About the role
Financial Management Graduate Training Scheme
OPEN TO INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL APPLICANTS
We have an unexpected vacancy for our long-running accountancy apprenticeship scheme. This scheme has been training people for over 30 years, with people going on from the scheme to work at all levels of local authority and wider public sector finance in Cambridgeshire and nationally, and will offer you the chance to forge a great career for yourself in the finance profession.
We are looking to recruit an enthusiastic and determined individual to join our scheme. The successful applicant will have strong communication and analytical skills and be able to think creatively. You are not required to have any previous finance or accountancy experience.
We take on at least two trainees each year, so you will join a group of people doing the same qualification as you offering support and motivation.
The pay for this post will scale as you complete the accountancy qualification, with annual increases linked to completion of the qualification, going from 79% (£27k) to 100% (£35k) of the final salary but many of our trainees move into higher paid jobs quicker than that. The pay award for 2023-24 is still to be agreed so those salaries will likely increase, and likewise pay usually goes up in each year.
The successful applicant will have, or will be expecting to achieve, a 2:1 degree or higher in any discipline and 3 Bs (or equivalent in UCAS points) at A-Level or equivalent recognised qualification.
Our trainees study for the CIPFA Professional Qualification through the Level 7 Apprenticeship programme at the CIPFA Education Training Centre in London and at the end of the three and a half years qualify as a Chartered Public Finance Accountant. To find about more about the qualification, please visit the CIPFA website: https://www.cipfa.org/
The application process will take the form an interview and a couple of tests, to be held on dates to be determined following your application.
Closing date for applications is 19 July 2023, but we will be interviewing people on a rolling-basis as they come in and reserve the right to close this advert early if a suitable candidate is found. So please apply promptly.
For enquiries about the scheme, please contact Tabitha Appleyard (Tabitha.Appleyard@cambridgeshire.gov.uk; 07793 234 238).
What will you be doing?
Financial Management stream
Over three and a half years, you will undertake different placements in Service Finance, Corporate Finance and Internal Audit, on a 12-month rotation cycle. This gives you a breadth of experience across the whole council and teaches you a wide range of technical and managerial skills, so you can learn where your interests lie and have the ability to pursue a career in your chosen area. Each placement will provide you with real responsibility from the start. You will have a varied mix of monthly tasks and high-level projects, supporting the needs of your CIPFA studies and your development as a public sector finance professional. Opportunities include:
- Supporting a selection of budget managers, including service managers and directors, providing professional financial advice to inform their decision making and maximise their service delivery
- Supporting services through budget setting and monitoring, and advising on resource allocation and savings proposals
- Working on projects to procure new services, from care home provision to our major highways contract
- Gaining a knowledge of technical accounting and working across Public Sector organisations i.e. NHS Trusts, schools
- Developing, completing and reporting on your own Internal Audit assignments to analyse and improve the Council’s control environment.
About you
Successful applicants will have, or will be expecting to achieve, a 2:1 degree or higher in any discipline and 3 Bs (or equivalent in UCAS points) at A-Level or equivalent recognised qualification.
In your application please make sure to include all school exam grades and degree grade/predicted grade.
Please see the person specification for more detail of the characteristics that successful applicants will demonstrate in their application in addition to the above qualification requirements. Please detail in your supporting statement how you meet the person specification.
Our benefits
We value our colleagues in Cambridgeshire County Council and have developed a number of benefits:
- Flexible working
- Flexible Bank Holidays
- A comprehensive wellbeing package
- Our Cambs Rewards employee discounts
- A comprehensive pension scheme
- IDEAL staff equality, diversity and inclusion network.
- Camweb our staff intranet helping to keep you informed
- An employee recognition scheme
About us
Cambridgeshire is a great place to work and live with a diverse population, an urban centre in Cambridge, historic Isle of Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives as well as more rural landscapes.
Our four values are central to our culture, driving everything we do.
We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we believe benefits our employees, the organisation and our communities.
Visit our jobs and careers section to find out more about our wide range of learning and development opportunities; apprenticeships; our wellbeing package; staff benefits; our commitment to equality, diversity and Inclusion.
Attached documents
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