Assistant Accountant

Gateshead College; Gateshead; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

33 days holiday + bank Holidays

Employee assistance programme

LGPS pension

Onsite parking & travel discounts

Cycle to work

Volunteering days

Job summary

Gateshead College is seeking an Assistant Accountant to join our Finance Team. This role supports financial management and reporting, working with the Finance Manager and Financial Controller to deliver accurate information and help budget management.

You’ll gain exposure to management accounts, financial analysis, audits, and broader accounting tasks. We value organisation, proactivity and accuracy, with opportunities for development within a supportive, inclusive workplace.

Qualifications

• Experience in Finance or Payroll environments.
• Experience with a recognised finance system.
• Experience preparing for or supporting external audits.
• Excellent organisational skills and the ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines.
• A proactive attitude, enthusiasm and a willingness to learn.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to build positive working relationships.
• A commitment to quality, accuracy and continuous improvement.
• A commitment to your own professional development.
• The ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a collaborative team.

Responsibilities

• Produce financial reports and support the preparation of management accounts.
• Prepare cashflow forecasts and undertake financial analysis.
• Complete payroll costing and financial journals.
• Carry out balance sheet reconciliations and support internal and external audits.
• Assist with budget setting and monitor financial performance.
• Manage fixed assets and staff expenses.
• Support the administration of external funding and ensure compliance with funding requirements.
• Provide purchase and procurement support across the College.
• Contribute to continuous improvement within the Finance team.

Skills

Finance/Payroll experience

Finance system experience

Audit support

Tools

Finance software

Job description

We're looking for an Assistant Accountant to join our Finance Team.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys working with numbers, solving problems and delivering accurate financial information that helps the organisation make informed decisions. Whether you're already working in an Assistant Accountant role or have experience in finance or payroll and are looking to broaden your accounting knowledge, we'd love to hear from you.

At Gateshead College, our people make the difference. We're committed to creating an inclusive, supportive and high-performing workplace where colleagues feel valued, can develop and are encouraged to be their best.

About the Role

As an Assistant Accountant, you'll play an important role in supporting the College's financial management and reporting processes. Working closely with the Finance Manager and Financial Controller, you'll help deliver accurate financial information, support budget management and contribute to the effective running of the Finance team.

Whether you're preparing management accounts, analysing financial data, supporting audits or helping managers understand financial performance, you'll build strong working relationships across the College and provide accurate, timely financial support that helps the organisation achieve its objectives.

We're looking for someone with a good understanding of finance processes and strong attention to detail. You don't need to have experience in every aspect of the role. What matters most is that you're organised, proactive, comfortable working with financial systems and committed to delivering high-quality work.

You'll have the opportunity to develop your technical knowledge, contribute to a wide range of financial activities and play a meaningful role in supporting the College's financial success. You'll also benefit from ongoing development opportunities and exposure to a broad range of accounting responsibilities that will help you continue to grow your career.

What You'll Be Doing

• Produce financial reports and support the preparation of management accounts.
• Prepare cashflow forecasts and undertake financial analysis.
• Complete payroll costing and financial journals.
• Carry out balance sheet reconciliations and support internal and external audits.
• Assist with budget setting and monitor financial performance.
• Manage fixed assets and staff expenses.
• Support the administration of external funding and ensure compliance with funding requirements.
• Provide purchase and procurement support across the College.
• Contribute to continuous improvement within the Finance team.

What We're Looking For

This could be the perfect opportunity if you're already working in a Finance or Payroll role and are looking to broaden your experience across a wider range of accounting activities.

We're interested in what you can bring, including:

• Experience of working within a Finance or Payroll environment.
• Experience of using a recognised finance system.
• Experience of preparing for, or supporting, external audits.
• Excellent organisational skills and the ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines.
• A proactive attitude, enthusiasm and a willingness to learn.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to build positive working relationships.
• A commitment to quality, accuracy and continuous improvement.
• A commitment to your own professional development.
• The ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a collaborative team.

About Gateshead College

At Gateshead College we're famous for education with Employment Edge, industry inspired education that combines high quality learning with real world skills. This means giving our students the knowledge and skills to be successful in work and life and supporting them to be the best they can be.

This means putting everything we've got into making sure our students are the most employable and this is what makes our college such an exciting place to work.

From bringing industry expertise into the classroom and working hand in hand with businesses, to delivering the highest quality teaching and learning and supporting students to develop personally as well as professionally, we're all about creating experiences that will set learners up for life

If you share our ambition, we'd love to hear from you.

In return we can offer a values-driven organisation and the chance to work with brilliant people who put students first. You'll be listened to and will have opportunities to make an impact. We prioritise health and wellbeing and your work life balance will be respected.

Our inclusive culture means you're valued for being yourself and diversity is celebrated, and our commitment to being a sustainable organisation means we always try to do business the right way to make our community better for everyone.

At Gateshead College we all have the opportunity to help our learners succeed and it's this clear purpose and shared effort that makes us such a great place to work; we hope you think about joining.

Our Benefits :

• Generous holiday allowance of 33 days plus bank holidays.
• Mental health and wellbeing support, with 24/7 access to an employee assistance programme and counselling services.
• Career average pension with the Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Travel support including free onsite parking, discounted public transport scheme and cycle to work scheme.
• Retail and travel discounts.
• Volunteering Days.