Financial Accountant (Maternity Leave)

Young Lives vs Cancer; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 39,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

A charity organization in the UK is looking for a Financial Accountant to support their Finance Team. This role includes managing financial systems and ensuring compliance with tax regulations, while contributing to a supportive work environment. The ideal candidate will have a professional accounting qualification and relevant experience in charity finance. This position offers a hybrid work model and various benefits.

Benefits

Wellbeing days

Generous annual leave

Enhanced pension

Employee savings scheme

Qualifications

• 12 months+ post-qualification experience.
• Experience with bank, prepayments, accruals, and reconciliations.
• Proven track record in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Manage financial information accuracy and completeness.
• Act as systems administrator for financial systems.
• Ensure compliance with tax legislation.

Skills

Qualified Accountant (CCAB or equivalent)

Charity VAT knowledge

Analytical skills

Strong people skills

Attention to detail

Education

Professional accounting qualification

Tools

Microsoft Business Central

SUN (General Ledger software)

iPOS

JET (invoice approval and management)

Job description

Overview

Today, 12 children and young people will be diagnosed with cancer. We ll stop at nothing to make sure they get the right care and support at the right time.

• Salary: £46,598
• Hours: 35
• Maternity cover - up to 12 months FTC
• Location: Bristol (Hybrid)
• Closing date: 12th October 2025
• Interview date: 21st October 2025

Change lives in a life-changing career

When a child or young person is diagnosed with cancer, their whole world can feel like it s falling apart. Independence is taken and confidence is stolen. Stability no longer exists. The future suddenly feels uncertain.

The impact of cancer on young lives is more than medical. That s why we exist. Our specialist social workers help children and young people with cancer and their families navigate the emotional and practical impact of cancer. We remove barriers, solve problems and prioritise wellbeing. And we stop at nothing to make sure they get the right care and support at the right time.

We challenge the systems and policies that surround children and young people, we highlight gaps and campaign for change. Because we know what a better future could look like. And we know what we need to do to make that future a reality. We need to push harder, reach further and work smarter. And we need the right people on our team to help us get there. People like you.

About the role

We re looking for a Financial Accountant with Charities SORP experience to join our Finance Team.

You will be a key member of the Finance team, responsible for supporting month end processing, maintaining the finance system, assisting in the preparation of the statutory accounts and managing audit queries, and advising on technical and charity-specific accounting queries.

This is an exciting period of change in the finance team with the implementation of a new finance system in October (Microsoft s Business Central) and this role will be key in supporting that implementation.

Attention to detail and a commitment to continuous improvement are key to this role to ensure that financial data is correctly recorded and that the charity remains compliant with its regulators.

The Finance team works closely with teams from across the charity and in this role, you will often need to pick up requests flexibly and explain complex financial information to non-financial staff.

This role is subject to a criminal record check. In the event of a successful application a basic criminal record check will be completed.

What will I be doing?

No two days are the same at Young Lives vs Cancer. So, summarising your day to day isn t easy. Here are some of the main things you ll be doing, but you ll find more details in the job description.

• Ensuring timeliness, accuracy and completeness of financial information recorded on the finance system. The role holder should be committed to continuous improvement of processes to ensure the financial data recorded is of the highest quality.
• Systems administrator for the key financial systems these are SUN (General Ledger software), iPOS and JET (invoice approval and management systems) and banking platforms but a system replacement project is underway to implement Microsoft Business Central (General ledger and invoice management). Responsible for managing access rights, training new users, implementing required changes and updates, and acting as the key point of contact with the system providers.
• Responsible for ensuring compliance with tax legislation, preparing the quarterly VAT return, and supporting the Head of Finance Operations in making sure that tax recovery is optimised and that the Charity s VAT accounting methodology is regularly reviewed.
• Day-to-day management of cash in line with treasury policy including maintenance of operational cash flow forecast and making recommendations to the Head of Finance Operations for investment of cash, to ensure optimal return on investment.
• Co-ordinating the audit preparation process by supporting staff across the Charity to prepare high quality information and by preparing audit schedules for auditor review.

What do I need?

Diverse perspectives and unique skillsets are at the heart of Young Lives vs Cancer. If you're passionate about making a positive impact and eager to learn, we encourage you to apply, even if you don\'t meet the criteria and person specification fully. Your potential is what matters most to us, and we re committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive work environment to help you develop.

The key skills we re looking for in this role are:

• Qualified Accountant (CCAB or equivalent) with 12 months + post-qualification experience and current membership of a professional accounting body
• Significant experience of month end work (bank, prepayments, accruals, purchase ledger, sales ledger); performing control account, payroll and bank account reconciliations, analysing data.
• Good charity VAT knowledge and completion of a Charity VAT return, including analysis and challenge of data presented by the finance system.
• Proven track record working in a fast paced environment.
• Strong people skills and ability to communicate complex financial information to non-financial staff.
• Analytical, problem solving and decision making skills: Being able to identify inaccuracies in data presented, deciding what course of action to take and resolving issues as appropriate.
• Attention to detail and tidy and methodical approach to work.
• Experience and competence in using financial accounting systems: double entry, posting journals, undertaking reconciliations.
• Business Central experience is desirable.

What will I gain?

For people to reach their full potential, they need the right environment. As a member of Team Young Lives, you ll be made to feel supported, valued and appreciated. Here s how we do it:

• Wellbeing days: four days a year to do what works for you from catching up on training to going for a walk
• Generous annual leave allowance
• Great family/caring leave entitlements
• Enhanced pension
• Access to our employee savings scheme

To find out more about our benefits package, have a look on our website.

Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging

At Young Lives vs Cancer, we recognise that opportunities for too many people remain a condition of their sex, ethnicity, class, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation or a combination. This has never been acceptable to us as an organisation. We don t just accept difference, we value it, celebrate it, nurture it and we thrive because of it.

We re on a journey to be reflective of the diverse children, young people and families we support. We know we aren t there yet, and we re passionately committed to taking actions and making changes to be a truly diverse, inclusive and equitable organisation. This includes taking anti-oppressive action and removing barriers in our recruitment practices. We particularly welcome applications from members of minoritised communities. Our Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Belonging strategy will tell you more.

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. CVs can be uploaded, but we won't be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to fully complete the work history sections of the online application form for us to be able to assess you quickly, fairly and objectively.

Accessibility

We re committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we ll always aim to be as accommodating as possible. Please let us know in your application form of any adjustments or access requirements we could make to help you with the application process and interview.