Senior/ Principal Accountant (Technical)

East Staffordshire Borough Council; Burton upon Trent; Hybrid; GBP 46,000 - 56,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave up to 33 days

Flexi days scheme

Hybrid working

Local government pension scheme

Professional subscriptions

Job summary

East Staffordshire Borough Council is seeking a Senior/ Principal Accountant – Technical to oversee the core financial management system (Unit 4 Cloud ERP) and lead key financial operations.

The role includes management of income, banking, insurance and Treasury activities, with line management of two team members. The council offers a competitive salary (£45,529 to £56,293 per annum) and a range of benefits, including flexible/hybrid working and generous leave.

Responsibilities

• Oversee maintenance, control and integrity of the Council’s core financial management system (Unit 4 Cloud ERP).
• Lead day-to-day financial operations including income management, banking and insurance, and Treasury Management.

Tools

Unit 4 Cloud ERP

Job description

Senior/ Principal Accountant (Technical)

£45,529 to £56,293 per annum (Career Graded with restriction at SCP 37)

Situated at the heart of the East Midlands, with excellent transport links, East Staffordshire continues to change and is one of the fastest growing areas in the Midlands, with significant new housing growth and regeneration – which incorporates our transformational Local Regeneration Fund programme. Post Covid and through the cost of living crisis, the council has focussed on serving our communities, investment, innovation and continuing to deliver excellent services to our residents whilst responding positively to the budgetary challenges that the sector faces.

This focus has ensured that the council is in a strong position financially, with a balanced MTFS, and we are now seeking to appoint to a key Senior/ Principal Accountant post within the finance team who will help to ensure that the council’s long-term financial health and sustainability is maintained.

The 'Senior/ Principal Accountant – Technical' post is responsible for overseeing the maintenance, control and overall integrity of the Council’s core financial management system (Unit 4 Cloud ERP), leading in relation to day to day financial operations of income management, banking and insurance, as well as leading on the provision of Treasury Management activities for the Council. The role also includes line management responsibility for two team members.

We appreciate that this is a varied role, and with that in mind would welcome applications from individuals who may not have experience in all areas of the role (e.g. those who have financial systems knowledge but not treasury and banking, or those who have treasury and banking knowledge but not financial systems). In these instances, tailored support would then be put in place for the successful candidate to help them to successfully develop their skills and knowledge in all areas of the role.

In addition to the excellent salary, we also provide an attractive employment package that includes:

• A generous annual leave entitlement of up to33 days (after 5 years continuous local government service) plus public holidays, an extra statutory day and two concessionary days – which are used to provide for a closedown between Christmas and New Year,
• A flexible working scheme that allows for up to a further 16 flexi days leave per year,
• Hybrid working opportunities that support an optimum work life balance arrangement,
• Access to the local government pension scheme, and
• Payment of professional subscriptions

The Council is actively building diverse teams and welcomes applications from everyone, including people of different age, sex, gender, ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation. ESBC is a Disability Confident Leader.

Important Notes for Candidates:

Visa Sponsorship

As a smaller local authority, we do not currently hold a sponsorship licence. Therefore, we are unable to issue Certificates of Sponsorship. All applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of application as we are unable to support visa sponsorship.

Personal Relationships

A candidate for any appointment with East Staffordshire Borough Council who know of any family or close personal relationship with any Member or Officer, must disclose that relationship when completing an application form for employment.

Closing Date Sunday 29 November 2026.

Interviews likely to be held from week commencing 14 December 2026.

Full details of the job role are detailed in the Job Description and Person Specification.

Attached documents

FI0702 Senior - Principal Accountant (Technical) Nov26 (2).docx