Finance Business Partner - HMPPS Yorkshire Area (Ref: 17010)

Job summary

Please refer to Job Description

Job description

Job Title/ Position Finance Business Partner

Grade SEO

Number of Vacancies 2

Business Group Chief Operating Officer, MoJ

Directorate Finance Business Partnering

Location Two posts covering the Yorkshire Prison Group area and the Yorkshire and the Humber Probation area

Base Location – Yorkshire

MoJ HQ Building

5 Wellington Place Leeds

LS1 4AP

Optional alternative base locations at,

Beverley Magistrates Court HU17 9EJ

Hull Combined Court HU1 2EZ

York Justice Satellite Office YO1 9WL

Travel Required to the following prisons in Yorkshire

HMP Hatfield DN7 6EL

HMP Hull HU9 5LS

HMP Humber HU15 2JZ

HMP Leeds LS12 2TJ

HMP Lindholme DN7 6EE

HMP Moorland DN7 6BW

HMP Wealstun LS23 7AZ

Travel may be required to Probation Offices across Yorkshire and the Humber. These are located in,

Barnsley, Bradford, Doncaster, Hull, Kirklees, Leeds, North Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire, Rotherham, Sheffield, Wakefield and York

Occasional (bi-monthly / quarterly) travel may be required to MoJ HQ in London (currently Petty France and Canary Wharf)

Hours 37

Post Type Permanent

Role Type/ Team Finance

Overview

His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) is an Executive Agency of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). MoJ is responsible for everything that goes into running the UK’s criminal and civil justice systems, creating the foundations for a safe, fair and prosperous society. We are one of the largest government departments with over 88,000 staff based across England and Wales. We are responsible for 500 courts and tribunals, 122 prisons, the policies underpinning the system and much more.

The MoJ Finance Function is a high performing group with a commitment to provide the best possible information and advice to our business colleagues. This role sits in the HMPPS Finance Business Partnering Team and will provide direct Finance Business Partner support to prisons and probation in the regions along with working flexibly to support the Lead Finance Business Partner. It’s a fascinating and varied business area to support and will give the postholder insight into the day to day running of prison and probation services and their aims and objectives.

Role Summary

This role offers the opportunity to work at the heart of front‑line prison and probation operations, partnering directly with governors and senior operational leaders. You will see first‑hand how financial decisions affect safety, rehabilitation, and service delivery, and you will play a critical role in shaping those decisions.

Finance Business Partnering SEOs are responsible for building strong relationships with their stakeholders, understanding the business, and explaining financial information for budget holders in an understandable manner.

As a Finance Business Partner, you will be a key member of the finance function, working with other members of the team, wider MoJ Finance colleagues and key stakeholders from the business areas we support.

Post locations are flexible within the Yorkshire region. Regularly visiting sites is a core part of the role and provides valuable insight into how prisons and probation operate day to day. This hands-on exposure enables you to build strong relationships and provide financial support that is grounded in operational reality.

Successful candidates will be allocated a base location within the region (likely to be an MoJ HQ, JCC, or JSO) and the expectation is that candidates will fund travel costs to and from that base location.

You will support Senior operational managers and their teams as well as working flexibly across the region to support the Strategic Finance Lead as required. Postcodes have been included for your reference and location will be discussed at interview.

Role Responsibilities Overview

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities:

• Budget management – Influencing how public money is used in prisons and probation settings by working with budget holders to develop robust plans and monitoring delivery
• Risks and issues – identify and monitor budget risks and opportunities, supporting stakeholders to develop mitigating actions
• Reporting – translate financial information to non-finance stakeholders, providing the narrative behind the numbers to influence decision making
• Governance – understand and advise on governance and compliance issues

Role Responsibilities/Tasks Detail

• Developing an understanding of the business, its stakeholders, and deliverables
• Building and maintaining relationships with customer budget holders
• Providing advice on compliance with policy, standards, accountabilities, and controls
• Translating, owning, and adding insight to financial data to provide clear information and evidence to support business activities and requirements
• Providing guidance at appropriate level budget holder meetings and boards
• Reviewing and providing input to business cases/ strategic documentation
• Identifying and applying relevant costs, benefits, and investment appraisal techniques
• Providing relevant coaching and training to the business
• Providing ad-hoc analysis and presentations to drive and support business decisions, such as efficiency and cost reduction options, using all available data and analytics tools

Essential Role Requirements

• Candidates should have relevant, practical finance experience and the ability to provide clear financial advice and constructive challenge to senior colleagues (Communicating and influencing)
• Possesses emotional intelligence and can think empathetically, considering the strategic goals of others (Working Together)
• Fosters a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration between the business, finance, and other corporate services (Working Together)
• Can tailor their communication style to a range of audiences, including internal and external stakeholders (Communicating and Influencing)
• Uses facts and evidence to aid negotiation and influencing (Communicating and Influencing)
• Helps others to understand the interdependencies between business and finance (Working Together, Communicating and Influencing)
• Proactive and passionate, inspiring others to continuously improve (Changing and Improving)
• Ability to "speak the language" of finance to business, and vice versa, acting as the critical translator between the two (Communicating and Influencing; Managing a Quality Service)

Qualification

• Qualified with CCAB, CIMA or equivalent, or
• Part qualified (actively working towards full qualification)

Application Process

You will be assessed using Success Profiles - GOV.UK. Success Profiles enable a fairer and more inclusive method of recruitment by enabling us to assess the range of experiences, abilities, strengths, behaviours, and technical/professional skills required for different roles. This flexible approach to recruitment focuses more on finding the right candidate for the specific role.

Sift

Behaviours – Please provide examples of how you have met each of the behaviours below:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Changing and improving

We will also assess a candidate’s experience and ability based on the skills required as set out below through:

• A Statement of Suitability is required consisting of a maximum of 750 words
• CV

Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the essential role requirements within the application behaviour responses, statement of suitability and CV.

If we receive a large number of applications, we will carry out an initial sift on the lead criteria of Communicating and Influencing. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.

Interview

Candidates who are successful following the sift process will be invited to a face-to-face interview in Leeds, where the behavioural elements and strengths will be tested further alongside other elements of the post. Further details will be provided to shortlisted candidates in advance of the interviews.

Behaviours –

• Communicating and influencing
• Working together
• Managing a quality service
• Changing and improving

Technical test on the day – the details of which will be provided on the day.

You will also be assessed on strengths, these are not shared in advance of interview.

Specialist Allowances

In addition to salary, a pensionable, non-contractual specialist allowance may be applicable if you are fully qualified with CCAB, CIMA or equivalent. Specialist allowances apply to certain roles only, are non-transferable to other roles and are subject to annual review.

Travel Requirements

Guidance on office attendance remains that civil servants are expected to spend 60% of their time in local office/Government building. Successful candidates will be allocated a base location within the Yorkshire region which will be one of the locations listed above. The role holder will be required to regularly visit prisons and probation offices across the region to meet with stakeholders and attend meetings. These sites are located in the Yorkshire region (see postcodes above). National travel will be required occasionally.

The expectation is that candidates will fund travel costs to and from their base location. If required to attend a location other than their base location, post-holders may be entitled to claim some or all of any extra expense (beyond the usual base location travel costs) in line with the T&S policy.

DROP IN SESSION:

To help us bring these roles to life, we are holding online information sessions where you can hear us talk about the interesting and varied elements of the roles and how we help support our stakeholders. To register for a session, contact Simon. Bowen1@justice.gov.uk.

For further information please feel free to contact

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Qualifications

Please answer 'yes' to meeting the qualification requirement if you have one of the below criteria -

1) Qualified with CCAB, CIMA or equivalent, or
2)Part qualified (actively working towards full qualification)

Please upload a document which evidences the above essential qualification requirement.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service
• Changing and Improving

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £42,914, Ministry of Justice contributes £12,432 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Access to learning and development
• A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options to enhance your work life balance
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• Annual Leave
• Public Holidays
• Season Ticket Advance

For more information about the recruitment process, benefits and allowances and answers to general queries, please click the below link which will direct you to our Candidate Information Page.

Link: https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk
• Telephone : 0345 241 5359

Recruitment team

• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitm…

https://jobs.justice.gov.uk/careers/JobDetail/17010?entityId=17010