Job Description

Assistant Accountant Job Specification

Contract - Permanent, subject to probation period. Full Time or Part Time (28-35 hours a week to be spread over 5 days) designed to be flexible around family and other commitments. This is a year-round role however there is scope during school holidays to have more flexibility with working hours and/or work from home

Start Date - As soon as possible

Salary - dependent on experience - 30,000 - 32,500 pro rata

Cransley School is a leading independent school that is looking for an Assistant Accountant to work in a small and friendly finance team. This role has become available due to the current incumbent being successfully promoted to the position of Finance Manager. The Assistant Accountant will report directly to the Finance Manager and work alongside the Finance Assistant. In addition, there will be times when cross working in other more operational areas of the school will be required and as such the successful applicant must understand the wider context of support operations in a school environment.

Cransley School has an excellent reputation for its caring and nurturing environment and so the personality of the successful applicant will be imperative to ensure the right person is recruited to fit in and work well within the existing Cransley family/team.

Part qualified professional accounting qualification essential - ACA, ACCA, CIMA, AAT or equivalent with a sound grasp of financial principles Experience of preparing management accounts, year-end accounts and budgets Experience of SAGE essential Strong IT skills particularly surrounding excel Team player with a positive attitude and ability to roll sleeves up and get involved with issues as they arise Strong communication skills required at all levels within the school and with third parties Ability to manage and oversee the activities of the Finance Assistance as well as providing guidance as required Ability to organise and prioritise work to achieve deadlines Ability to work under pressure Good attention to detail Experience of working in a school preferable but not essential
Purchasing process

Responsible for the purchasing process and ensuring all orders are appropriately authorised and purchase invoices are recorded onto SAGE correctly Review third party supplier statements and follow up and resolve any issues / differences Ensure the credit card transactions are correctly accounted for onto SAGE Manage the Fixed Asset process and ensure all assets are appropriately capitalised Ensure all capital projects are appropriately recorded in the system and monitor against budget
Management accounts

To work with the Finance Manager to produce termly management reporting. This will include the preparation of a balance sheet, profit and loss account and cash flow statement along with comparisons against budget Posting journals onto SAGE and calculating accruals and prepayments Keeping the fixed asset register up to date along with monthly depreciation adjustments Review all key account reconciliations on a monthly basis
Legal and Statutory Reporting

Assist the Finance Manager in the preparation of the year end trial balance and supporting audit file ready for audit Liaising with the auditors and being their first point of contact as they complete their year-end audit procedures Assisting in the preparation of the year end Statutory Accounts and supporting notes along with all other statutory documents to be filed with Companies House / Charity Commission Assist the Finance Manager with the completion and submission of the quarterly VAT returns Liaise with the local council to ensure all grants are received in respect of Early Years Funding and all required reporting is completed and submitted in accordance with deadlines Involvement in the school's insurance renewal process and provide/compile supporting documents and spreadsheets
Budget process

Assist the Finance Manager in the preparation of the annual budget Co-ordinate the budget submissions from relevant budget holders Prepare budgets for certain income streams and cost centres for review by the Finance Manager Track actual results and balances against budget each month for key areas to highlight variances to the Finance Manager
Payroll

Take responsibility for the payroll process and liaise with the third-party payroll provider to ensure payroll deadlines are met Ensure all overtime claims each month are appropriately authorised and submitted to the payroll provider Review the payroll report as received from the payroll provider for accuracy prior to payment Reconcile monthly timesheets for music/multi sensory peripatetic staff to the amounts invoiced to parents as music tuition and ensure any missed lessons appropriately accounted for Ensure all payroll related deductions are paid on time and reconciled to SAGE
Other

Work alongside the school's fundraising Foundation Team to ensure accurate recording of event income / expenditure. Reconcile the relevant bank accounts each month Take responsibility for managing trips and extra-curricular activities on the ParentPay system working alongside the School Secretary and trip leaders to ensure appropriately costed
Job Type: Full-time

Pay: 30,000.00-32,000.00 per year

Work Location: In person