Finance Officer

Job summary

We are MHCLG

Are you looking to start your career in finance?

We have exciting opportunities within the Finance Shared Services Division (FSSD), supporting the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and three of its Arm's Length Bodies: the Planning Inspectorate, the Valuation Tribunal Service, and the Regulator of Social Housing.

FSSD provides end-to-end finance transaction processing and support to approximately 2,500 users. As a Finance Officer, you'll be part of a team delivering a wide range of finance services, ensuring processes are completed accurately, efficiently, and in line with agreed service levels.

We are recruiting for up to threeroles across two teams:

1. Operational Finance Team
2. Finance Operations Integrity and Master Data Team

This is a great opportunity to develop your finance skills, gain valuable experience, and contribute to the delivery of high-quality finance services across the organisation.

Job description

What you'll be doing

As a Finance Officer, you will support the delivery of high-quality finance services, ensuring transactions are processed accurately, efficiently, and in line with financial controls and service standards.

Operational Finance Team

In this team, you will be responsible for:

• Creating and processing payment files.
• Managing cash and banking activities.
• Posting receipts and supporting Accounts Receivable processes.
• Processing supplier invoices.
• Amending Purchase Orders and monitoring goods receipting activities.
• Supporting Accounts Payable operations and ensuring transactions are completed accurately and on time.

Finance Operations Integrity and Master Data Team

In this team, you will be responsible for:

• Managing debt recovery activities and liaising with customers regarding outstanding balances.
• Creating and maintaining finance master data records.
• Supporting month-end and year-end processes, budgeting activities, and financial controls.
• Assisting with VAT returns and compliance monitoring.
• Maintaining fixed asset records and providing wider finance support.

Responsibilities Across Both Teams

Whichever team you join, you will:

• Accurately record and process financial transactions, ensuring compliance with financial policies, controls, and procedures.
• Maintain clear and accurate audit trails to safeguard public funds.
• Monitor shared team inboxes, responding to queries promptly and escalating issues where required.
• Build effective relationships with customers and stakeholders to resolve enquiries and provide excellent service.
• Provide guidance and support to SAP finance system users.
• Work closely with colleagues to prioritise workloads, share knowledge, and ensure team objectives are achieved.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of finance processes and service delivery.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

To be successful in this role, you will demonstrate:

• Eligibility to obtain Security Check (SC) clearance. Due to the nature of this role, the successful candidate will be required to undergo SC clearance. Please ensure you meet the eligibility requirements before applying.
• Experience working in a finance environment, with strong IT skills and the ability to manage and organise workloads effectively.
• Flexibility and adaptability, with the ability to respond positively to changing priorities and business needs.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build effective working relationships and engage confidently with stakeholders both face-to-face and remotely.
• The ability to work under pressure, prioritise competing demands, and deliver high-quality work to tight deadlines.
• A collaborative approach to teamwork, with experience of building and maintaining positive working relationships across teams and supporting shared objectives.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £31,402, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government contributes £9,097 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

• At MHCLG we offer many benefits that range from tailored career pathways and flexible working to MyLifestyle Staff Benefits Scheme, Childcare Vouchers, and Cycle to Work Schemes. For more information, please click here.

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

Application and Selection

The application process will be split into 2 stages, testing the following Success Profiles:

Ability, Experience , Technical

Please ensure your CV does not contain any personally identifiable information.

Note: We do not consider direct CV applications. All applications must be submitted via the provided application link.

Important: Your CV and Cover Letter must be merged into a single document before uploading.

Stage 1: Sift (CV & Cover Letter)

Experience:

To apply, please submit:

An up-to-date CV.
A covering letter of no more than 1,000 words.

Your covering letter should explain:

Why you are interested in the role.
How your skills, knowledge, and experience meet the essential criteria outlined in the job advert.

Please ensure your covering letter provides clear examples that demonstrate your suitability for the role and addresses the essential criteria in sufficient detail.

If you run into any technical problems when applying through Be Applied (for example, trouble logging in or submitting your application), their support team can help. Please contact them at hello@beapplied.com.

Stage 2: Interview

• Ability: Maths questions will be asked as part of the interview.

• Experience: Experience questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job description.

• Technical: Technical questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job description.

Sift and Interview Dates

Sifting is envisaged to take place the week commencing 05/010.

Interviews are envisaged to take place the week commencing 19/10 and are currently being held face to face in either Hemel Hempstead or Manchester.

Disability Confident Scheme (DCS)

We are a Disability Confident employer.

We apply a fair and proportionate interview process for all candidates. In line with our commitment to the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS), we aim to progress candidates who apply under the Disability Confident Scheme and meet the required minimum selection criteria.

However, where high application volumes are received, progression to interview may be limited to those who best meet the role criteria. In these circumstances, the benchmark required to proceed to interview may be raised for all candidates.

How We Recruit

Find out more about our recruitment processes here.

• Applying

• Sifting

• Interview

• Interview Results & Feedback

• Reserve List

• Near Miss

• Civil Service Grades

• We are a DCS, RIS & GPTWV employer

• Reasonable Adjustments

How to Apply

Find out everything you need to know before applying here.

You must review the following information from the MHCLG Career's Site before submitting your application. This step is essential to ensure your eligibility for the role and that your application is completed correctly.

• Security Clearance Requirements

• Civil Service Nationality Requirements

• Right to Work

• Civil Service Code and Recruitment Principles

• CV Declaration

• Sponsorships

• Salary and Grade

• Existing Civil Servants

• Conflict of Interest

• Location and Flexible Working

• Internal Fraud Database

• Appeals and Complaints

• Fixed Term Appointments for:

• External Candidates

• Existing Civil Servants (Including Loans)

• Secondments

• MHCLG employees

Security Clearance Requirements

National Office: + SC

London Office: +SC

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).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

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 : Stephanie Lockhart
• Email : Stephanie.Lockhart@communities.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : recruitment@communities.gov.uk

Further information

If you are unsure about any part of the process or require additional information about the post to enable you to progress your application, you should speak to the Resourcing team - recruitment@communities.gov.uk. Candidates can appeal at any stage of the recruitment process if they believe there has been:

a procedural irregularity

an infringement of the Civil Service equal opportunities policy

exceptional circumstances which were not notified to the interview panel which might have affected performance on the day.

It is important to note that these are appeals about the process not the decision. In the first instance, an appeal should be directed to the MHCLG Resourcing Hub at recruitment@communities.gov.uk.

If the MHCLG Resourcing Hub is unable to satisfactorily resolve your complaint, you may contact put your complaint in writing to the Civil Service Commission, Room G8,1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ or by email to: info@csc.gov.uk