Accountant – Housing Finance (HRA)

Come and work for an award-winning organisation!

We are an ambitious and forward-thinking council. We are committed to making Cheltenham a better place to live and work, enabling communities and businesses to thrive whilst protecting what is good about our town.

We aim to be an employer of choice where everyone is treated fairly and feels valued and respected. We aim to provide a stimulating and rewarding working environment that encourages our people to work together, provides opportunities for them to reach their full potential and achieve a healthy work/life balance.

Working at Cheltenham Borough Council means working as part of a committed, professional, and friendly team.

About the role

Are you a motivated finance professional seeking your next career opportunity to use your Housing Finance knowledge and experience to ensure our Council are financially sustainable and ready for any future sector changes?

Cheltenham are an extremely ambitious Council – committed to becoming carbon net zero and the Cyber Capital of the UK all whilst continuing to support all our communities in uncertain times. And our ambitions are more than words – we have won national awards for our commercial approach as a Council and our Golden Valley development has recently been named in the Government’s National Cyber Strategy.

Following the Council’s transfer of housing services from Cheltenham Borough Homes back to the Council in July 2024, we are looking for a Housing Finance Accountant who can bring their knowledge and expertise to our medium and long term plans for our housing stock. With over 4,500 Council homes together with a portfolio of affordable and private rented units, there is no shortage of ways in which our finance team can support the Council’s ambitions to provide affordable and safe homes for the people of Cheltenham.

Cheltenham is only one of two District Councils in Gloucestershire who still own their own housing stock and with the proposed changes to Local Government organisation and focus on affordable housing, this provides a unique opportunity to make a lasting difference to tenants and residents in the town.

The general fund budget has successfully delivered over £4m of savings since the pandemic and the new combined finance team is looking to bring some of the same methodology to the housing revenue account to improve the sustainability of the existing 30 year business plan.  As we move into a period of recovery from the last five years, the focus is shifting across the Council to delivering the clear ambitions set out in our Corporate Plan.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to develop their own knowledge and expertise within the role whilst also building technical resilience across the team to ensure that our Council is financially secure and sustainable into the next chapter of Local Government.

What can we do for you...

• An excellent pension scheme. You will be eligible to join the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).

• A generous holiday entitlement of 26 days rising to 31 days (pro-rata  excluding Bank Holidays) after 5 years.

• A flexible and agile working environment. We aim to provide opportunities to work from home or elsewhere and offer flexibility in working hours.

• A comprehensive programme of learning and development.

• Two days (pro-rata) paid time off for volunteering.

• Enhanced maternity and paternity schemes.

• Access to a free employee counselling service.

• Upon successful completion of your probation period, you will then have access to our Healthcare Cashback Plan.

• A cycle to work scheme.

• Low-cost town centre parking

• A commitment to employee wellbeing.

For further information, please visit: https://cheltenhamjobs.com

For a confidential conversation about this role, please contact Brian Gallagher via brian.gallagher@penna.com or call 07716 098175