Finance Business Partner

Gwynedd Council; Caernarfon; Remote; GBP 45,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Gwynedd Council invites applications for a senior finance role responsible for leading a department's finance and accountancy service. The post focuses on delivering robust financial management, budgets, and final accounts, while working closely with department managers to support strategic aims.

Based in Wales, the role requires a qualified accountant and experience in public sector finance, with strong leadership, communication skills, and a commitment to modern, compliant financial practices

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant, partly qualified or equivalent.
• Full recognised Accountancy qualification.
• Degree.
• Experience of providing financial support to services.
• Experience of monitoring expenditure programmes and budgetary control.
• Experience of preparing revenue accounts within a time-schedule.
• Experience of dealing with financial systems.
• Experience of using technology to provide financial projections.
• Experience of providing financial support to a service(s) in a public body.
• Experience of supervising staff.
• Experience of identifying the needs of managers (to control their budgets) and provide useful services for them.

Responsibilities

• Undertake the role of Business Partner offering a professional independent viewpoint alongside expertise, challenge and empathy, all necessary to support the delivery of the department’s business objectives and financial priorities.
• The post holder is expected to lead the Team that provides financial and management accounting support to the Council’s Department.
• Ensure that targets set by the Assistant Head of Finance are achieved and take steps to correct any slippage or reduction in quality.
• Act as Line Manager for finance staff who deal with the budgets of the relevant Department and encourage the staff to work to their full potential.
• Ensure that the requirements of the Head of Department and managers are delivered in accordance with any requirements set in a service level agreement.
• Deliver the budgets and final accounts of the Department in question, in accordance with the guidance set by the Assistant Head of Finance or the Head of Finance.
• Deliver the relevant financial functions that are particular to the areas of the Department in question, in accordance with the relevant statutory requirements.
• Monitor the revenue and capital budgets of the Department in question and prepare reports as relevant.
• Establish and review financial information gathering systems and consult with the Head of Department and managers as required.
• Ensure that correct grant applications are submitted to external bodies on time and that appropriate grant monitoring arrangements exist.
• Attend meetings, committees, working groups or relevant panels in accordance with the requirements of the Assistant Head of Finance and play a leading role in the development of the Department's financial strategy.
• Provide advice, information or financial reports for the Head of Department and the managers as required.
• Provide and review statistics for the relevant services in accordance with statutory and recognised accounting standards.
• Responsibility for self-development.
• Ensure compliance with Health and Safety rules in the workplace in accordance with the responsibilities noted in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Council’s Health and Safety Policy.
• Operate within the Council’s policies in relation to equal opportunities and equality.
• Responsible for managing information in accordance with the Council’s information management guidelines. Ensure that personal information is treated in accordance with Data Protection legislation.
• Commitment to reducing the Council’s carbon emissions in accordance with the Carbon Management Plan, and to encourage others to act positively towards reducing the Council’s Carbon Footprint.
• Undertake any other reasonable duty which corresponds to the salary level and responsibility level of the job.
• Responsibility to report any worry or suspicion that a child or vulnerable adult is being abused.

Skills

Accountancy knowledge

Budget management

Communication skills

Computer literacy

Education

Qualified accountant

Full recognised Accountancy qualification

Degree

Tools

Financial systems

Technology for projections

Job description

*PLEASE NOTE*Cyngor Gwynedd is committed to being an inclusive employer, and to enhancing the diversity of the workforce.Your application form will be assessed anonymously. Your title, name and email address will not be shared with the appointing panel for the purpose of shortlisting. You should carefully consider this when completing the further information section of the application form. Gwynedd Council offers an attractive employment package, for more information please Gwynedd Council operates internally through the medium of Welsh, and offers all its services bilingually. The applicant will be required to reach the linguistic level noted as one of the essential skills in the Person Specification.We encourage everyone who applies for a job with Gwynedd Council to submit job applications in Welsh or bilingually. (Applications submitted in English only or Welsh only will always be treated equally, but we ask applicants to consider carefully what the linguistic requirements of the job in question is and if it would be more appropriate to submit an application in Welsh.)For further information about this post please contact Ffion Madog Evans on 01286 679133 or via e-mail: [e-mail]

CLOSING DATE: 10:00 AM, 12/11/2026

Person Specification

Personal attributesEssentialCommitted and conscientious approach to work.Able to work under pressure and to specific time constraints.Able to motivate others and work with others in a team.The ability to exercise discretion.Communicate complex issues clearly and concisely.Willing to take ownership of an area of work.Flexible and can work jointly with others effectively.DesirableAbility to take guidance.The ability to exercise discretion.Qualifications and relevant trainingEssentialQualified accountant, partly qualified or equivalent.DesirableFull recognised Accountancy qualification.Degree.Relevant experienceEssentialExperience of providing financial support to services.Experience of monitoring expenditure programmes and budgetary control.Experience of preparing revenue accounts within a time-schedule.Experience of dealing with financial systems.Experience of using technology to provide financial projections.DesirableExperience of providing financial support to a service(s) in a public body.Experience of supervising staff.Experience of identifying the needs of managers (to control their budgets) and provide useful services for them.Skills and specialist knowledgeEssentialKnowledge of the latest developments in the accountancy field.Computer systems user skills.Effective communication skills both orally and in writing.Thorough knowledge of the principles of budget management.DesirableKnowledge of the latest developments in the accountancy field and their relevance to Local Authorities in Wales.Knowledge of CIPFA instructions regarding accountancy.Language requirementsEssentialListening and Speaking - Higher LevelAble to follow a conversation or discussion through the medium of Welsh and English on a professional level and discuss general day to day topics in the field in order to present information and express opinions.Able to give a pre-prepared presentation and respond to any comments and questions on it in Welsh or English.Reading and Understanding - Higher LevelAble to understand standard written Welsh and English; both formal and informal.Able to gather information from various sources such as letters, reports, articles through the medium of Welsh and English in order to fulfil the post.Writing - Higher LevelPresent written information confidently by letter, more detailed and technical report formats, and respond to written requests conveying information, ideas and opinion in Welsh and English (help is available to check the work).

Job Description

Purpose of the post

• Ensure that the people of Gwynedd are at the heart of everything we do.
• Lead a team that is responsible for providing a finance and accountancy service for a Council Department in the most effective and efficient way and contribute to enabling the Department to achieve its aims and objectives.

Responsibility for functions

• Manage Senior Accountancy Assistant / Accountancy Assistant / Trainee / Apprentice on a daily basis and have general responsibility for the equipment used within the field of the post.

Main duties

• Undertake the role of Business Partner offering a professional independent viewpoint alongside expertise, challenge and empathy, all necessary to support the delivery of the department’s business objectives and financial priorities.
• The post holder is expected to lead the Team that provides financial and management accounting support to the Council’s Department as follows:
• Ensure that targets set by the Assistant Head of Finance are achieved and take steps to correct any slippage or reduction in quality.
• Act as Line Manager for finance staff who deal with the budgets of the relevant Department and encourage the staff to work to their full potential, measuring performance against targets.
• Ensure that the requirements of the Head of Department and managers are delivered in accordance with any requirements set in a service level agreement.
• Deliver work involving the budgets and accounts of the relevant Department, that comply with the appropriate professional standards, in accordance with the instructions of the Assistant Head of Finance or Head of Finance and any relevant corporate policies.
• Prepare the budgets and final accounts of the Department in question, in accordance with the guidance set by the Assistant Head of Finance or the Head of Finance.
• Deliver the relevant financial functions that are particular to the areas of the Department in question, in accordance with the relevant statutory requirements, and take personal responsibility for complex budgets where a high level input is required.
• Monitor the revenue and capital budgets of the Department in question and prepare reports as relevant for the Head of the Department and managers, the Assistant Head of Finance and/or the Head of Finance.
• Establish and review financial information gathering systems and consult with the Head of Department and managers as required in order to ensure the practice of robust financial control.
• Ensure that correct grant applications are submitted to external bodies on time and that appropriate grant monitoring arrangements exist.
• Assist the Assistant Head of Finance to consider any accountancy developments in the services in question and assist to develop arrangements to comply with these by being aware of any relevant developments.
• Attend meetings, committees, working groups or relevant panels in accordance with the requirements of the Assistant Head of Finance and play a leading role in the development of the Department's financial strategy.
• Provide advice, information or financial reports for the Head of Department and the managers as required.
• Provide and review statistics for the relevant services in accordance with statutory and recognised accounting standards.
• Responsibility for self-development.
• Ensure compliance with Health and Safety rules in the workplace in accordance with the responsibilities noted in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Council’s Health and Safety Policy.
• Operate within the Council’s policies in relation to equal opportunities and equality.
• Responsible for managing information in accordance with the Council’s information management guidelines. Ensure that personal information is treated in accordance with Data Protection legislation.
• Commitment to reducing the Council’s carbon emissions in accordance with the Carbon Management Plan, and to encourage others to act positively towards reducing the Council’s Carbon Footprint.
• Undertake any other reasonable duty which corresponds to the salary level and responsibility level of the job.
• Responsibility to report any worry or suspicion that a child or vulnerable adult is being abused.

Special circumstances

• Occasionally required to work outside usual working hours.