Finance Team Leader (Transactions)
East Midlands Shared Services · Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom · hybrid
Finance Team Leader – Transactions
Lead a pivotal team within NCC Finance.
📍 Nottingham / Hybrid
💰 Salary: £58,602 - £62,109 per annum (pro rata for part time)
🏢 Finance & Resources Directorate
A leadership opportunity at the heart of one of the country's most ambitious finance improvements.
Nottingham City Council has changed significantly in the last twelve months through a programme of modernisation and re-organisation. The leadership team is revitalising the focus on outcomes and effectiveness whilst building financial sustainability. The Team Lead for Transactions is key to the onward progression and embedding of this change.
At Nottingham City Council, finance isn't just about numbers – it's about making decisions that shape services, support communities, and deliver real change for residents. As our Finance Team Leader for Transactions, you'll be at the operational heart of that mission – ensuring the council's financial transactions are accurate, timely, and compliant, so that senior leaders can make informed decisions with confidence.
This is a role for someone who wants to lead a team, drive process improvement, and make a tangible impact on how the council manages its financial operations.
About the Role
You'll manage and continually develop the transactional finance teams responsible for end-to-end processes across the transactional accounting function – including Income and Banking, Procure to Pay, and suspense clearance and reconciliation of relevant control accounts.
You'll ensure the provision of an efficient and fit-for-purpose service which meets the needs of customers and all key performance indicators. You'll be the client lead for East Midlands Shared Services (EMSS) for operational issues relating to in-scope payables and receivables financial transactions in line with the service level agreement.
The reality of the role: The transactions your team processes provide the foundation that supports financial management across the Council. You'll specify and maintain the processes and standards needed to maximise the integrity and accuracy of that data. You'll ensure transactions are completed in line with the month-end timetable and reporting requirements (internal and statutory). And you'll work constructively with EMSS to ensure performance standards are met and any issues or concerns raised by colleagues are addressed appropriately and effectively.
In a council that has set a balanced budget for 2026/27 with a forecast surplus of £1.063m, delivered a £20.4m net underspend in 2025/26, and reduced debt from £827m to £292m in six years, the accuracy and timeliness of transactional data is not a back-office concern – it is essential to maintaining the financial discipline that has restored credibility.
Your Influence and Responsibility
- Team leadership: You'll lead and motivate the transactional finance teams, providing coaching, mentoring, training, and appropriate performance management.
- Operational excellence: You'll ensure transactions are completed in line with month-end timetables and reporting requirements, and that reporting against KPIs and critical success factors is kept up to date.
- Process improvement: You'll identify and implement opportunities to ensure processes are lean and efficient, supporting the finance service to provide an excellent service to the business.
- Compliance and control: You'll ensure financial policies, procedures and controls within your sphere of influence are compliant with all relevant legislation, codes, regulations, guidelines, standards and best practice.
- Partnership working: You'll build and maintain a constructive relationship with EMSS and all relevant external Stakeholders to ensure performance standards are met.
What You'll Lead and Influence
- The day-to-day management and development of the transactional finance teams
- The reliability and accuracy of data used by the wider Finance function
- The month-end timetable and reporting requirements for transactional processes
- Payment collections, reminders, and customer debt collection – carried out ethically in accordance with council policy and applicable legislation
- The development and motivation of a team of finance professionals
- Continuous improvement of end-to-end processes
Who We're Looking For
An experienced finance professional who combines operational expertise with the ability to lead, motivate, and develop a team. One who thrives on getting things right, curious about how processes can be improved, and understand that accurate transactions are the bedrock of sound financial management.
You'll bring:
- Proven leadership capability – you've built and developed high-performing teams preferably finance transactional services
- Experience of process improvement specifically within organisation wide Procure to Pay (P2P) and Order to Cash (OTC) or equivalent processes
- Significant experience in transactional services
- CCAB qualified or part qualified Accountant
You'll also bring the behaviours that make a great local government finance leader:
- A methodical, detail-oriented mindset – you take personal pride in the accuracy of financial transactions and the reliability of the data your team produces
- A risk-aware, not risk-averse approach – you instinctively spot financial risks and control weaknesses early, but focus on managing those risks rather than shutting down progress entirely
- The ability to lead under pressure – you remain calm during high-stakes situations like month-end closures or external audits, and you have a natural instinct to mentor and coach those around you
- A pragmatic, innovative approach – you don't rely on "the way things have always been done"; you proactively look for ways to automate, simplify, and optimise transactional processes
- Political astuteness – you understand how the transactional finance team supports the wider council priorities, and you have the confidence to constructively challenge when required
- A mission-driven, public service orientation – you're genuinely motivated by stewardship and the assurance that every pound of taxpayer money is properly accounted for and maximised to best serve the community
Why Nottingham, Why Now?
Few councils have undergone a change of this scale. Having rebuilt financial resilience and restored confidence, we're now focused on long-term excellence.
Nottingham's financial recovery has been remarkable. In November 2023, the council issued a Section 114 notice. By early 2026, the government confirmed its intention to scale back intervention – acknowledging the significant progress made. The council delivered a £20.4m net underspend in 2025/26, did not require Exceptional Financial Support, and set a balanced budget for 2026/27.
But the next phase requires discipline at every level – including transactions. The council must continue to deliver savings while investing in services. It must ensure that every pound is directed to where it can make the most difference for Nottingham's residents.
This is a role for someone who understands that in local government, every payment you process, every account you reconcile, and every control you maintain supports a frontline service
We offer:
- Local Government Pension Scheme – one of the most generous in the country
- Hybrid working – flexibility to balance office and home
- Flexible working arrangements
- Ongoing learning and development
- A supportive, inclusive culture
- Up to 26 days annual leave, plus bank holidays increasing with time served
- Employee wellbeing support
Our Commitment to Inclusion
We are proud to be an inclusive employer where everyone is valued and respected. We want our workforce to reflect the communities we serve.
We particularly welcome applications from:
- Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities
- LGBT+ communities
- Disabled people
♿ Disabil