URGENT TEMPORARY ROLE: Assistant Accountant – Croydon

Contract: Temporary (Immediate Start)Location: CroydonHours: Full-timeRate: £17 to £19 per hour

A thriving school in Croydon urgently requires an experienced Assistant Accountant to provide immediate financial leadership and stability. This is a fast-paced temporary assignment where you will play a key role in ensuring robust financial management, accurate reporting, and strong compliance across the organisation.

About the Role

You will be responsible for overseeing day-to-day and strategic financial operations, supporting senior leaders with clear financial insight, and ensuring the school maintains the highest standards of financial compliance. This role requires an experienced professional who can hit the ground running, work proactively, and communicate effectively with both finance and non-finance colleagues.

 Key Responsibilities

• Deliver strong financial leadership across the school and its extended services, ensuring compliance with the Academies Trust Handbook.
• Promote best practice in financial management throughout the Trust.
• Lead the timely preparation and submission of monthly financial reports for the CFOO.
• Oversee the production of essential management accounts, including variance-explained Income & Expenditure statements, Balance Sheets, Cash Flow reports, and Capital Expenditure summaries.
• Work collaboratively with non-finance teams to support informed decision-making and build financial understanding across the school.
• Maintain robust financial systems and effective internal controls.
• Act as the primary link between the school and external partners such as internal scrutiny teams and external auditors.
• Provide accurate data for statutory submissions, including VAT returns.
• Complete financial reports and returns required by external bodies and regulatory agencies.
• Support project-based work, including developing and reviewing financial policies and procedures.
• Produce and interpret ICFP (Integrated Curriculum and Financial Planning) data to support effective budget planning.
• Provide line-management support, coaching, and performance reviews for members of the central finance team.
• Travel to Trust sites when required.
• Attend meetings internally and externally, representing the finance function professionally.

 Ideal Candidate Profile

• Previous experience within a school, academy, or multi-academy trust finance setting.
• Strong knowledge of education sector finance regulations and reporting requirements.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• High level of accuracy, organisation, and ability to work under pressure.
• Confident user of finance systems and Excel.
• Able to start immediately.