Finance Lead

NHS Jobs; Margate; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

NHS Jobs in Margate seeks a Finance Lead to drive the financial pillar of the practice strategy. You will produce accurate numbers and reports, enabling Partners to assess cost containment and income plans and guide decisions.

As part of the leadership team, you will oversee bookkeeping, payroll administration via PCSE, and end-to-end Xero responsibilities, ensuring timely, compliant reporting across sites.

Qualifications

• Bookkeeping and payments with accurate Xero records and weekly bank reconciliations.
• Design and implement Xero chart of accounts.
• Review and recover lost income across streams.
• Manage NHS payroll and pension admin.
• Reconcile income statements and cash flow monthly.
• Prepare monthly and quarterly financial reports.
• Benchmark financial metrics against peers.
• Maintain contracts and financial controls.
• Present financial insights to leadership.
• Oversee weekly finance reporting.
• Support CQC accountability through records.

Responsibilities

• Bookkeeping and payments Keep the accounts in Xero accurate and up to date, with every transaction coded correctly and the bank reconciled at least weekly.
• Xero and the chart of accounts Design and build a chart of accounts in Xero, agreed with the Head of Practice and the accountants.
• Lost income review Stage 1 the full picture. Stage 2 the decision.
• Payroll and pensions Run monthly payroll accurately and on time, using HR's notifications.
• Income and reconciliation Reconcile the monthly GP payment statement line by line to Xero.
• Reports for the Head of Practice All reports come from Xero and can be broken down by site and cost centre.
• Benchmarking and insight Compare the practice with similar practices and prepare figures for decision papers.
• Contracts, controls and year end Maintain contract register and ensure duties are performed with proper controls.
• Leadership team contribution Bring financial evidence to the leadership team and highlight cost-saving opportunities.
• Weekly finance report Compile the weekly one-page red/amber/green report.
• CQC accountability Support Well-led through robust financial records and reconciliations.

Skills

Bookkeeping

Xero

Payroll

Financial reporting

Budgeting

Accounts reconciliation

Tools

Xero

Job description

The Finance Lead reports to the Head of Practice and is part of the leadership team. The role delivers the Finance pillar of the practice strategy: the Finance Lead produces accurate numbers and reports, and the Head of Practice uses them to judge whether cost containment and income plans are working, and to bring decisions to the Partners.

Decision rights

Decides: processing approved invoices, payments and payroll; coding transactions; querying suppliers and income bodies; requesting approval before payment.

Recommends to the Head of Practice

changes to financial procedures; variances that need action; payments outside the approved budget or limits; cash flow risks.

Key responsibilities

• Bookkeeping and payments Keep the accounts in Xero accurate and up to date, with every transaction coded correctly and the bank reconciled at least weekly. Process purchase orders, invoices, payments and expense claims promptly, checking each has proper approval. Keep financial records organised and retained in line with legal requirements.
• Xero and the chart of accounts Design and build a chart of accounts in Xero, agreed with the Head of Practice and the accountants. Code every transaction by site (Northdown, Dashwood or practice-wide) and by cost centre, such as reception, nursing, GPs, premises, IT and each income stream, so the practice can drill down into any cost. Manage Xero end to end: bank feeds and rules, approvals, budgets, reporting templates, user access and connected apps. Keep coding clean, so reports can be trusted without adjustment, and train leads to read their own reports. Map historical transactions into the new chart of accounts for [the previous X years], so past and present can be compared like for like.
• Lost income review Stage 1 the full picture. Compare income received with income due for every stream, including the global sum, QOF, enhanced services, local schemes, PCN payments, premises, locum and drug reimbursements, and pension deductions. Record every gap, however old. Stage 2 the decision. For each gap, set out the amount, the time limit for claiming, the evidence and the effort to recover it, so the Head of Practice and Partners can decide what to pursue. Pursue agreed recoveries with the QOF, Quality & Population Health Lead and the accountants, report progress until each is closed, and fix the cause of every gap so the same income is not lost again.
• Payroll and pensions Run monthly payroll accurately and on time, using HR's notifications of every starter, leaver and change, including PAYE, National Insurance and other deductions. Manage NHS Pension Scheme administration for staff, salaried GPs and Partners through PCSE: contribution rates, joiners, leavers, changes and locum forms. Reconcile pension contributions deducted from NHS payments with what is due, and correct errors. Prepare Partners' and salaried GPs' year-end pension certificates with the accountants, so they match the final accounts. Keep payroll and pension records ready for year end and audit, and answer staff payroll and pension queries.
• Income and reconciliation Reconcile the monthly GP payment statement line by line to Xero, covering every payment and deduction, and query anything missing or wrong. Each month, receive the QOF, Quality & Population Health Lead's claims schedule, check it against approved claims using view access to CQRS, and report back every missing, short or unexpected payment through a shared income tracker. Reconcile drug and vaccine reimbursements, matching stock bought, items given, claims and payments. Reconcile PCN income, private fees (weekly, with the Operations Managers) and petty cash (monthly). Run credit control, pay suppliers on agreed terms, and review aged debtors and creditors monthly.
• Reports for the Head of Practice All reports come from Xero and can be broken down by site and cost centre. Weekly Finance report: cash, income and claims outstanding, headline spend, private fees and petty cash. Monthly Management accounts: profit and loss, balance sheet, and budget against actual, with commentary on variances. Monthly Site and cost centre: where money is earned and spent across Northdown, Dashwood and practice-wide costs. Monthly Staffing costs: pay costs by site, team and role, including overtime, locums and agency, against the workforce plan. Monthly Operating costs: premises, utilities, consumables, equipment, IT and contracts, for each site. Monthly Income by stream: each income stream against what is expected. Monthly Debtors and creditors: what the practice is owed and owes, and how old each item is. Monthly Cash flow: rolling forecast, with early warning of pressure. Quarterly Reforecast: full-year forecast against budget and the Partners' targets. Quarterly Benchmarking: income and costs against comparable practices, with commentary on opportunities. Yearly Budget: next year's budget by site and cost centre, for the Partners to approve. Produce the monthly reports within an agreed number of days of month end.
• Benchmarking and insight Compare the practice each quarter with similar practices, using NHS practice payment data, the accountants' benchmarking and PCN and ICB comparisons. Benchmark income per patient and by stream, staff cost per patient and as a share of income, and operating costs per patient and per site. Show which services make money, where costs are higher than comparable practices and why, and which income streams can grow. Prepare the figures for decision papers, so every proposal shows its financial effect.
• Contracts, controls and year end Keep the contract register, with values and review and renewal dates, and alert the Head of Practice before each date. Own the payroll, purchasing, petty cash and anti-fraud procedures, and apply the Standing Financial Instructions on every payment. Make sure a trained deputy can run payroll and payments, with clear separation of duties. Prepare complete, reconciled records for the accountants, and support them with Partners' tax and pension information.
• Leadership team contribution Bring financial evidence to the leadership team: where costs are rising, where income is at risk and where savings could be made. Help leads understand their own budgets, and make finance processes simpler and more automated.
• Weekly finance report The weekly finance report is the one-page red, amber and green summary listed under reports above, adding payroll issues and upcoming contract dates.
• CQC accountability Supports Well-led. Evidence includes management accounts, reconciliations, the contract register and procedure records.