Job summary
We are currently looking to recruit an experienced, professional and highly motivated Senior Finance Business Partner with a depth of leadership experience to ensure that the Trust's strategy and financial sustainability is delivered.
This role sits in a high performing finance team which has achieved Level 2 One NHS Finance Towards Excellence Accreditation, illustrating a culture where staff feel appreciated and successes are celebrated.
As a Senior Finance Business Partner in this team, you will influence strategic decisions making within the Trust through the provision of highly complex business and financial advice and support the Executive Directors, Senior Operational Managers, Clinicians and Budget Managers across all divisions.
Reporting directly to the Associate Director of Financial Management, this is a key role for the Trust and will be an important senior member of the Finance Team playing an integral part in providing senior leadership within the team and wider Trust environment.
Expected Interview Date: 10/07/2025
Main duties of the job
To succeed in this role at the Trust you will:
- Be a qualified accountant with significant financial management experience of working in a medium - large, complex organisation and have prior experience of leading the delivery of monthly financial information and their translation into agreed budgets across an organisation.
- Have experience of leading and working with finance and operational teams alike in the development of financial plans that enable the delivery of operational requirements, high quality care and financial sustainability.
- Have excellent verbal and written communication skills and demonstrable experience of leading and engaging with finance and other corporate functions to develop a mature and rounded service.
- Be financially and politically aware, able to communicate well with your peers and team members and have resilience to adapt quickly to changing priorities and demands from internal and external stakeholders and the wider health economy.
About us
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a large acute trust, delivering acute hospital services from two general hospital sites in Gloucester and Cheltenham. We take pride in placing people at the centre of everything we do, working together as a united team. Driven by a shared ambition to continually grow, develop, and learn, we recognise and value every contribution. By combining our experience and skills, we not only support our vibrant, diverse communities, but also support one another.
With a team of over 9,000 employees, we are proud to be the largest employer in Gloucestershire and rank among the top 10 largest Trusts in the South West region. By joining our Trust, you will benefit from an excellent package that includes exclusive benefits, flexible working opportunities and the chance to gain valuable experience in one or both of our innovative hospitals.
As well as generous annual leave allowance, you will have access to the excellent NHS pension scheme, competitive bank rates, discounts at local shops and restaurants, access to two on-site nurseries, discounted public transport, reward and recognition and a range of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The main duties and responsibilities include:
Financial Reporting
- To provide and develop appropriate accurate and timely financial information to all levels including Trust Board and any other committees given delegated responsibility by the Trust Board.
- To be responsible for the provision of relevant, accurate and timely financial information for both revenue and capital issues pertaining to the Division, enabling effective financial management.
- To ensure that consolidated income and expenditure reports and forecasts are produced for the Division and reviewed, advising Directors on implications, risks and working in partnership with them and other senior colleagues to develop and implement appropriate business strategies.
- To provide information and advice to support monthly reporting and accounting in respect of the areas within the current scope of the team, ensuring that this is done in a joined up approach with finance colleagues who have a dedicated link to Divisions.
- To ensure that financial reporting outputs are accurate, timely, fit for purpose and in suitable formats, providing guidance on high risk and highly complex technical issues as required.
- To ensure the completion of specific Trust returns, ensuring that any required data is collected and collated and the exercise is completed to time, sharing feedback with providers in a timely manner.
- To ensure that the team fulfils its responsibilities around the production of the statutory Annual Accounts, ensuring year-end accounting tasks are performed in line with year-end timetables.
Financial Management
- To provide expert financial advice and information pertaining to Divisions for directors, budget managers and other managers, ensuring key financial concepts and issues are clearly understood.
- To help ensure that divisional plans support the delivery of high quality patient care and experience whilst using resources effectively and economically.
- To analyse and benchmark published data for the Trust against other similar organisations to gauge value for money and robustness of information, and to compare against peers and competitors; using findings to update future processes and to inform best practice.
- To coordinate and support bids to funding bodies, exploring opportunities and maximising income.
Financial planning and budget setting
- To lead the development of annual and longer-term financial plans for the Division and to provide information to support the Trusts planning process.
- To ensure the setting of budgets using both past and future intelligence, making any assumptions as necessary and calculating forecast outturns.
- To support the preparation of divisional plans by providing business intelligence and developing guidance to provide support.
Financial strategy and strategic planning
- To contribute to the formulation and development of key strategies and to play a pivotal role in the delivery of plans, projects and on-going activities in executing the Trusts core strategic aims and identified key priorities.
- To contribute to the achievement and development of the Trusts strategies and the development of associated operational plans which are accompanied by appropriate budgets and sign-off.
- To provide strategic financial support and advice into proposed divisional developments, including the development and review of business cases, providing scrutiny, challenge and expert knowledge and advice.
- To explore opportunities for new business, using a commercial approach as appropriate.
- To help ensure that strategies for the different service lines are aligned and are also aligned with cross-cutting agendas such as that pertaining to workforce planning.
Efficiency, Cost Improvement (CIP), Financial Sustainability (FSP) and Productivity
- To support the development of an effective CIP/FSP Programme which is an agent for organisational and cultural change, driving delivery to support the operational and strategic objectives of the site.
- To support productivity improvement including communicating and explaining metrics to divisional colleagues.
- Work with service triumvirates to identify new and further initiatives for CIP/FSP.
- Supporting CIP/FSP leads to realise the benefits of allocated projects.
- Produce risk assessed CIP/FSP forecast and actuals reports to appropriate boards.
- Maintenance of all the required trackers including adherence to version control.
Contracting and contract management
- To establish and maintain close working relationships with relevant organisations.
- To act as the day to day senior finance lead on matters pertaining to the Division with key external stakeholders.
- To enable robust management of income and activity within the Division.
- To review and assess the overall financial position of divisional contracts, working with others to ensure the provision of information around KPIs etc.
Managerial responsibilities and contribution to service improvement:
- To foster partnership working with other parts of the wider finance team, ensuring that a seamless high quality service is provided.
- As a corporate Senior Manager, to take responsibility for the effective management of the Trusts resources and to participate in all aspects of corporate decision making.
- To contribute to reviewing and updating departmental procedures and processes with a view to improving the effectiveness of the department and the services provided.
- To contribute to specific development initiatives, such as the on-going development of service line reporting and patient level costing to provide accurate and timely information to business units to support effective financial management.
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of financial risk processes and project management arrangements.
- To continually review and audit the financial arrangement, carrying out research and benchmarking activities with other organisations to ensure that internal arrangements are fit for purpose and are developing to meet developing internal and external agendas.
Communications and Working Relationships
- The post holder will require excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
- The post holder will be required to present highly complex and highly sensitive financial information to large audiences of varying experience. This will require highly developed presentation and influencing skills.
- The post holder will require negotiation and persuasive skills when communicating contentious information to staff and directorates where there may be significant barriers to acceptance.
- Attend Clinical Business meetings in the role of key finance lead for the services within the Divisions portfolio providing responses both written and verbal on financial performance issues. This will often include complex issues, which are open to interpretation and will require a multi layered communication and influencing skills.
Staff Management and Training
- Be responsible for the overall management of the Divisional finance team, including motivating staff to meet deadlines and targets, recruitment, training, appraisal, implementation of HR policies and dealing with disciplinary/performance issues.
- Be responsible for the personal development of the Divisional finance team and ensure that every member of staff is regularly appraised and has a Personal Development Plan.
- The SFBP will act as the primary link between the Divisional finance team and other finance departments within the Trust (e.g. IT, systems, procurement, contracts, financial accounts) and be required to resolve all issues referred to them in this capacity on behalf of the team.
- Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge theory and experience of financial and accounting procedures, financial aspects of NHS legislation and NHS financial policies.
- Ensure that Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) are followed within the Division, involving training and advising staff and monitoring compliance. Where breaches are discovered, ensure appropriate action is taken, in compliance with Trust policies.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The main duties and responsibilities include:
Financial Reporting
- To provide and develop appropriate accurate and timely financial information to all levels including Trust Board and any other committees given delegated responsibility by the Trust Board.
- To be responsible for the provision of relevant, accurate and timely financial information for both revenue and capital issues pertaining to the Division, enabling effective financial management.
- To ensure that consolidated income and expenditure reports and forecasts are produced for the Division and reviewed, advising Directors on implications, risks and working in partnership with them and other senior colleagues to develop and implement appropriate business strategies.
- To provide information and advice to support monthly reporting and accounting in respect of the areas within the current scope of the team, ensuring that this is done in a joined up approach with finance colleagues who have a dedicated link to Divisions.
- To ensure that financial reporting outputs are accurate, timely, fit for purpose and in suitable formats, providing guidance on high risk and highly complex technical issues as required.
- To ensure the completion of specific Trust returns, ensuring that any required data is collected and collated and the exercise is completed to time, sharing feedback with providers in a timely manner.
- To ensure that the team fulfils its responsibilities around the production of the statutory Annual Accounts, ensuring year-end accounting tasks are performed in line with year-end timetables.
Financial Management
- To provide expert financial advice and information pertaining to Divisions for directors, budget managers and other managers, ensuring key financial concepts and issues are clearly understood.
- To help ensure that divisional plans support the delivery of high quality patient care and experience whilst using resources effectively and economically.
- To analyse and benchmark published data for the Trust against other similar organisations to gauge value for money and robustness of information, and to compare against peers and competitors; using findings to update future processes and to inform best practice.
- To coordinate and support bids to funding bodies, exploring opportunities and maximising income.
Financial planning and budget setting
- To lead the development of annual and longer-term financial plans for the Division and to provide information to support the Trusts planning process.
- To ensure the setting of budgets using both past and future intelligence, making any assumptions as necessary and calculating forecast outturns.
- To support the preparation of divisional plans by providing business intelligence and developing guidance to provide support.
Financial strategy and strategic planning
- To contribute to the formulation and development of key strategies and to play a pivotal role in the delivery of plans, projects and on-going activities in executing the Trusts core strategic aims and identified key priorities.
- To contribute to the achievement and development of the Trusts strategies and the development of associated operational plans which are accompanied by appropriate budgets and sign-off.
- To provide strategic financial support and advice into proposed divisional developments, including the development and review of business cases, providing scrutiny, challenge and expert knowledge and advice.
- To explore opportunities for new business, using a commercial approach as appropriate.
- To help ensure that strategies for the different service lines are aligned and are also aligned with cross-cutting agendas such as that pertaining to workforce planning.
Efficiency, Cost Improvement (CIP), Financial Sustainability (FSP) and Productivity
- To support the development of an effective CIP/FSP Programme which is an agent for organisational and cultural change, driving delivery to support the operational and strategic objectives of the site.
- To support productivity improvement including communicating and explaining metrics to divisional colleagues.
- Work with service triumvirates to identify new and further initiatives for CIP/FSP.
- Supporting CIP/FSP leads to realise the benefits of allocated projects.
- Produce risk assessed CIP/FSP forecast and actuals reports to appropriate boards.
- Maintenance of all the required trackers including adherence to version control.
Contracting and contract management
- To establish and maintain close working relationships with relevant organisations.
- To act as the day to day senior finance lead on matters pertaining to the Division with key external stakeholders.
- To enable robust management of income and activity within the Division.
- To review and assess the overall financial position of divisional contracts, working with others to ensure the provision of information around KPIs etc.
Managerial responsibilities and contribution to service improvement:
- To foster partnership working with other parts of the wider finance team, ensuring that a seamless high quality service is provided.
- As a corporate Senior Manager, to take responsibility for the effective management of the Trusts resources and to participate in all aspects of corporate decision making.
- To contribute to reviewing and updating departmental procedures and processes with a view to improving the effectiveness of the department and the services provided.
- To contribute to specific development initiatives, such as the on-going development of service line reporting and patient level costing to provide accurate and timely information to business units to support effective financial management.
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of financial risk processes and project management arrangements.
- To continually review and audit the financial arrangement, carrying out research and benchmarking activities with other organisations to ensure that internal arrangements are fit for purpose and are developing to meet developing internal and external agendas.
Communications and Working Relationships
- The post holder will require excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
- The post holder will be required to present highly complex and highly sensitive financial information to large audiences of varying experience. This will require highly developed presentation and influencing skills.
- The post holder will require negotiation and persuasive skills when communicating contentious information to staff and directorates where there may be significant barriers to acceptance.
- Attend Clinical Business meetings in the role of key finance lead for the services within the Divisions portfolio providing responses both written and verbal on financial performance issues. This will often include complex issues, which are open to interpretation and will require a multi layered communication and influencing skills.
Staff Management and Training
- Be responsible for the overall management of the Divisional finance team, including motivating staff to meet deadlines and targets, recruitment, training, appraisal, implementation of HR policies and dealing with disciplinary/performance issues.
- Be responsible for the personal development of the Divisional finance team and ensure that every member of staff is regularly appraised and has a Personal Development Plan.
- The SFBP will act as the primary link between the Divisional finance team and other finance departments within the Trust (e.g. IT, systems, procurement, contracts, financial accounts) and be required to resolve all issues referred to them in this capacity on behalf of the team.
- Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge theory and experience of financial and accounting procedures, financial aspects of NHS legislation and NHS financial policies.
- Ensure that Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) are followed within the Division, involving training and advising staff and monitoring compliance. Where breaches are discovered, ensure appropriate action is taken, in compliance with Trust policies.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential
- Member of CCAB body with significant post qualification experience.
- Evidence of continuing professional and personal development
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Strong communication skills, both orally and in writing
- Ability to present information clearly to a range of audiences including the public
Desirable
- Expert knowledge of accounting concepts, conventions and policies and the requirements of the NHS financial regime and the legislative framework within which it operates.
- Extensive knowledge and understanding of strategic and operational factors impacting on the financial performance of Divisions.
- Detailed understanding of acute sector operational flows and complex clinical pathways.
- Detailed knowledge of the planning cycle in the NHS
Experience
Essential
- Extensive senior financial management experience with relevant experience.
- Extensive experience in providing impartial detailed financial advice and information to multi-disciplinary clinical and other management teams, obtaining engagement and ensuring key financial concepts and issues are clearly understood.
- Leading successful projects or work-streams and achieving change, working in partnership
Desirable
- Advanced knowledge and experience of NHS financial management and business planning.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential
- Member of CCAB body with significant post qualification experience.
- Evidence of continuing professional and personal development
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Strong communication skills, both orally and in writing
- Ability to present information clearly to a range of audiences including the public
Desirable
- Expert knowledge of accounting concepts, conventions and policies and the requirements of the NHS financial regime and the legislative framework within which it operates.
- Extensive knowledge and understanding of strategic and operational factors impacting on the financial performance of Divisions.
- Detailed understanding of acute sector operational flows and complex clinical pathways.
- Detailed knowledge of the planning cycle in the NHS
Experience
Essential
- Extensive senior financial management experience with relevant experience.
- Extensive experience in providing impartial detailed financial advice and information to multi-disciplinary clinical and other management teams, obtaining engagement and ensuring key financial concepts and issues are clearly understood.
- Leading successful projects or work-streams and achieving change, working in partnership
Desirable
- Advanced knowledge and experience of NHS financial management and business planning.
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.
