Looking for a finance administration role where you can really make a positive difference?
Ready for a role where noticing the details, solving problems early and building strong systems helps busy services run smoothly?
Looking for a thoughtful, values-led organisation where kindness and accountability go hand in hand?
We need you! And more importantly, our children and young people need you!This is what our children and parents say about one of the services you could soon be providing support to…
‘I feel like some of the darkness has turned to light’.
‘It’s like an egg has been opened up and all the good is coming out… Life feels like it is on the right track’.
Join our lovely children’s mental health charity team as Finance Administrator, and help support children and young people whose needs sit in the intersection of SEND and mental health.
We are looking for someone who can quickly understand and work within the Love Squared ethos and approach, while bringing strong financial acumen, warmth and consistency to the organisation. This role would suit someone who is perceptive, highly organised, and proactive to help keep our busy services running smoothly. You will need strong organisational skills, fantastic attention to detail and a love of imaginative problem solving.
A little bit about Love Squared…
Our vision is a society where imagination, love and kindness are the words people associate with child and family services; a vision where young people can walk into their futures with joy. We don’t think it’s enough to care a little, you have to care a lot if you want to transform outcomes.
We want to change the national landscape of the mental health system by putting kindness at the forefront of every interaction, building awareness, starting a movement, and hearing the voices of children and their loved ones. We want to transform the lived experience of those impacted by mental health.
We are on a mission to ensure no child has to lose out on a world of potential because of mental health. We don’t have magic wands, but we do believe every child and family has the right to services designed and delivered for their individual needs with love and imagination. Everyone has a right to have their story remembered and treated with sensitivity.
We deliver imaginative, and carefully managed services for children and young people with SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health needs (working specifically at the intersection with Special Education Needs and Disabilities or SEND). We do this through our work as a specialist, non-school, part-time alternative provision for children with Education, Health and Care Plans - EHCPs.
Through our Glow services we provide a number of therapeutic projects such as our children’s listening helpline, Drop the Pressure; online mentoring projects such as Transitions, Game On and Remix; 1:1 counselling and mentoring in schools; and holiday groups in nature that include cooking and a range of other activities. We believe that you can’t change outcomes without looking at issues holistically and thoughtfully. For us it’s about long-term change.
In this role you will be responsible for our finance administration, including these responsibilities…
- Managing day-to-day finance operations, including:
- Payments and reconciliations
- Supporting payroll processes including annual leave/ sickness tracker
- Following up delayed payments
- Book keeping
- Session diary updates
- Monthly preparation of client invoices and practitioner pay
- Grant fund tracking and management
- Maintaining the asset register
- Supporting the Senior Leadership Team in preparing reports, including:
- Financial budgeting and forecasting
- Preparing finance reports for key stakeholders including monthly and annual reporting
- Monitoring of cash flows and reserves
- Updating budgetary projections, actuals and variance
- Ensuring financial administration and updates are completed diligently
- Proactively notifying the team of any relevant financial opportunities or risks
- Maintaining positive relationships with staff, practitioners and professionals by phone, face-to-face and by email through proactive and sensitive communication
- Helping deliver services which have meaningful long-term impact for children
- Demonstrating commitment to safeguarding best practice and information sharing in line with our safeguarding policy
- Undertake other duties in the charity as required
- Being a willing and nurturing colleague, providing support to senior leadership as well as practitioners and other team members
This role requires someone who possesses the following qualifications, skills and experience…
- An accountancy / bookkeeping qualification - Level 3 AAT, IAB, ICB or equivalent
- 2+ years of experience in a finance administration role
- Demonstrable knowledge and experience of the responsibilities listed above
- A working knowledge of Xero or similar accountancy software
- Experience using Google Workspace, including Google Sheets or proficiency with Excel
- Confident in managing data, and developing efficient financial systems and processes
- Highly organised and able to manage and prioritise multiple workstreams to defined timelines
- Diligent and detail-orientated, takes pride in their work, and notices early when things drift
- Eager and quick to learn new processes
- Adept at solving problems using learning from individual scenarios to create solutions
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
Additionally, we seek someone who is…
- Passionate about creating positive change for young people
- Willing and able to work within an established relational and values-led approach
- Proactive, thoughtful and emotionally intelligent
Most importantly you will align with our core values of Love, Imagination, Nurture and Bravery.
Our team commits to conform to these in all their interactions as outlined in our Code of Conduct and Team Behaviour Policy as part of our wider safeguarding culture.
So why work for us?…
- Our work is sometimes challenging and tender, but it is also enriching and rewarding
- Opportunities to contribute to our vision as we grow as a charity
- Collaborative working with a supportive and warm team of colleagues
- Part-time role - 18 hours per week - flexible hours but ideally across 4 days minimum
- Bristol-based office with the possibility of a hybrid working pattern - maximum 50% remote
- A pro-rata salary of £14,400 per year (£30,000 FTE)
- 29 days annual leave FTE (including public holidays)
- Pension - 3% employer contribution and 5% employee contribution
- Access to on-demand counselling and mental health resources via employee assistance scheme
Most importantly though, it’s this…
‘Your work has been life changing, and in each conversation we feel so listened to.’
We want everyone at Love Squared to love working for us and feel like they are an ambassador for the charity, spreading the word about what we do and the impact we have for the sake of the children and families we serve. We will celebrate each and every achievement with you, whilst also supporting and nurturing you through the tough moments.
Some other important information…
An application form is required as part of the recruitment process (we can’t accept CV submissions) and any appointment will involve appropriate safeguarding checks for regulated activity with children and adults in line with our safer recruitment process - including a DBS for working with children and vulnerable adults, as well as right to work checks. If appointed, you would be required to sign up to the DBS update service. We may also carry out proportional online searches on candidates who are shortlisted for interviews.
Please be aware that this post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. It is an offence to apply for the role if the applicant is barred from engaging in regulated activity relating to children.
Shortlisted candidates will be asked to complete a confidential self-declaration form of their criminal record as part of our safer recruitment process. Please note that we operate a positive disclosure policy for cautions and convictions that are not related to offences against children or vulnerable adults. Love Squared would normally be willing to undertake a careful risk assessment, with the applicant’s permission, before deciding whether the application can be taken further.
The interview process will likely include more than one stage, and please be aware there might also be a short task set. Due to capacity (we are a busy charity with a small team), we are sorry but unfortunately we cannot offer feedback to candidates who have not been shortlisted.
We're committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applicants from under-represented groups, diverse backgrounds, and those who don't always get their voices heard. If you have any access requirements or need us to accommodate any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know and we'll make every effort to support.
If you think this sounds like you and would like to apply…
We are so excited to hear from you! Please email [email protected] for an application form.
If you would like to know more about Love Squared and the work we do, or would be interested in volunteering opportunities with our brilliant children’s projects, please follow us on Instagram @lovesquaredcharity or find us on Facebook.
Pay: £30,000.00 per year
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Bristol (Bristol)
