Financial Controller

Stokenchurch | Full-time

Are you a commercially minded, technically strong qualified accountant looking for genuine ownership of a finance function?

We are recruiting a hands-on Financial Controller to join a growing business near High Wycombe. Reporting directly to the Managing Director, this is the number-one finance role in the business: a senior, highly autonomous position with full responsibility for the integrity, delivery and development of the finance function.

The opportunity

This is not a role where you simply review a team’s output. You will take personal ownership of the numbers, lead a robust and proactive month-end process, and ensure the business has accurate, insightful financial information to support confident decision-making.

As the most senior finance professional in the organisation, you will operate without a Finance Director above you. You will have genuine technical accountability, a direct voice with the Managing Director, and the opportunity to shape processes, improve systems and support the business as it continues to grow.

Key responsibilities

As Financial Controller, you will:

\n
• Lead the monthly management accounts process, ensuring timely and accurate delivery.
\n
• Prepare and review reconciliations, prepayments, accruals, fixed assets and depreciation.
\n
• Produce consolidated and branch-level P&Ls, including analysis against budget and prior year.
\n
• Review gross-profit performance and investigate significant variances.
\n
• Manage the monthly payroll journal and oversee payroll-related information.
\n
• Ensure VAT records are accurate, reconciled and submitted correctly.
\n
• Take ownership of year-end audit preparation, audit files and liaison with auditors and tax advisers.
\n
• Lead the annual budgeting process, working with colleagues to collate assumptions and produce budget P&Ls.
\n
• Manage statutory compliance, including relevant HMRC and Companies House filings.
\n
• Prepare and maintain a rolling cashflow forecast, highlighting risks and managing banking relationships.
\n
• Work with ERP and reporting-system providers to enhance reporting, ledger configuration and finance processes.
\n
• Coordinate finance and administration colleagues on escalated matters, systems queries and process improvements.
\n

About you

You will be a fully qualified accountant — ACA, ACCA or CIMA — with the confidence, judgement and resilience to succeed as the number-one finance person within a growing business.

You will also bring:

\n
• Strong experience of producing management accounts and running disciplined month-end processes.
\n
• Excellent reconciliation skills and a determination to investigate and resolve variances thoroughly.
\n
• The ability to analyse transaction-level data and manage complex financial information accurately.
\n
• A hands-on approach: you are happy producing the detail as well as interpreting it.
\n
• The confidence to raise issues clearly and constructively with the Managing Director, auditors and external advisers.
\n
• Previous experience as a senior standalone finance professional, or clear readiness to take on this level of responsibility.
\n

Location and flexibility

The position is based at the company’s Head Office in Stokenchurch. Regular on-site presence is important due to the senior, hands-on nature of the role; however, a modest, structured hybrid arrangement — such as one fixed work-from-home day per week — can be discussed once you are established in the position.

If you are a proactive, commercially aware finance professional seeking a number-one Financial Controller role with real accountability, influence and long-term scope, we would welcome your application.