Head of Financial Management

Transformation Unit; Kettering; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 92,000; Full time

Job summary

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an experienced Head of Financial Management to lead the Finance Directorate, delivering strategic financial leadership, robust reporting, and effective assurance to executives and clinical teams.

The role requires CCAB-qualified accounting, post‑qualification experience in NHS financial management, and a proven track record in leading teams through change to improve productivity and value.

Qualifications

• CCAB-qualified accountant with significant post-qualification experience in financial management.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders in a complex environment.
• Experience of leading change, developing teams and driving service improvement in finance.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for the Trust's Financial Management function, ensuring high-quality financial advice, robust reporting, forecasting and assurance to Executive Directors and clinical/operational teams.
• Lead improvements in financial planning, performance reporting and business intelligence to identify productivity and value opportunities.
• Develop finance capability and culture, strengthening financial understanding and decision-making across the organisation.

Skills

Strategic leadership of financial

Financial planning and forecasting

Stakeholder engagement

Change leadership

Education

CCAB Qualified Accountant

Continuing Professional Development

Job description

Employer Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site University Hospitals of Northamptonshire Town Kettering Salary £79,504 - £91,609 per annum / pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 06/11/2026 23:59

Head of Financial Management

Band 8c

Job overview

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) is seeking an experienced, forward-thinking finance leader to join our senior Finance Directorate team as Head of Financial Management. This is a key leadership role that will help shape and drive the future of financial management across our organisation.

We are looking for a CCAB-qualified accountant with significant post-qualification experience in financial management, strong leadership skills and a proven track record of influencing senior stakeholders in a complex environment. Experience of driving service improvement, developing financial management standards and leading teams through change will be essential.

Working closely with senior operational, clinical and corporate colleagues, you will lead improvements in financial planning, performance reporting and business intelligence, helping services identify opportunities to improve productivity, efficiency and value.

Main duties of the job

As a senior member of the Finance Directorate, you will provide strategic leadership for the Trust's Financial Management function, ensuring the delivery of high-quality financial advice, robust reporting, forecasting and assurance to Executive Directors, clinical leaders and operational teams. You will play a central role in supporting strategic decision-making and ensuring financial resources are used effectively to deliver the best outcomes for our patients and communities.

A significant aspect of the role is developing our people and culture. You will lead the development of finance capability across the organisation, supporting a high-performing, inclusive and values-driven culture while helping both finance and non-finance colleagues strengthen their financial understanding and decision-making.

You will bring

• Strategic leadership of financial planning, forecasting, reporting and assurance.
• A commitment to high-quality, consistent and insight-led financial management.
• The ability to influence, challenge and build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders.
• Experience of leading change, developing teams and strengthening finance capability.
• A strong focus on productivity, efficiency, continuous improvement and value.

Working for our organisation

We recognise that AI tools can support application writing; however, candidates are asked to keep their use to a minimum. Responses should reflect your own experience, skills and knowledge, as over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in generic answers that do not accurately represent your abilities.

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) brings together Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As a group, we are committed to improving services for our communities through collaboration, modernising care delivery and striving for excellence. Working together enables us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities, and there may be a requirement to work across sites depending on service needs.

Our Excellence Values are Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage. UHN welcomes applications from all backgrounds and is committed to an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and hold the Gold Award under the Employer Recognition Scheme. Candidates who identify as members of the Armed Forces community and meet the essential criteria will be guaranteed an interview.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Full a full list of all roles and responsibilities, please refer to the attached job description and person specification,

Person specification

Education, Training and Qualifications

• CCAB Qualified Accountant
• Demonstrate Continuing Professional Development

Knowledge/Experience

• Have significant post qualification experience in Financial Management
• Experience of supporting Divisions in identifying, tracking and reporting efficiencies
• Experience of use of and improvements of financial systems
• In depth knowledge of the NHS financial regime
• Possess a sound understanding of financial and activity systems and to be able to extract, interpret, manipulate and present information in a meaningful way
• Experience dealing with contracts for Supplies & Services
• Works autonomously to interpret and apply relevant national standards and guidance, including DHSC policy, NHS financial frameworks and applicable Accounting Standards, providing expert judgement and evidence-based assurance to support compliant and effective financial management
• Experience of developing and implementing organisation-wide financial management standards, frameworks and approaches
• Experience of leading improvements in financial reporting, planning or management processes to drive consistency, quality and efficiency.
• Experience of developing finance capability, including training design, delivery or professional development initiatives across teams or organisations.
• Experience of setting and assuring standards for financial management across an organisation.

We are an equal opportunities employer, which aims to employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons from all backgrounds.

We welcome applications from members of our black and minority ethnic (BME) communities, especially in relation to senior posts within at KGH.

Applicants who have a disability and meet the essential criteria for the job will be interviewed if you indicate you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme. If you require a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process please make the recruitment services team aware as soon as possible.

Appointments will be made on merit.

If you need to have a Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check, as a requirement of the role, you will be required to repay the cost of obtaining a DBS check (£49.50) and this amount will be reclaimed from your first salary. From 1st February 2019 all new starters to the Trust are required to join the DBS update service as per Trust DBS Re-checking Policy which has an annual cost of £16. New employees who do not join the update service will be required to pay £49.50 for a new DBS check in 3 years time.

Please note that news starters with KGH are subject to a six month probationary period.

Safeguarding is everyone's business. KGH considers Safeguarding a priority amongst its citizen's and a key value for all employed to the service.

We want to recruit the best people to deliver our services across the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire and help to unleash everyone's full potential. As an organisation, we value how we communicate and promote our vacancies to all communities. The Hospital Group encourages applications from people who identify from all protected groups, especially those from BAME, Disabled and LGBTQ+ backgrounds as these are underrepresented in our hospitals. We understand that we need to work with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and make sure the environment they work in is inclusive and collaborative. We have active Networks that promote and support colleagues from all backgrounds. This ensures everyone feels supported and has a sense of belonging working for Kettering and Northampton General Hospitals.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

Name Bhavisha Patel Job title Assistant Director of Financial Management Email address [e-mail] Additional information Informal discussions are welcomed and encouraged. For further information, please contact Bhavisha Patel, Assistant Director of Financial Management on [e-mail]

If you have problems applying, contact

Address University Hospitals of Northamptonshire