Financial Controller

Diablo Sugar Free; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Diablo Sugar Free, a privately owned group of around 50 companies across two sectors, is seeking a Financial Controller to own the group accounting and reporting. You will lead a small finance team and report directly to the directors.

The role requires ACA/ACCA, hands-on consolidation, intercompany reconciliations, and system improvements. A clear path to Head of Finance is offered within 2–3 years with salary to reflect the progression.

Qualifications

• ACA or ACCA qualified.
• Trained in a practice with hands-on statutory accounts, CT returns and VAT for a multi-entity portfolio.
• Experience in a multi-entity group (Group Accountant/Finance Manager).
• Produced monthly management accounts to deadlines with accruals, prepayments, reconciliations, and commentary.
• Prepared group/consolidated accounts with intercompany reconciliations and eliminations.
• Set up or improved finance systems (bank feeds, automation, reporting/consolidation).
• Strong knowledge of cloud accounting (Xero/QuickBooks/Sage) and advanced Excel.
• Organised, deadline-driven, capable of overseeing a filing calendar across entities.

Responsibilities

• Produce monthly management accounts for trading and property entities with management commentary.
• Produce consolidated group accounts and manage intercompany balances.
• Prepare and file VAT returns, statutory accounts and corporation tax returns ensuring deadlines.
• Lead systemisation of the finance function so income and payments across entities are captured automatically.
• Oversee payment runs and review reconciliations across bank accounts and platforms.
• Act as main contact for external accountants and tax advisers in multiple jurisdictions.
• Maintain cash flow forecasts for the main trading entities.

Skills

Group accounting

Monthly management accounts

Intercompany reconciliations

Excel advanced

Communication to directors

Education

ACA/ACCA qualified

Tools

Xero

QuickBooks

Sage

Job description

This is a first Financial Controller role. It would suit a qualified Group Accountant, Management Accountant or Finance Manager who is ready to step up and own the finance function of a multi-entity group.

We are a privately owned group of around 50 companies across two sectors. The first is an international FMCG business selling in over 120 countries, with entities in the UK, EU and US. The second is a UK property portfolio.

You will own the group's accounting, reporting directly to the directors, with a team of three handling day-to-day transaction processing.

The role has a clear path. Your first year is about getting monthly reporting and systems to a high standard. We intend to promote the right person to Head of Finance within 2-3 years, with salary to match.

Requirements

• ACA or ACCA qualified
• Trained in an accountancy practice, with hands-on experience preparing statutory accounts, corporation tax returns and VAT returns for a portfolio of companies
• Experience in an industry role within a multi-entity group, for example as Group Accountant, Management Accountant or Finance Manager
• Has personally produced monthly management accounts to a deadline, including accruals, prepayments, balance sheet reconciliations and variance commentary
• Has prepared group or consolidated accounts, including intercompany reconciliations and eliminations
• Has set up or improved finance systems and can show it. For example, bank feeds, automated allocation rules, invoice capture and reporting or consolidation tools
• Strong working knowledge of cloud accounting software such as Xero, QuickBooks or Sage, and advanced Excel
• Organised and deadline-driven, able to own a filing calendar across many entities without supervision
• Able to explain numbers clearly to non-finance directors

Nice to have

• Multi-currency experience (GBP, EUR, USD)
• E-commerce or marketplace reconciliation experience (Amazon, Shopify and similar platforms)
• Property accounting experience
• Exposure to international tax or group structuring, or an interest in studying ATT or CTA

Responsibilities

• Produce monthly management accounts for the trading and property entities, with commentary for the directors
• Produce consolidated group accounts and manage intercompany balances
• Prepare and file VAT returns, statutory accounts and corporation tax returns across the group, and keep every Companies House and HMRC deadline on track
• Lead the systemisation of the finance function, so income and payments across all entities are captured and allocated automatically wherever possible
• Oversee the processing team and review and approve payment runs
• Oversee reconciliation of income across bank accounts, marketplaces and payment platforms
• Act as the main point of contact for our external accountants and tax advisers in the UK, Czech Republic and US
• Maintain cash flow forecasts for the main trading entities

What we offer

• A written progression path to Group Financial Controller within 18 to 24 months
• Direct exposure to the directors and real ownership of the finance function
• Support for further professional study