Finance and Grants Officer

INTRODUCTION TO GIRLS NOT BRIDES

Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage is the only global organisation uniquely focused on creating and sustaining a worldwide movement to end child marriage and ensuring that this movement leads to tangible change for the girls at risk or affected by the practice. We are a network of over 1,400 civil society organisations in over 100 countries working in partnership to end child marriage.

Our vision is a world without child marriage where girls and women enjoy equal status with boys and men and are able to achieve their full potential in all aspects of their lives. Our vision challenges deeply embedded social norms that harm the lives of girls, women and their communities.

INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLE

Girls Not Brides is seeking a Finance and Grants Officer to join their team to provide finance and grant administrative support. This position will be a fixed term contract for 2 years.

The successful individual will work closely with the Operations and Finance Team as well as the rest of the team based globally. The Finance and Grants Officer also assists with the production of management information and provides key financial expertise to the organisation’s internal and external stakeholders. Working with the team, the role supports the day-to-day running of the finance department, as well as developing systems to drive efficiency, effectiveness, and a value for money culture.

We are looking for a passionate and talented finance professional based in the UK who is fluent in English and French. The ideal candidate would have worked in a similar setting and will have experience in the international charity sector.

Job location

London, UK (hybrid with up to three days on site per week).

Accountable to

Head of Finance

Salary range

£32,600 rising on an annual incremental basis. Girls Not Brides also offers a generous 10% pension.

Contract

This is a fixed term contract for 2 years. The successful candidate must have the right to work in the United Kingdom.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

General finance and accounts payable

Working closely with the Senior Officer for Finance and Grants and the Finance Officer:

• Review vendor and contractor invoices and matching with relevant agreements to make sure the right amounts are paid to the vendors and contracts.
• Verify documentation for payments and ensure that it complies with the procurement and finance policies before entering the system.
• Ensure data entry and posting of all income and expenditure transactions are reviewed and posted to the organisation financial software on a daily basis.
• Proactively support in resolving day-to-day invoice and payment queries.
• Ensure all activities related to monthly close/quarterly close and annual books close are performed in a timely manner and assist Head of Finance in books closure.
• Arrange and provide supporting documents to the auditors when necessary.
• Manage Girls Not Brides’ currency card processes and procedures, including the order, control and tracking of cards, cash top-ups, supporting card holders and maintaining the relationship with the card issuer.
• Manage the member debtor accounts, including the review and reconciliation of member expenditure reports, following up with members directly or through the relevant Girls Not Brides’ team, and escalating financial control or risk issues as appropriate.
• Advise and support staff on financial policies and procedures, including those relating to procurement, accounts payable, staff advances and credit card use.
• Assist in reviewing and reconciling reimbursement claims and credit card statements from team members in line with the internal policies.
• Assist in the reconciliation of receivable and payable ledgers with payments and receipts making sure accurate records are kept.
• Keeping track of advances paid to the staff and making sure all advances are cleared in a timely manner.
• Keeping track of petty cash balance in the system and making sure all cash transactions are recorded.

Finance and grants tasks assigned by Head of Finance

Working closely with the Senior Coordinator for Grants and the Senior Officer for Finance and Grants:

• Support with reviewing budget vs actuals expenditure report from restricted grants.
• Support and assist team members in preparing project, grants and events budgets, and reconciling expenditure.
• Support with the financial due diligence process of grant making with members in French.
• Support and assist with interim grant financial reports to the donors.
• Support and assist with accurate input of financial transactions and credit card transactions into the computerised accounting system (including ledger coding, posting and reconciliation).
• Adhere to internal financial controls and carry out a month end control procedure.
• Update and maintain donor information using the Salesforce database.
• Carry out any ad hoc projects as instructed by the Head of Finance.

Wider Organisational Responsibilities

• Commit to the mission and vision of Girls Not Brides, putting them at the forefront of all planning, work and actions.
• Uphold the values of Girls Not Brides in all areas of work and interactions with colleagues, member organisations, partners and other stakeholders.
• Comply with Girls Not Brides policies and processes, with particular note for safeguarding, ethical communications, the code of conduct and data protection.
• Ensure that internal databases and monitoring information are kept fully up to date.
• Commit to ongoing personal development and learning.
• Fulfil any other reasonable requests for the advancement of the Girls Not Brides mission.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential experience

• Degree in accounting or minimum part-qualified accountancy qualification with 5 years professional experience.
• Experience of working with accounts payable, receivable, fixed assets, reconciliations, book closure and annual/project audits.
• Knowledge accounting principles, Charity SORPs and IFRS/IAS.
• Basic understanding of budgets, accounting processes, and procedures.
• Experience of working with non-financial colleagues to improve their understanding of grant budgets.
• Demonstrated experience maintaining accurate financial records including data entry, extraction, analysis, monitoring, and compliance.
• Experience of working in a multi-currency environment.
• Experience in the use of computerised accounting systems (e.g. SUN, QuickBooks, Sage).
• Highly proficient in the latest versions of MS Word, MS Excel, and other office software.
• Good knowledge of using excel functions such as vlookup, pivot, sumifs, and data analysis.

Essential skills and knowledge

• Accuracy and an excellent eye for detail and numeracy skills.
• Ability to use discretion and maintain confidentiality.
• Ability to multi-task and prioritise.
• Well organised, proactive, and able to work independently when required.
• Good analytical ability and problem-solving skills.
• Good communication and listening skills.
• Self-motivated and enthusiastic.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet targets and deadlines.
• Able to work in a busy environment.
• Able to work effectively and willing to accept responsibility.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and an inquisitive and analytical mind.
• Excellent written and spoken English and French.

Essential values and attributes

• Strong commitment to the mission and values of Girls Not Brides and our vision in relation to addressing child marriage and the empowerment of girls and women.
• Proactive and able to confidently take initiative and make appropriate decisions.
• Willingness to work flexibly and regularly travel internationally, as necessary.

Desirable

• Relevant higher academic qualification/s or equivalent professional experience.
• Knowledge of other languages is desirable.

Safeguarding

Girls Not Brides is committed to safeguarding all children, young people and adults at risk with whom our staff and representatives work and interface. Any employment with Girls Not Brides may be subject to the satisfactory completion of a background check and criminal records check which can include but is not limited to: an overseas police record check, a Disclosure and Barring Service Check (for those based in the UK) or an International Criminal Record Check (if applicable).

Diversity at Girls Not Brides

Girls Not Brides is an equal opportunities employer. We embrace diversity, equal opportunity, and inclusion in a serious way. We are committed to building a staff body that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.

How to apply 

The closing date for this role is 17:00 BST on Sunday, 25 August 2024.

To apply, please click on the ‘Apply now‘ button on the job page and submit your CV and a brief cover letter (no more than two pages) demonstrating how you meet the criteria within the Person Specification.

We regret that due to the large number of applications anticipated, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.