Rutherford Cross is delighted to be working with Paths For All on a retained basis to appoint a Finance & Corporate Services Manager.

Paths For All is a registered charity, with the aim of significantly increasing the number of people who choose to walk in Scotland - whether that's leisure walking or active-choice walking to work, school or shops. The organisation is seeking to create a happier, healthier Scotland, where increased physical activity improves quality of life and wellbeing for all. They work to develop more opportunities and better environments not just for walking, but also for cycling and other activities, to help make Scotland a more active, more prosperous, greener country.

Paths For All was founded as a Scottish charity in 1996 and forms a partnership with 28 national organisations who share their vision for a happier, healthier Scotland. Its core funding comes from the Scottish Government with additional support from The Life Changes Trust, Macmillan Cancer Support and Scottish National Heritage .

Paths For All is looking to recruit a capable and committed Finance & Corporate Services Manager to run the charity’s finance function day to day, and manage a small corporate services team. This is a newly created position The organisation’s accounts have to date been prepared by an external accountancy firm, however this will be brought in-house, in order to gain more control of the charity’s finances and to support key decision-making. The post-holder will be responsible for producing reports for the chief officer and board of directors.

The organisation represents an excellent opportunity for a motivated accountant who wants to work in an organisation focused on making a positive contribution to society. The employees at Paths For All are passionate about their cause, creating a positive working environment. Paths For All’s office is set in an idyllic location and there is also scope for flexible and home-working.

This is an exceptional opportunity to join an established charity and contribute to its future success by playing a key role in its journey.

The Finance and Corporate Services Manager position requires an accountant who comes with experience of supervising team members, the ability to manage corporate services functions and enthusiasm for delivering ongoing service improvements . A background in a the thirdsector would be useful, but more important is that the individual is capable of operating effectively on their own initiative, taking ownership of the organisation’s accounts and providing value add finance information to support planning and decision-making.

It is critical that the Finance and Corporate Services Manager ensures the effective operation of financial procedures and provides effective control and reporting for income, banking and purchasing. The successful candidate will be responsible for the day to day operation of the organisation’s corporate services function. The post-holder will support the administration of the board and board subgroups, as well as the development and management of team members.

A summary of the key candidate requirements are as follows:

• Part qualified (AAT, ACCA, CIMA) or qualified by experience

• Experience of managing and developing a small team

• Successful track record of providing management accounting/ financial management support within a small-medium organisation

• Advanced working knowledge of and experience of implementing and ensuring adherence to financial controls and procedures

• Experience of designing and producing financial reports and variance/exception analysis

• Excellent written communication and oral presentation skills

• Advanced working knowledge of Sage Line 50 (or similar accounting software), including the ability to extract and manipulate data from SAGE within Excel and familiarity with SAGE integrated reporting functions

The Finance & Corporate Services Manager will be a key member of the organisation.

The main duties and responsibilities will involve:

• Working closely with the Business Manager and Senior Development Officers, to ensure the smooth operation and control of all financial matters and the implementation of financial policies and procedures

• To prepare quarterly management accounts for the Chief Officer, Business Manager and Senior Management Team

• To liaise with PFA’s external bookkeeping and accountancy services as necessary on operational matters

• To line manage and support the Corporate Services team which includes a Grants Officer, HR Officer and Administrator

• To oversee the day to day delivery of the Corporate Services team’s responsibilities relating to provision of administrative services to the Board, Chief Officer and project teams as well as office administration, finance, IT, telecommunications, HR, databases and grants administration

• To lead on Paths for All’s relationships with external suppliers and service contracts and ensure that these provide best value

• Working closely with the Business Manager, external accountancy service and HR Officer, to oversee the administration of payroll and pensions, PAYE, VAT and banking

• To assist the Chief Officer and Business Manager with financial year end preparation and provision of information for audit

• To ensure PFA’s compliance with Data Protection statutory requirements across the post’s operational remit

• To support the HR Officer to ensure that policies and procedures are up to date, informed by current best practice and legislation and are implemented consistently across PFA

• To ensure the provision of an effective administration service to the Board and Board sub-group meetings

• To identify and deliver improvements to systems and services across the Corporate Services remit

• To foster a supportive service culture within the Corporate Services team

• To undertake any other duties appropriate to the post and in accordance with the needs of Paths for All

On offer:

Basic Salary:                               £30,000

Pension:                                     Employee contribution 6%, employer contribution 10%

Working hours:                            9am-5pm (with a flexi-time policy in place)

Flexible working policy:                 Paths for All has a Flexible Working Policy through which all staff can be considered for a range of flexible working opportunities, including working from home

Holiday Entitlement:                    25 days paid holiday plus 11 statutory holidays