Job Description

Sinfonia Viva, the award-winning orchestra for the East Midlands, are looking for a Finance Manager to join their small team based in Derby.

About Sinfonia Viva

Established in 1982, Sinfonia Viva is the only professional orchestra in the East Midlands, an area including six counties and covering 6,500 square miles. From our administrative base in Derby, we have a national reach through our concerts and creative community projects, across in person performances and projects, and digital delivery. Innovation, creativity, participation, and collaboration are hallmarks of the Orchestra's work, driven by our overarching aim to enable as many people as possible to engage with orchestral music.

Working across the East Midlands, from the larger urban centres of Nottingham and Leicester to the rural communities of Derbyshire and Lincolnshire, requires Sinfonia Viva to be a flexible ensemble. We give full scale chamber orchestra performances in purpose-built concert halls, cathedrals, and an annual open-air concert in Derby, in addition to regularly working as a string orchestra and in smaller chamber ensembles in venues ranging from churches to community spaces. This broad range of performances is reflected by the diverse audiences who engage with our concerts. Our concerts in non-traditional settings will often attract audiences who are representative of the communities we serve, with many attending an orchestral performance for the first time.

Diversity and Inclusion

Sinfonia Viva is committed to ensuring that we are an inclusive and diverse organisation, across our Board, management team, artists, Patrons, and programming, enabling us to become representative of the audiences and communities we serve.

We welcome, and encourage, applicants with a wealth of lived experiences, and from a range of backgrounds, who can support Sinfonia Viva's ambitions to become fully inclusive and reflective of our communities, who can contribute to broadening our knowledge, understanding, and implementation of equitable and inclusive practice across all areas of our work and organisation.

We recognise that we are on a journey of learning and improvement to enable us to fulfil our aims around diversity and inclusion, and encourage all musicians, partners, Board members, and staff to engage with us to help make Sinfonia Viva a truly equitable and inclusive organisation.

Role Description

Job Title:

Finance Manager

Reporting to:

Chief Executive

Hours:

22.5 hours per week

Location:

Based in Derby office (hybrid working between office and home is negotiable)

Duration:

Permanent

Salary:

38,000 pro rata

Role Purpose

The Finance Manager is responsible for the efficient running of the Sinfonia Viva finance function, in addition to supporting the Chief Executive with Company Secretarial and other company governance matters as required. This includes all elements of financial management, including maintaining accurate financial records, quarterly management accounts, the preparation of VAT returns, annual accounts and Gift Aid claims.

Detailed responsibilities

Provide a full Accounts Payable function To prepare quarterly management accounts and supporting analysis as required To support the Chief Executive and other budget holders in the creation of the annual budget To prepare, in conjunction with the Chief Executive, regular updates of full year financial performance To perform monthly bank reconciliations reviewing monthly charges and liaising with the Company's bankers on any banking matters To attend quarterly Finance and General Purposes Committees and Board meetings To prepare monthly cashflow forecasts and supporting the Chief Executive in the negotiation of any short term funding requirements To manage all company credit cards, including the set-up of new cards, cancellation of leaver's cards and the monthly reconciliation and processing of all claims Provide a full Accounts Receivable function To support the outsourced bureau (currently Bates Weston) with the completion of the monthly payroll To complete all trial balance reconciliations on a monthly basis To input and maintain all journals e.g. depreciation, payroll, credit card To make cash deposits with our bankers in line with our Financial Procedures Manual To maintain regular archiving of financial documentation in line with our GDPR policy and other legal requirements To undertake frequent backups of data within our financial systems To work with the external accountant (currently Bates Weston) and the independent examiner (currently Dains) in the preparation of the annual statutory accounts including the provision of a full trial balance, accruals and prepayments and any further supporting analysis To undertake the completion and submission of quarterly VAT and Foreign Entertainers Tax returns Credit Control and chasing debts to maintain cashflow position To support the Company's tax advisers (currently Bates Weston) with the submission of annual Corporation (including Orchestra Tax Relief) tax returns To prepare Gift aid claims and submit to HMRC To submit annual returns to Companies House and the Charity Commission To support the Chief Executive with all Arts Council Reporting requirements To fulfil the Company Secretary function for the organisation To complete statistical returns for Office of National Statistics as required Any other duties as required by the Chief Executive

Person Specification

Essential

5+ years senior accounting/financial management experience with a proven track record of successful budgeting and financial control Good general accounting and/or bookkeeping skills and the ability to work quickly and accurately Relevant experience within all aspects of financial management including PL,SL and TB, Balance Sheets and Profit and Loss Reporting Experience of using Sage or equivalent financial system Strong analytical skills A good understanding of VAT Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to deal with a broad range of people with confidence and personal authority Ability to plan ahead and work to deadlines Ability to work effectively as part of a team to be both challenging and cooperative but also able to work on own initiative and to prioritise tasks. Ability to maintain good working relationships at all levels within Sinfonia Viva and with external partners. High level of IT literacy including the use of spreadsheets, word documents and email Willingness to learn new skills

Desirable

Recognised accounting qualification (ACA, CIMA or ACCA or equivalent) Previous experience of working in an arts or other charitable organisation
The successful applicant will need an enhanced DBS check as a condition of employment. They must also have the right to work in the UK.

Sinfonia Viva is an inclusive employer, and welcomes applications from individuals who are currently under-represented in both our organisation and the cultural sector. Where the successful applicant is disabled, all reasonable adaptations to the role will be made.

To apply please send a CV along with a covering letter of no more than one side of A4 outlining how you meet the role description

Closing date for applications is5

pm

on

Monday 7th July 2025.

Interviews will be held in person on

Thursday 22nd July 2025

. Candidates will have the option to attend in person at Sinfonia Viva's offices in Derby.

https://www.sinfoniaviva.co.uk/who-we-are/work-with-us/finance-manager-recruitment-2025/

facebook.com/sinfonia.viva

@sinfoniavivauk

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: 22,800.00 per year

Expected hours: 22.5 per week

Work authorisation:

United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Derby, DE23 8NL

Application deadline: 07/07/2025