Senior Income Accountant

Job responsibilities

KEY RESULT AREAS

Financial Reporting

• Calculate, assess, review and report to both the Head of Income and Planning (HoIP) and Associate Director of Finance (ADoF) the impact of monthly changes to income for the Trust.
• Support year-end process for patient related and central income including preparation of high-quality working papers and liaison with External Audit.
• Support all Divisions within the Trust with regards to patient level income, providing monthly analysis against plan for income.
• Provide complex financial analysis for patient level income including forecasting and sensitivity analysis, in year contract negotiations, business cases and in year service and tariff developments.
• Communicate complex finance issues to multi-disciplinary groups of staff and stakeholders communicating effectively the results of NHSPS and the impact to Managers and Clinicians across the Trust. This will involve presenting complex finance information to non-financial people.
• Responsible for the development, production and maintenance of the patient level income reports for internal and external reporting, ensuring compliance within the statutory and mandatory deadlines. This will include Finance, Infrastructure and Transformation Committee, Board and Divisional reporting. Provide detailed variance analysis to enable the Divisions to deliver their financial plan and track where activity and income has deviated from planned levels.
• Ensure income is accurate in both the general ledger and the contract monitoring system.
• Attending and contributing to the monthly pre performance meetings providing detailed analysis of the patient level income position. Work with senior managers within the Divisions to define their income reporting requirements and work with other colleagues to deliver appropriate solutions to those requirements.
• Work with the Financial Accounting team as required ensuring income is accurately reflected and forecast to enable effective management of cash and working balances including cash flow forecasting.
• Undertake the production of any ad-hoc information requests as appropriate.
• Contribute where required in the production of service line reporting with regards to patient level and central income.

Financial Planning

• Support the HoIP and Head of Contracts (HoC) in the annual agreement, negotiation and communication of baseline contract plans with all the Trusts commissioners.
• Support the HoIP and HoC in negotiations with Commissioners and other external bodies with regards to in year contract negotiations, providing detailed highly complex financial modelling and analysis to enable discussions to be held.
• Lead on ensuring all central income budgets are matched with expenditure budgets and communicating to both Divisions and Financial Management any expenditure implications to ensure appropriate expenditure budgets are set.
• Lead on ensuring all pass through income budgets are matched with expenditure budgets and communicating to both Divisions and Financial Management any expenditure implications to ensure appropriate expenditure budgets are set.
• Support in the assessment of internal / external business cases on current and future income using complex data that may not be complete and requires interpretation and high level of analytical skills to translate into meaningful information.
• Support the HoIP to ensure that mandatory financial returns are prepared in line with NHSE guidance and in accordance with specified submission timetables.

SLA Management

• Work with the HoIP and HoC to review and agree contract variations and ensure they are recognised within the financial position and invoiced correctly. Provide complex financial analysis where required to enable contract variations to be agreed.

Technical

• Be required to create and manipulate complicated spreadsheets from a variety of highly complex datasets, therefore requiring advanced Excel skills.
• Have a detailed working knowledge of the TM1 and reporting ensuring a close working with BI. Lead on reconciliation of TM1 to the General Ledger.
• Maintain an in-depth knowledge of NHSPS guidance and developments the postholder is required to interpret national policy working with the Contracting and BI Teams to provide advice to Finance staff, Divisional Managers and Trust Board on the implications of any changes.
• Provide monthly expert and complex financial advice and training in regard to NHSPS and income to other finance staff and non-financial colleagues in Divisions. Deliver training where required.
• Assist on the delivery of the statutory annual accounts and monitoring information relevant to the income section of the annual accounts. Work closely with internal and external auditors to provide all relevant supporting documentation with regards to income managed by this post

Communications and Relationships

• This post requires exceptional and clear communication with a large range of stakeholders, both internal and external, including staff across the organisation and from different disciplines, Senior Management and Directors, Audit, ICBs, other Trusts, NHS England and other bodies. Ensure effective working relationships are developed and maintained, helping to raise the profile of the department.
• Develop relationships with commissioners and system partners by fostering partnerships based on mutual trust and performance.
• Cultivate a customer focused culture within the Income team

FinancialGovernance

• Plan, implement, monitor and review the development of financial systems used for income and contracting ensuring they deliver value for money, efficiency and quality.
• Ensure internal and external audit reports are responded to in a timely manner.
• Promote all matters of corporate governance (including development and improvement of arrangements) throughout the Trust.
• Ensure the Directorates policies, procedures and Trusts Standing Financial Instructions are strictly adhered to.
• Contribute to the development of systems, control processes and risk management that ensure full compliance with internal and external governance and best practice requirements relating to contracting, commissioning, financial projects and costing processes.

Policy & Service Development

• Responsible for developing and maintaining policies and procedures associated with Financial Management.
• Maintain a good knowledge of emerging policies from the Department of Health.
• Interpret national standards and guidance and prepare briefing notes as required.
• Research and identify relevant best practices. Assist in the implementation of best practice.

Information Management

• Provide and receive highly complex, sensitive and contentious information, including presenting information about service integration and dependencies involving a wide range of stakeholders in formal settings.
• Manage the archiving, storage and retrieval of financial information in line with statutory requirements and Trust policies.
• Provide ongoing enhancements to current management information and reporting to enhance decision making.

Professional Leadership & Management Responsibilities

• Responsible for prioritising own work and that of members of staff designated to report to this post. This would include: line managing including appraisals; training and development; sickness absence; disciplinary matters; recruitment and selection decisions; personal and career development and workload allocations.
• To provide timely expert support, advice and leadership to business groups and departments on matters and proposals relating to patient level income.
• Responsible for ensuring that all Trust Senior Managers with financial responsibilities are guided and supported at all times, when carrying out their financial responsibilities.
• Lead on education and learning where required, which equips managerial and clinical managers with the necessary knowledge to develop and deliver appropriate service plans.
• Work with the Associate Director of Finance to agree Personal Objectives, and a Personal Development Plan and keep up to date professionally through mandatory continuing professional development.
• Work with the Associate Director of Finance to develop the Finance departments effectiveness in contributing to outstanding standards and performance in the Trusts overall management.
• To be aware of, comment on and actively participate in changes on policies, procedures or service developments.
• To embrace and support line management and the department in making service improvements effective within the workplace.
• Support new or less experienced work colleagues to adapt to the workplace.
• Act as nominated deputy for the Associate Director of Finance in their absence with regards to income related meetings and deliverables.

OTHER

• This is a very senior position with responsibility for both strategic and operational functions. The post holder operates with a considerable degree of autonomy and decision making capability within the strategic direction set by the Board

Qualifications and Training

Essential

• CCAB/ CIMA Qualified
• Master degree or equivalent experience
• Evidence of continued professional development to enhance core accounting knowledge and non financial skills (such as management development)

Experience

Essential

• Experience working in a large complex organisation including working with non finance colleagues in clinical and corporate disciplines
• Working knowledge and understanding of the NHS Payment Scheme
• Possess an understanding of financial systems and to be able to extract, interpret, manipulate and present information in a meaningful way.
• Experience contributing to multi-disciplinary teams
• Experience in analysing and interpreting highly complex financial and other data.
• Financial management experience including budgetary control, financial planning and forecasting in the NHS or an equivalent large and complex organisation
• Experience in interpreting national guidance and implementing locally

Desirable

• Staff management experience

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Excellent IT skills including the use of complex spreadsheets and databases
• Able to analyse highly complex issues involving material drawn from various sources, including financial and non-financial data, sometimes conflicting
• Ability to draft concise reports and present clear verbal briefings on complex financial and non financial data and issues
• Knowledge of statutory accounts procedures and guidelines
• Outstanding communication skills with ability to communicate with staff at all levels in the organisation including verbal, written and via the use of high level presentation tools

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Focused
• No problem working under pressure
• Organised
• Relationship builder and approachable
• Self motivated, tenacious and able to work on own initiative
• Able to manage conflict in an open manner

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Understanding of Trust standing orders, standing financial instructions, scheme of delegation and financial procedur
• Ability to relate and work effectively with all levels of staff (finance and non finance) and establish a network of contacts inside and outside the Trust
• Ability to challenge colleagues and senior staff to contribute to the setting of priorities
• Time management skills including the ability to balance priorities working within a matrix structure

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).