Cost Accountant

Placr Recruitment; Wealden; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

Placr Recruitment is seeking a Cost Accountant in Lower Dicker, East Sussex. This full-time, permanent role focuses on maintaining product costs, inventory valuations and financial reporting to support profitability.

Suitable for an experienced cost accountant or part-qualified finance professional looking to develop in a busy manufacturing business. Key duties include cost roll-ups, BOM reviews, variance analysis, inventory monitoring, margin reporting and year-end schedules, with ERP and BI

Qualifications

• 1–2 years’ experience in cost or management accounting.
• Experience in a manufacturing/operational environment.
• Strong costing knowledge: standard & absorption costing.
• Experience with ERP systems (Dynamics AX, SAP, Oracle).
• Advanced Excel: pivot tables, modelling & data analysis.
• Professional accounting qualification or part-qualified (CIMA/ACA/ACCA).

Responsibilities

• Complete quarterly cost roll-ups and review BOMs.
• Analyse variances across materials, labour and overheads.
• Monitor inventory valuations and reconcile accounts.
• Support cycle counts and investigations into discrepancies.
• Produce margin analysis by product and customer.
• Prepare month-end journals for inventory and cost of sales.
• Produce daily/weekly labour-efficiency reports.
• Perform balance-sheet reconciliations.
• Maintain fixed-asset register and depreciation journals.
• Provide board reporting on inventory ageing and stock categories.
• Maintain costing data within the ERP system.
• Develop Excel models, reports and BI dashboards.
• Support system upgrades, automation and CI projects.
• Maintain financial controls across inventory and costing.
• Prepare year-end schedules and respond to audits.

Skills

Cost accounting

Management accounting

Manufacturing environment

Standard costing

Absorption costing

Advanced Excel

ERP experience

Education

CIMA/ACA/ACCA part-qualified

Tools

Microsoft Dynamics AX

SAP

Oracle

Job description

Cost Accountant

Lower Dicker, East Sussex | Full-time | Permanent | Salary dependent on experience

Are you an analytical finance professional with experience in cost or management accounting within a manufacturing environment?

Our client is looking for a Cost Accountant to join its finance team in Lower Dicker. This is a hands‑on role responsible for maintaining accurate product costs, inventory valuations and financial reporting, while providing meaningful insight to support operational performance and profitability.

This opportunity would suit an experienced Cost Accountant or a part‑qualified finance professional looking to develop their career within a busy manufacturing business.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Completing quarterly cost roll‑ups and reviewing bills of materials
• Analysing manufacturing variances across materials, labour and overheads
• Monitoring inventory valuations and reconciling inventory accounts
• Supporting cycle counts and stocktakes, investigating any discrepancies
• Producing margin analysis by product and customer
• Preparing month‑end journals relating to inventory and cost of sales
• Producing labour‑efficiency reports on a daily and weekly basis
• Completing balance‑sheet reconciliations
• Maintaining the fixed‑asset register and preparing monthly depreciation journals
• Producing board‑level reporting on inventory ageing and stock categories
• Maintaining accurate costing information within the ERP system
• Developing Excel models, reports and business‑intelligence dashboards
• Supporting system upgrades, automation and continuous‑improvement projects
• Maintaining effective financial controls across inventory and costing processes
• Preparing year‑end schedules and responding to audit queries

What We’re Looking For

• One to two years’ experience in cost accounting or management accounting
• Experience within a manufacturing or operational environment
• A strong understanding of standard and absorption costing
• Experience using an ERP system such as Microsoft Dynamics AX, SAP or Oracle
• Advanced Excel skills, including pivot tables, financial modelling and data analysisStrong analytical and problem‑solving abilities
• Excellent organisational skills and the ability to work accurately to deadlines
• Professional accounting qualification or part‑qualified status, such as CIMA, ACA, ACCA or equivalent

It Would Be an Advantage If You Have

• Previous experience using Microsoft Dynamics AX
• Knowledge of lean manufacturing or process‑improvement methods
• Experience developing BI dashboards and reporting tools
• Sage Payroll or Sage HR experience
• Experience gained within an accountancy practice before moving into manufacturing