Financial Controller

Job Title: Financial Controller  

Location: Home based with travel to Trust schools and our London office

Salary: Competitive

Start Date: ASAP

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full time, 52 weeks per year

About Creative Education Trust: 

 Creative Education Trust was established in 2010 to work in England’s post-industrial and coastal towns and cities. We are now a network of 17 schools educating 13,500 children and young people. 

We have chosen to work with schools in challenging circumstances. We have successfully transformed schools previously deemed to be inadequate into good ones in order that all our students can have the best start in life. We are committed to providing educational opportunity for children of all abilities and to building cultural capital through a wide range of co-curricular activities. Curricular innovation through our Knowledge Connected programmes promotes creative, integrated and pro-active thinking so that our students are equipped for the challenges of the 21st century. 

About the Finance Department: 

The Director of Finance provides strategic leadership for the department and works closely with the Financial Controller and Head of Finance Business Partnering. The finance department’s priorities are to ensure best use of resources for all children across the Trust, and to continuously develop our financial service to ensure it is both highly effective and efficient.

The Finance Team provides regular reporting for Principals and Headteachers, Executive Directors, budget holders and the Board of Creative Education Trust, as well as external reporting to the DfE.

About You:

As a Financial Controller at Creative Education Trust, you will bring your expertise in financial reporting, robust internal control frameworks, and rigorous compliance processes to ensure the Trust achieves its strategic aims and objectives. Our ideal candidate would:

·      Be driven to deliver the Trust’s vision for a high-quality financial service for the trust and its schools.

·      Demonstrate proactive, solution-oriented decision-making, efficiency, organisational skills, effective prioritisation, delegation and reliability.

·      Have excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to build effective working relationship both internally and externally.

Requirements:

To apply for the Financial Controller opportunity, you must hold:

·      A professional accountancy qualification (ACA, ACCA etc) with significant post- qualification experience.

·      Experience of running the financial accounting function for an organisation that has a number of branches, subsidiaries or locations.

·      Strong technical knowledge with ability to guide, challenge and advise others.

·      Experience of reviewing, developing and continuously improving effective and robust financial systems processes.

CET Benefits & Continual Professional Development:

CET are committed to your learning and development, which is a continuous process that starts with your induction. The opportunities include a wide range of subjects from middle leadership and DSL training to autism awareness. We run annual conferences including Safeguarding and Learning and Teaching and have regular network meetings across the Trust.

We have a wide range of benefits that you are more than welcome to explore further in our Staff Benefits brochure attached. 

Next Steps: 

Please submit your application through our website using the direct online application method. 

For an informal discussion with our Recruitment Manager, Katy Youngman, or if you have any additional queries, please email katy.youngman@creativeeducationtrust.org.uk

Application Closing Date: Monday 14th October by midday

Interview Date: Monday 21st October at our London Head Office in Covent Garden.

Essential Information:

Creative Education Trust (CET) is committed to Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children and young people by keeping them safe, we expect all our colleagues to share in this responsibility. 

All shortlisted candidates are subject to online checks prior to interview. 

The CET Recruitment Policy follows the guidance set out by Keeping Children Safe in Education, where all offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS Check, References and where appropriate a Prohibition from teaching search. 

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974.

CET is committed to developing, maintaining, and supporting an inclusive culture and environment for the benefit of its employees and the communities it serves.