Schools Finance & Forum Officer

Leicestershire County Council; Preston; Hybrid; GBP 33,000 - 38,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Local Government Pension Scheme

26 days annual leave + holidays

Staff discount scheme

Career development opportunities

Job summary

Lancashire County Council in Preston is recruiting a Schools Finance and Forum Officer to support statutory funding functions within the Schools Statutory Team, Financial Management. You will manage High Needs, Early Years, Schools and Post-16 funding allocations and payments, calculate adjustments, and produce budgets and financial reports.

The role requires GCSEs or equivalent, experience in financial administration, strong communication and customer service skills, and proficiency with Excel

Qualifications

• GCSEs or equivalent required.
• Experience in financial administration.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Good customer service skills and ability to work in a team.
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel and Word; able to adapt to financial systems.

Responsibilities

• Manage and administer High Needs, Early Years, Schools and Post-16 funding allocations and payments.
• Calculate funding adjustments, redeterminations and backdated payments.
• Produce and distribute funding statements, budgets and financial reports.
• Monitor, reconcile and analyse funding streams for accuracy and compliance.
• Maintain funding models, spreadsheets, databases and payment schedules.
• Support year-end processes, statutory returns and audits.

Skills

Communication

Customer service

Teamwork

MS Office

Self-motivated

Education

GCSEs or equivalent

Tools

Excel

Word

Financial systems

Job description

Salary £33,119 - £37,563 per annum | Permanent, Full Time 37 hours per week | Preston/Hybrid

Please note that we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role

We are currently recruiting to the post of Schools Finance and Forum Officer within the Schools Statutory Team, Financial Management. This role provides a unique opportunity to contribute and support the statutory financial functions of the county council.

As a Schools Finance and Forum Officer, you will:

• Manage and administer High Needs, Early Years, Schools, and Post-16 funding allocations and payments.
• Calculate funding adjustments, redeterminations and backdated payments.
• Produce and distribute funding statements, budgets and financial reports.
• Monitor, reconcile and analyse funding streams to ensure accuracy and compliance.
• Maintain funding models, spreadsheets, databases and payment schedules.
• Support financial year-end processes, statutory returns and audit requirements.
• Liaise with schools, academies, providers and internal teams to resolve funding queries and gather data.
• Investigate discrepancies and implement corrective actions where required.
• Ensure accurate, timely and compliant processing of education funding.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of funding processes, systems and reporting.
• Have a varied workload supporting the statutory functions of the team.

You'll be part of a friendly, approachable, and collaborative team, with access to excellent on-the-job training and career development opportunities.

About you:

• Holds GCSE's Qualifications or equivalent.
• Has experience in financial administration.
• You’ll have great communication skills with the ability to communicate both written and verbally.
• You’ll have good customer service skills.
• You will be able to work well in a team but also have the ability to work without close supervision
• Have the ability to use Microsoft Office, in particular Excel and Word and can adapt to working with new financial systems.
• You are self-motivated and organised.

Closing date: 18th October 2026

Why join us?

By joining Lancashire County Council, you can shape the career path that is right for you, with opportunities to gain personal and professional qualifications, coaching, and mentoring. Lancashire County Council truly is the place where you can have the career you've always wanted.

In return for your passion and expertise, we offer a generous benefits package, which includes:

• A competitive salary and Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contributions.
• A great holiday entitlement of 26 days annual leave, which increases with length of service. You will also be entitled to 8 Bank Holidays, 2 additional statutory Bank Holidays, and have the option to buy additional leave each year.
• Our staff discount scheme in partnership with Vivup, allowing you to access discounts with a range of UK retailers, saving on everything from weekly food shops to white goods and cars.
• Access to fantastic development and career opportunities.

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications.

Local Government Reorganisation

The Government has confirmed that local government across Lancashire will be reorganised, with the current 15 councils being replaced by four new unitary councils covering North, South, East and West Lancashire from April 2028.

If you are successful in your application, you will initially join Lancashire County Council. However, as part of the planned transition, your employment will transfer to one of the new unitary councils from April 2028, subject to the implementation of the reorganisation and relevant employment legislation.

Throughout this period, our focus remains on delivering excellent services to our communities. By joining us now, you'll play an important role in shaping the future of local government and helping to build a strong new organisation that will serve residents for years to come.

Job Description & Person Specification