Finance Assistant (Childrens Payments Team)

About the role

Finance Assistant (Childrens Payments Team)

Fixed Term, Full Time

£25,959 per annum

Location: Chelmsford

Please note that this is a Fixed Term Contract / Secondment opportunity for a period of 12 months.

This position has been classed as an anywhere worker role but has an expectation that the successful candidate will attend the office, in Chelmsford, 2-3 day per month, with the remaining time allowing for remote working if desired.

The Opportunity

Working within the Childrens Payments Team to administer payment of placements on the payments system to ensure the correctness of assigned care types and costings, facilitating a clear auditable process and prompt payment of fees and allowances.

Transactional Services aims to provide a comprehensive financial transactional and support service, maximising new and innovative technology to provide excellent customer service using a multi skilled workforce.

The Finance Assistant supports the Purchase to Pay (P2P) and Income teams to deliver the business plan for financial transactions. With a working knowledge of Financial processes and systems across P2P and Income, ensuring data or income is input accurately, timely and within policy and legislation standards.

Experienced in working as a team member across a flexible and multi skilled workforce, delivering excellent customer service to a variety of Functions by maintaining financial transactions and data within local systems. Recognising and supporting changes in technology to streamline the customer experience.

Accountabilities

Contributes to the delivery of the business plan for financial transactions, in support of the wider organisational vision.

Responsible for processing and managing financial transactions related to Childrens Social Care, following defined business processes, inputting and interpreting data to ensure quality, consistency, accuracy, timeliness and high performance.

Effective in managing queries and disputes to ensure effective resolutions.

Work towards effectively building key stakeholder relationships and effectively managing conversations to resolve Care package issues.

Responsible for delivering all activities to meet defined deadlines, proactively reporting any risks or issues for early resolution.

Provides support and guidance to internal and external customers in a professional manner, in line with Financial processes, ensuring that policy and legislation are met.
Carries out basic reporting for Transactional Services and external customers, which contributes to the management of organisational performance, maximises income and ensures compliance with Financial Regulations and ECC Policies.
Work flexibly and collaboratively across Transactional Services to deliver finance support.
Recommend process improvements and redesign to achieve best practice and organisational efficiency.
Contributes to maintaining currency on legislation changes and translating these into local policy and procedure, to identify and review potential changes in technology.

The Experience You Will Bring

Essential:

Educated to RQF Level 2 (GCSE) must include English and Mathematics, or equivalent by experience.
Some knowledge of P2P/Income systems and demonstrable accounts payable, accounts receivable, purchase to pay and e-invoicing experience would be desirable.
Good interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written.
Level of good competency using Microsoft office packages including, Outlook, Word and Excel.

Desirable:

Aptitude and willingness to work flexibly in multi skilled Operational Teams.
Good attention to detail.
Ability to interpret varied information for supporting continuous improvements in service delivery.
Ability to work effectively within a team whilst remaining focussed and disciplined when working from home.
Ability to build effective working relationships with internal and external customers, suppliers and partners.

To read more about us please visit: Corporate Services

Why Essex?

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you.

In March 2026, the Government announced that councils in Greater Essex will be reorganised into five new unitary authorities from April 2028. In addition to this, Greater Essex has been accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our careers site.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk

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