Finance Officer

Finance Officer Location: West Sussex Salary: £16,317 - £17,715 per annum (22 hours per week) | Equivalent to £30,024 - £32,597 FTE Contract: Permanent Hours: 22 hours per week (3 days per week) Working Pattern: Term-time plus additional weeks (41 weeks per year) The Opportunity An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Finance Officer to join a well-established organisation in West Sussex. This role is ideal for someone with strong finance administration experience who enjoys a varied position encompassing transactional finance, reconciliations, budget monitoring, and financial reporting support. Working closely with the Finance Manager, you will play a key role in ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of the finance function, maintaining accurate financial records and supporting robust financial controls across the organisation. Key Responsibilities • Manage accounts payable and accounts receivable processes • Process purchase orders and supplier invoices • Perform regular bank and petty cash reconciliations • Maintain accurate financial records and ledgers • Monitor expenditure against budgets and report on variances • Support monthly cashflow forecasting activities • Assist with month-end and year-end financial processes • Ensure VAT is recorded accurately • Investigate and resolve invoice and payment discrepancies • Support procurement activities and supplier management • Ensure compliance with financial policies, procedures, and data protection requirements About You The successful candidate will have: • Experience working in a Finance Officer, Accounts Assistant, Finance Assistant, or similar finance role • Strong understanding of accounts payable, accounts receivable, and reconciliations • Experience monitoring budgets and financial performance • Excellent attention to detail and numerical accuracy • Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities • Good communication skills and the ability to liaise with both financial and non-financial stakeholders • Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including Pivot Tables and VLOOKUPs • Experience using financial accounting systems • A proactive and solutions-focused approach Desirable • AAT qualification or equivalent experience • Experience within the education, charity, or public sector • Knowledge of VAT and year-end finance processes What's on Offer? • Competitive salary • Generous pension scheme • Employee wellbeing support programme • Free parking • Access to on-site facilities • Ongoing training and professional development opportunities • Supportive and collaborative working environment