Senior Finance Manager

Southwark Council; City Of London; On-site; GBP 59,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in London seeks a Senior Finance Manager (Deputy Chief Accountant) to lead financial strategy and compliance. The ideal candidate is a qualified accountant with strong leadership and technical expertise. Responsibilities include managing financial services, advising senior management, and improving financial controls. Competitive salary ranging from £59,526 to £74,040. Join a forward-thinking finance team committed to community service and diversity.

Qualifications

• Qualified accountant with leadership experience in a complex environment.
• Deep technical accounting expertise, including statutory reporting.
• Exceptional analytical, communication, and influencing skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage the Council’s financial strategy and services.
• Lead the Corporate Finance sub-team for technical functions.
• Provide VAT, tax, and technical accounting advice.
• Advise Senior Management on financial policy and compliance.
• Drive continuous improvement across financial controls.

Skills

Strong leadership experience

Technical accounting expertise

Exceptional analytical skills

Communication skills

Influencing skills

Strategic mindset

Education

Qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIPFA or equivalent)

Job description

Why Southwark?

At Southwark Council, we’re more than a local authority, we’re a community powered by integrity, innovation, and inclusion. It is a vibrant, diverse borough at the heart of London, home to over 18,300 businesses including iconic London venues such as The Shard, The Tate Modern and Borough Market along with many social enterprises and we have a young, diverse, and growing population. Southwark Council is the largest local authority social landlord in London.

We are proud to be one of the few councils in the sector to have consistently received clean audit opinions including for the financial year 2023-24 – a testament of our commitment to financial excellence and strong governance. Now’s your chance to join a forward-thinking finance team at the heart of local government. Drive innovation through major initiatives like ERP modernisation, enjoy flexible working, and grow in a culture that values integrity, inclusion and professional development.

As a Senior Finance Manager (Deputy Chief Accountant) within our Financial Reporting and Technical Accounting function, you’ll play a pivotal role in strengthening the council’s financial foundations, ensuring transparency, compliance, and strategic alignment at every level.

What makes this role stand out:

• Modernisation at scale: Be at the forefront of transformation, supporting the modernisation of systems and processes to deliver smarter, faster, more accurate financial management.
• Empowered leadership: Join a high-performing, collaborative finance team where your expertise drives innovation, improvement, and accountability across all services.

What You'll Be Doing

• Develop and manage the Council’s financial strategy and core financial services, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives and statutory obligations.
• Lead the sub-team within Corporate Finance responsible for key technical and statutory functions, including:
• • Delivery of the Statement of Accounts and key statutory returns (e.g. RA/RO, Whole of Government Accounts).
  • Managing day-to-day liaison with external auditors and regulatory bodies.
  • Providing VAT, tax, and technical accounting advice across council services.
  • Overseeing Collection Fund accounting and assessing implications for the wider budget.
  • Advise Senior Management, Cabinet Members, and Committees on financial policy, compliance, and reporting.
  • Drive continuous improvement across financial systems, controls, and performance frameworks.
  • Lead, empower, and develop your finance team, fostering a culture of excellence and innovation.

What We're Looking For

Our team provides first-class Finance support across multiple service directorates. We need a dynamic and experienced Senior Finance Officer who will bring a blend of the following:

• A qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIPFA or equivalent) with strong leadership experience in a complex environment.
• Deep technical accounting expertise, including statutory reporting and financial control.
• Exceptional analytical, communication, and influencing skills with the ability to engage senior stakeholders.
• A strategic mindset with the confidence to challenge, innovate, and inspire change.

Additional Information

About Southwark Council

At Southwark we are committed to making our borough just and fair and are taking positive action to tackle inequalities. Our residents and communities are our greatest asset and the passion we have for Southwark is shared by millions of Londoners who enjoy our outstanding cultural offer, use our hospitals and attend our universities.

Benefits and more information:

Salary Range: £59,526 - £74,040

JNC Benefit: £2724

Application Closing Date: 11:59pm on 30 November 2025.

Interview Date: W/C 8th December 2025.

We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities.

This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together initiative.

We particularly welcome applications from members of the black, Asian, and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:

• Members of the Armed Forces and veterans.
• Are currently in care or have previously been in care.
• If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role, in which case we will move the key dates for the process. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Attachments

• Job Description & Person Specification