experience, Skills and Attributes:

• Significant and successful experience of operating as a Head of Finance, ideally in a charity setting.
• A track record of working collaboratively with a team to develop successful internal partnerships and achieve joint success against shared objectives.
• Experience of the finance function and all the associated processes, with strong attention to detail.
• Experience of implementing enhanced reporting tools within financial software, including the ability to coach others.
• Practical knowledge of VAT, including accounting of partial exemption relevant to charities.
• Experience of managing staff and supporting their development.
• Strong interpersonal skills for both workplace and external representation contexts, operating with enthusiasm, flexibility, energy and commitment and demonstrating credibility and gravitas.

Desirable Experience, Skills and Attributes:

• A good understanding of the local area.
• Experience of change management.
• Competency in use of Access Dimensions, Focal Point and other MS Office software packages.

Qualification:

• Must hold a formally recognised professional accounting qualification.

To view the full job description click on 'job description' under 'Key Info' on the left hand side.

The application deadline is Friday 18 April 2025 when applications will be reviewed and shortlisted for interview.  However, we reserve the right to close the application early.  An early application is strongly recommended.

No agencies please.

Benefits of working for Westway Trust:

• Great location in the heart of Portobello, North Kensington
• Investor in People (IiP) employer
• Generous holiday entitlement of 25 days (pro-rated) per year + statutory bank holidays
• Free gym membership at health club one minute walk from the office
• Pension scheme
• Life Assurance
• Sick pay scheme
• Season ticket / bicycle loan
• Free eye test voucher