Finance Officer

Reporting to the Chief Finance Officer CRFCA (CFO), through the Assistant Director Finance and DRM Chief of Staff, this position is responsible for the effective and compliant management of finances and financially related matters concerning the CRFCA and DRM, in adherence to accounting practices and the relevant rules and regulations for the governance and use of public funds.

Principal Areas of Accountability:

• Providing financial management of the RFCA & DRM corporate budgets and assisting in maintaining a high standard of financial management, governance and propriety.



• Maintain the books of account of the Central and Resource Account.



• Maintaining the books of account of the DRM Account.



• Supporting the CRFCA Pensions Accountant to complete monthly payroll.



• Fulfilling statutory obligations, including HMRC returns and payments and pension responsibilities.



• Preparing the Resource Account, Central Account and DRM Account for Audit and assisting the AD FIN in the consolidation and audit of the accounts as part of the year end process.



• Preparing information for funding bids and reporting to stakeholders such as the Ministry of Defence.



• Assisting ADFIN and DRM COS in resource planning and the development of the annual budgets. Having specific responsibility of DRM, HQNC, Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC) and Wounded Injured & Sick Permanent Adaptations programme (WISPA) budgets.



• Managing RAFAC funding. In particular; Collating the budget requirement of the RFCAs for the year and the unspent balances (Receipts in Advance - RIA) brought forward to report a net Control Total (CT) to RAFAC and profile this for quarterly drawdown.
  
  Be computer literate on appointment and within three months have an understanding of the Association's business system (SYMPHONY) and practical use of its database Management Information System. Training will be provided.



• Be highly competent in the use of Microsoft Excel, Word, and other accounting applications, on appointment.



• Preferably be a part-qualified accountant, either with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) or the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) (candidates with strong experience and a minimum Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) qualification may also be considered).



• Have a strong background of accounting procedures and systems as a prerequisite.



• Have a thorough understanding of the finance function, systems and processes required for effective financial propriety.



• Have a good understanding of budgets, forecasting, annual accounts and payroll.



• Knowledge of Government Accounting, Managing Public Money, the Financial Reporting Manual and the Reserve and Cadets is preferable but not essential.



• Have the necessary communication and interpersonal skills required to interact with CRFCA, RFCA, & DRM staff, customers (primarily the Ministry of Defence - MoD) and suppliers.



• Have excellent time management skills and attention to detail.



• Should be experienced, honest, reliable and committed, with considerable initiative and the ability to learn quickly.
  
  The salary for the appointment is £38,540 (including London Weighting) per annum with the option to join the CRFCAs pension scheme. This is a Career Average Revalued Earnings scheme (CARE). The successful candidate will be entitled to 25 days' annual leave plus bank holidays. Annual leave entitlement increases by 1 day per year up to 30 days; those with 5 years' prior service with HM Forces/OGD will start with 30 days' entitlement. This is a HEO (C2) post.