Finance Assistant

University of the West of England; West of England; Hybrid; GBP 24,000 - 29,000; Full time

Job summary

University of the West of England Bristol is seeking a Finance Assistant on a 12-month fixed-term contract. Based at the Frenchay campus, you will join the busy Financial Operations Team to recover debts and handle financial queries from students, sponsors and other stakeholders.

The role is campus-based for at least 60% of the time with some home-working opportunities. Interviews are planned for the week commencing 5 October 2026. Right to work in the UK is required; sponsorship is not provided.

Qualifications

• Experience in a credit control role with various collection methods.
• Experience handling high volumes of queries via phone and email.
• Strong organisational skills and attention to accuracy in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience in Higher Education sector is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Recover debts from students, sponsors, student finance England and other debts.
• Provide high-quality customer service handling financial queries.
• Manage and respond to internal and external stakeholder queries by phone and email.

Skills

Credit control

Customer service

Telephone communication

Email correspondence

Query handling

Job description

About The Role

We are seeking a Finance Assistant to join our friendly and busy Financial Operations Team on a 12-month fixed term contract You will provide high-quality customer service, handling financial queries from internal and external stakeholders in a professional and efficient manner. Based in our Credit Control Team, your tasks will include recovering debts from students, sponsors, student finance England and other commercial debts.

About You

You will be self-motivated with the ability to work under pressure and use your own initiative to meet time-critical deadlines in a fast-paced environment. You should be a pro-active team player who brings an enthusiastic, flexible and helpful attitude to work. Ideally you should have previous experience of a credit control role employing a variety of collection methods. You should also have experience of managing high volume of queries, communicate clearly and effectively with customers by telephone and email, or demonstrate equivalent experience. You should be able to demonstrate equivalent experience of working within an environment requiring high levels of organization and accuracy. Experience in the Higher Education sector would be advantageous, but not essential.

Where is this role based?

This post is based at our lively Frenchay campus where we have invested in the latest facilities and resources to give both our staff and students access to everything they need to succeed.

Why UWE Bristol?

We are one of the largest providers of Higher Education in the South-West with 38,000 students and 4,000 staff from right across the globe. Based in Bristol, one of the UK’s most exciting and forward-thinking cities, we are regionally embedded and globally connected, with an established network of employer and academic partners. We offer a wide range of employee benefits including progressive pay rates, generous annual leave and career average pension schemes as well as retail savings, onsite nursery and opportunities for training and personal development.

Add your individuality to ours

UWE Bristol recognises the power of a truly diverse university community. We are proud to be part of a vibrant, multicultural city that celebrates diversity, we’re always looking for talented people from all backgrounds to join us. Our people are our strength, and diversity enhances our creativity and leads to better decision-making and problem-solving. Bring your talent and ambition to our growing community and find yourself in a stimulating and supportive environment where you’ll thrive. As a Disability Confident employer, we welcome applications from those who identify as having a disability.

Further information

• Ramon Youseph via email [e-mail]

Interviews are scheduled to take place at our Frenchay Campus during the week commencing 5 th October 2026.

This is a full-time, fixed term post, working 37 hours per week. UWE Bristol is a campus-based University, and it is vital to our success and the delivery of an outstanding experience for our students that our campuses are dynamic and vibrant places to learn and spend time. These roles are therefore campus based for at least 60 percent of your time, with the opportunity to work from home on the remaining days.

To ensure fairness and equity all salary offers will be made in line with the University's salary assessment guidelines and will be based on your relevant skills and experience.

Right to Work in the UK

The University has a legal responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. You will therefore be required to provide evidence of your right to work in the UK, please refer to the Home Office Right to Work Checklist for information on which documents are acceptable. We are unable to provide sponsorship for this role under the Home Office Skilled Worker visa route. If you do not have current right to work in the UK you may wish to explore other visa options. Please note that UWE Bristol does not cover any visa or health surcharge costs.

Advice to applicants

We welcome applications from applicants who may not feel they meet all the criteria or experience in the job description but can demonstrate the essential capabilities through other forms of experience including voluntary activity, studies, or training.

Once we have completed shortlisting, we will let you know the outcome of your application by email, so please check your inbox for updates.