Head of Finance

The Westcountry Rivers Trust; England; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

An environmental charity in the UK seeks a Head of Finance to oversee financial management and reporting. This role requires strong knowledge of charity finance, experience with grants, and proficiency in financial systems like Xero and Excel. The position supports the Finance Director and manages the finance team, ensuring effective financial processes. Competitive salary range of £42,400 - £46,800 FTE per annum based on experience, with hybrid working options available.

Benefits

Employee Assistance Program

25 days' Annual Leave + Bank Holidays

Pension scheme with 9% contribution

Cycle to Work Scheme

Hybrid & Flexible Working

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of charity finance and accounting standards.
• Experience managing grants or multiple funding streams.
• Experience improving financial systems, processes, and reporting.

Responsibilities

• Support the Finance Director in ensuring financial security.
• Provide regular reports on Trust-wide projects.
• Manage day-to-day cash and banking processes.

Skills

Analytical skills

Excellent communication skills

Stakeholder management

Organisational skills

Problem-solving skills

Education

Part-qualified or fully qualified (ACCA, CIMA, or equivalent)

Tools

Xero

Advanced Excel

Job description

Head of Finance

Contract: Permanent

Report To: Finance Director

Hours: 30 hours per week, but full time (37.5 hours) will be considered

Location: Westcountry Rivers Trust's office is in Stoke Climsland, and whilst we have adopted hybrid working, there is an expectation to work from the office on a regular basis and to travel to sites across the delivery area.

Westcountry Rivers Trust is recruiting a Head of Finance. This is a permanent contract after a successful 6-month probation period.

The starting salary for this role is £42,400 - £46,800 FTE per annum; this will be pro rata for 30 hours per week (dependent on experience).

Benefits of working for Westcountry Rivers Trust

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• 25 days' Annual Leave + Bank Holidays, with a reward for long service - an additional 1 day per year for each year worked over 5 years, up to a maximum of 30 days for employees serving 10 years continuous service
• Additional leave covering the Christmas Closure period
• WRT contributes 9% of salary to a personal pension scheme (following a three-month postponement period), plus Life Assurance cover
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Hybrid & Flexible Working

Apply by midnight on 14th January 2026 with a CV and Covering Letter.

Interviews will be held in person at our offices in Stoke Climsland on Thursday 29th January 2026

For queries about this role or the application process, please contact the Recruitment Team.

About the Westcountry Rivers Trust

Formed in 1994, the Trust was established to restore Westcountry rivers. Measures to protect rivers can help to save money for farmers, lower costs for water companies, boost tourism, reduce the need to dredge estuaries and even benefit human health.

Today, the charity works with a wide range of stakeholders from landowners to local communities, businesses, farmers and water companies to restore and protect the rivers, lakes, estuaries and coastal areas for the benefit of people, wildlife and the local economy. There has never been a more important time to work on the rivers of the West Country, as the impacts of the climate emergency and the ecological crisis are forcing society to invest in building catchment resilience.

Spurred by a shared love of rivers, the Westcountry Rivers Trust is very much a grassroots organisation, brought into existence from the bottom up. In the early 90s, a group of individuals, passionate - but concerned - about the waterways around them, began to stitch together their ambitions for restoring Westcountry rivers, laying the foundations for the Trust we know today.

Everything the Trust does is informed by the best available science. Their work is driven by an 'ecosystems approach,' considering the function of the entire catchment, not just the rivers that flow within them.

The Trust now has circa 75 employees with an annual turnover of c£3m running multi-annual projects spread across a wide range of funders, three main delivery teams and a support services team.

About the Role

Reporting directly to the Finance Director, the Head of Finance plays a central role in delivering a highly effective and well-governed finance function for the Trust. Acting as the FD's second-in-command, the role provides leadership across a wide variety of financial and project-related activities, ensuring strong financial stewardship, consistent performance, and clear strategic insight.

As part of Westcountry Rivers Trust, this role sits at the heart of a successful and values-driven environmental charity leading a diverse portfolio of innovative conservation and river restoration projects. It offers the opportunity to support meaningful, high-impact work that is helping to protect and improve the natural environment across the region.

This role oversees the finance team's day-to-day operations, ensuring accurate reporting, sound controls, and reliable financial management across both core operations and funded projects.

With responsibility for coordinating complex financial workflows and multiple concurrent priorities, the Head of Finance brings adaptability, an exceptional eye for detail, and the ability to work calmly and effectively under pressure.

The Head of Finance also contributes proactively to the ongoing improvement of financial processes, systems, and working practices-driven enhanced efficiency, transparency, and operational effectiveness across the Trust.

Responsibilities

Finance and Accounting

• Support the Finance Director in ensuring the financial security of the Trust.
• Provide regular reports and updates to the Finance Director on the status of Trust-wide projects.
• Provide financial analysis to support organisational planning.
• Assist in overseeing the preparation of grant claims (for both UK and EU projects) and project accounting.
• Ensure strong financial controls are applied across expenditure, procurement, and financial systems.
• Manage day-to-day cash and banking processes.
• Assist with the preparation of year‑end accounts, provide high-quality evidence, and ensure a smooth audit process.
• Support the preparation of bidding proposals for new projects.
• Support financial oversight of the trading subsidiary.
• Assist in ensuring the Trust's tax and VAT compliance, preparing VAT returns for Finance Director review, and evaluating funding for VAT considerations.
• Support the Finance Director in managing the procurement process across the Trust.

People, Reporting, and Management

• Act as deputy to the Finance Director, providing cover and decision‑making support where appropriate.
• Supervise and support the day‑to‑day work of the finance team, helping to develop skills, maintain performance, and embed good financial practice.
• Provide financial information and clear communication to senior managers within the Trust, where required.
• Manage and lead the Grade 4 Senior Finance Team, overseeing performance, development, and day‑to‑day activities.

Governance, Systems, and Other Duties

• Support the Finance Director in maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements, audit standards, and financial policies.
• Contribute to improvements in financial systems, reporting, processes, and documentation to ensure accuracy, transparency, and efficiency.

Person Specification

• Highly professional and level‑headed, fostering a collaborative approach across teams.
• Honest, transparent, and consistent communicator, articulating challenges calmly, assertively, and in a balanced manner to build trust and engagement.
• Ambitious and results‑driven, striving for excellence in personal performance and team development, with the ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Proactive and solution‑focused, identifying issues early and tackling them effectively before they cancel out.

Knowledge and Experience

• Strong knowledge of charity finance, accounting standards, and compliance.
• Experience contributing to financial planning, reporting, and analysis.
• Experience managing grants or multiple funding streams.
• Experience with subsidiaries, inter‑company transactions, or charity trading operations.
• Experience improving financial systems, processes, and reporting.
• Knowledge of procurement processes and NEC contracts.

Skills and Competencies

• Strong analytical, organisational, and problem‑solving skills.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Proficiency in Xero and advanced Excel.

Qualifications

Part‑qualified or fully qualified (ACCA, CIMA, or equivalent).

The above are Essential criteria unless indicated as Desirable. Other organisations may call this role Senior Finance Manager, Finance Operations Lead, Finance Business Partner, Head of Financial Management, Head of Finance Operations, Senior Financial Controller, Finance and Governance Manager, or Head of Accounting and Finance.