Group Head of Finance

There is an exciting opportunity to join Bellway, one of the UK’s largest house builders. Our Group Head Office, located in Woolsington, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, is looking to recruit a Head Office Divisional Head of Finance to join the Group Finance team.

The role of Head Office Divisional Head of Finance will drive cost control, process improvements and both balance sheet and cash management for all head office entities which have multi-million pound budgets covering functions including IT, technical/commercial, strategic land, payroll and HR. The role will also involve liaising with counterparts across the 22 trading divisions.

The role will involve providing financial support to all head office functional heads, understanding their strategies and challenging both their actual and forecast spend, ensuring that budget holders understand and are accountable for their management accounts, forecast and business plan. The ability to work in an efficient manner, utilising strong Excel skills, and providing clear, understandable and relevant information to budget holders is essential. Management information will include reviewing KPIs to determine whether they remain relevant, identifying key trends and simplifying complicated information.

Some technical accounting knowledge is required, including for conducting impairment reviews of land interests held by the strategic land function.

The Head Office Divisional Head of Finance will be responsible for controlling and overseeing the payroll costs of the Head Office entities.

The role of Head Office Divisional Head of Finance reports to the Group Financial Controller.

**The Role**

Principle accountabilities of the role include:
Divisional Management
- Develop the business plan for all Head Office entities with Head Office functional heads and ensuring it is aligned to the Group’s strategic objectives.
- Ownership of the budget and three year forecast (both profit and loss and cash flow) for all Head Office entities, ensuring it is accurate and well managed, and ultimately delivering it.
- Lead and manage the Head Office finance team and ensure accuracy, quality and efficiencies are maximised, whilst continuing to develop team members.

Reporting, Controlling and Operational
- Ensuring Head Office compliance with the Group Accounting Manual.
- Manage the interim and year end process for all Head Office entities with external auditors through to sign off for the entities.
- Responsible for all month end processes for the Head Office entities and timely delivery of management information to both the Head Office functional heads and Group team.
- Treasury management - ensuring monthly and daily cash flow forecasts for the Head Office entities are as accurate as possible and adherence to the Prompt Payment Code.
- Manage compliance and overall responsibility for all taxes relating to the Head Office entities.

The above list of accountabilities are not exclusive or exhaustive. The post holder will be required to undertake any such duties as may be reasonably expected.

**Experience, Qualifications and Skills**

Experience
- Considerable post-qualified experience gained in industry in a role incorporating accounting, financial control and commercial finance/business partnering.
- Experience must include: financial and management accounting including leading month end close, evidence of responding to and working with external auditors, providing analysis, profit and loss and cashflow, forecasting and planning, supporting and challenging businesses to make optimal operational and performance decisions.
- Experience of successfully leading and developing a team.

Qualifications and Training
- ACA/CIMA/ACCA qualification required.

Skills and Aptitude
- Excellent administration and organisation skills.
- Analysis, numerical and report writing skills.
- Strong management and time management skills.
- Strong communication, listening and problem solving skills.
- Ability to prioritise workload and meet deadlines.
- Demonstrates a high level of discretion and confidentiality.
- Excellent attention to detail.
- Ability to work on own as well as part of a team.
- Proficient IT skills along with a good working knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel and outlook) and the ability to adapt to new systems.
- Committed to diversity and inclusion.

Working Conditions
- Willing to be flexible in respect to day to day duties and hours worked.
- Office based role.

**Job Types**: Full-time, Permanent

Work Location: One location

Reference ID: 176102INDE