Finance Officer

University of Oxford; Oxford; Hybrid; GBP 35,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading academic institution in Oxford is seeking a Finance Officer to support the Finance Manager in departmental financial activities. This permanent, full-time position involves managing finance-related queries, overseeing two Finance Assistants, and ensuring compliance with financial regulations. The ideal candidate will possess significant finance experience, attention to detail, and strong analytical skills, with a commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion within the department.

Benefits

Excellent contributory pension scheme

38 days annual leave

Comprehensive range of childcare services

Family leave schemes

Cycle loan scheme

Discounted bus travel and Season Ticket travel loans

Membership to social and sports clubs

Qualifications

• Experience in a finance role, ideally within higher education or a large institutional setting.
• Demonstrated exceptional attention to detail and accuracy.
• Strong analytical and numeracy skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide support to the Finance Manager with departmental financial activities.
• Act as a primary contact for finance-related queries.
• Manage a team of two Finance Assistants.

Skills

Attention to detail

Analytical skills

Numeracy skills

Communication skills

Teamworking

IT skills (finance systems, spreadsheets)

Education

Professional accountancy qualification (ACCA or CIMA)

Tools

Oracle Financials

Job description

The postholder will provide support to the Finance Manager (Accounts) in departmental financial activities.

What We Offer

• An excellent contributory pension scheme
• 38 days annual leave
• A comprehensive range of childcare services
• Family leave schemes
• Cycle loan scheme
• Discounted bus travel and Season Ticket travel loans
• Membership to a variety of social and sports clubs

About the Role

The post is permanent and is based in the Department of Psychiatry at the Warneford Hospital. The post is full time, however consideration would be given to candidates wishing to work part‑time (minimum 80% FTE) on a pro‑rata basis. The post is available on a flexible hybrid basis – minimum in‑site 3 days for a full‑time role.

You will act as a primary point of contact for finance‑related queries, offering guidance on finance policies and processes, and ensuring that discrepancies are investigated and resolved appropriately. You will provide expert advice and assistance on a wide range of financial matters, including financial regulations, and broader compliance requirements. You will manage a team of two Finance Assistants, establishing effective working relationships, managing workloads to meet deadlines, and supporting their development, while monitoring departmental performance dashboards and helping maintain compliance with key financial procedures. You will support the Finance Manager with budget preparation and quarterly forecasting, and you will manage the Department's student portfolio, including bursaries, fee payments and budget tracking.

You will have previous experience in a finance role, ideally within higher education or a large institutional setting, and will have or be working towards a professional accountancy qualification (ACCA or CIMA), or equivalent experience. You will demonstrate exceptional attention to detail and accuracy, strong analytical and numeracy skills, and have good written and oral communication skills to enable you to engage confidently with colleagues at all levels. With experience of effective teamworking and the ability to work collaboratively, you will have experience delivering key financial tasks such as month‑end, budget preparation and compliance with core operational processes, along with excellent IT skills, including the ability to use finance information systems and spreadsheets to analyse data and produce clear and informative management information. Knowledge and use of Oracle Financials and experience providing supervision and support to team members would be desirable.

Diversity – Committed to equality and valuing diversity. Our active Psychiatry People and Culture teams and initiatives including our values and behaviours framework, work to make the Department of Psychiatry as supportive, welcoming and inclusive as possible.

Department of Psychiatry, Warneford Hospital, Oxford OX3 7JX. The University of Oxford is a stimulating work environment, which enjoys an international reputation as a world‑class centre of excellence. Our research plays a key role in tackling many global challenges, from reducing our carbon emissions to developing vaccines during a pandemic. The Department of Psychiatry is based on the Warneford Hospital site in Oxford – a friendly, welcoming place of work with an international reputation for excellence. The Department has a substantial research programme, with major funding from Medical Research Council (MRC), Wellcome Trust and National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and provides highly rated medical training in psychiatry. The Head of Department is Professor Belinda Lennox.