Assistant Financial Accountant

AALTO; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 38,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday

Private medical insurance

Dental & optical cash back

Pension plan

Income protection

Life assurance

Salary sacrifice car scheme

Perkbox discounts

Employee assistance programme

Job summary

AALTO, based in Farnborough, UK, is seeking an Assistant Financial Accountant to join the UK entity and support IFRS financial accounting activities. You will help deliver timely month-end reporting, maintain balance sheet reconciliations, and assist with internal and external audits.

Working with the Financial Accountant and Financial Control Manager, you will gain hands-on experience with journals, reconciliations, VAT, and intercompany accounting, expanding responsibility over time and

Qualifications

• Part-qualified ACCA (or equivalent), or actively working towards your qualification
• A solid understanding of financial accounting principles
• Knowledge of IFRS
• Experience preparing and posting journals and completing balance sheet reconciliations
• Confidence using accounting systems and Excel to work accurately and efficiently
• Exposure to management accounting and financial reporting activities will help you succeed in the role

Responsibilities

• Contribute to day-to-day IFRS accounting activities of the UK entity
• Prepare and post accurate journals, including accruals, prepayments and month-end adjustments
• Prepare monthly balance sheet reconciliations and maintain integrity of financial records
• Investigate and resolve reconciling items promptly and effectively
• Support fixed asset accounting, including depreciation and disposals
• Support intercompany accounting and reconciliations
• Contribute to VAT returns and other UK compliance requirements
• Participate in month-end and year-end reporting activities
• Assist with audits and respond to finance queries as required
• Support wider finance function and ad-hoc requests
• Collaborate across the team and assist the Kenya entity when needed
• Contribute to finance projects and process improvements

Skills

IFRS knowledge

Financial accounting principles

Journal postings

Balance sheet reconciliations

Excel proficiency

Management accounting exposure

Education

ACCA (Part-qualified) or equivalent

Tools

Accounting software

Job description

AALTO, a global leader in Stratospace. Based in Farnborough, AALTO is an Airbus subsidiary that manufactures, operates, and delivers services with its solar-powered, stratospheric platform: Zephyr.

Zephyr's persistence enables continuous flight for months at a time. Its current flight-time record of over 67 days in the stratosphere. From above 60,000+ft, or 20km above ground, AALTO can deliver several applications including direct-to-device connectivity and high-resolution Earth observation.

AALTO operates in a new operational layer between most of air traffic and low-Earth orbit, Stratospace. This is where high-altitude platforms led by Zephyr deliver services to commercial and government partners.

We can help monitor environments, observe borders, track natural disasters and connect unconnected communities.

Join us as we create a new domain of aerospace: Stratospace. You'll be part of a highly-skilled, innovative and passionate group of people - Team AALTO. Together, we can Unlock Stratospace.

About The Role

As Assistant Financial Accountant, you will play an important part in the day-to-day IFRS financial accounting activities of our UK entity. You will help deliver accurate, timely month-end reporting, maintain strong balance sheet reconciliations and support the financial controls that underpin a growing, innovative aerospace business.

Working closely with the Financial Accountant and Financial Control Manager, you will gain hands‑on experience across journal preparation, balance sheet reconciliations, the investigation of accounting matters and the maintenance of accurate financial records. As your knowledge, experience and technical capability grow, you will take ownership of an increasing range of accounting activities and play a progressively greater role in the month‑end close process.

Responsibilities to include:

• Contribute to the day-to-day IFRS accounting activities of the UK entity
• Prepare and post accurate journals, including accruals, prepayments and month‑end adjustments
• Prepare monthly balance sheet reconciliations and help maintain the integrity of our financial records
• Investigate and resolve reconciling items promptly and effectively
• Support fixed asset accounting, including depreciation and disposals
• Support the accounting and reconciliation of intercompany balances
• Contribute to VAT returns and other UK compliance requirements
• Play an active role in month‑end and year‑end reporting activities
• Assist with internal and external audit activities and respond to finance queries as required
• Support the wider finance function, including occasional transactional cover where needed
• Collaborate across the finance team on ad‑hoc requests, projects and evolving business requirements
• Provide support to the Kenya entity from time to time, broadening your exposure to international finance activities
• Contribute to finance projects that improve processes and systems
• Help establish and maintain robust accounting and financial controls

Skills and Knowledge Required

• Part-qualified ACCA (or equivalent), or actively working towards your qualification
• A solid understanding of financial accounting principles
• Knowledge of, or practical exposure to, IFRS
• Experience preparing and posting journals and completing balance sheet reconciliations
• Confidence using accounting systems and Excel to work accurately and efficiently
• Exposure to management accounting and financial reporting activities will help you succeed in the role

Study Support

A fully funded home - study ACCA package will be provided as part of the role.

In addition to an attractive market‑aligned salary, we offer:

• Rewarding Excellence: Benefit from our short‑term incentive plan that rewards your hard work and dedication.
• Enjoy Your Time Off: Benefit from 25 days of holiday to relax and recharge.
• Stay Healthy: We’ve got your health covered with private medical insurance, along with dental and optical cash back.
• Secure Your Future: Take advantage of our personal pension plan to ensure a comfortable retirement.
• Peace of Mind: Our income protection and life assurance schemes are there to support you when you need it most.
• Getting around: Drive the latest vehicles with our discounted salary sacrifice scheme.
• We Care About You: Our employee assistance programme is always available to provide the support you need.
• Perks Galore: Enjoy a range of employee discounts via Perkbox, from household goods to travel!

Does this opportunity excite you but you're not 100% sure if you meet all the requirements for the role? Or are you concerned that 'normal' office hours aren't possible given your personal circumstances? Whilst we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we'll try to find a practical solution. So why not engage with us and find out more about this role?