Competitive Salary plus bonus and other benefits
Senior Leadership | Full-time | Reporting to MD
Ideally, you'll be an immediate starter
Love the challenge of turning numbers into decisions that drive a business forward?
Enjoy building systems and processes that help a high-volume hospitality venue run smoothly?
Passionate about precision, insight and having a genuine seat at the table?
Big Penny Ltd is an independent London hospitality business operating Big Penny Social, Flukes and Big Penny Brews at London City Airport. We’re a community‑first business with real ambition — and we need a commercially sharp Head of Finance to help us make smart decisions as we grow.
We’re looking for a qualified finance leader who combines technical rigour with genuine business curiosity — someone who knows how to build systems that produce accurate numbers and who then knows how to make them matter.
It’s essential that you’re an experienced Head of Finance who’s led a smaller finance function within a multi‑site hospitality group similar to Big Penny. You’ll understand the drivers behind what makes a business such as Big Penny a success, and how to work as a true Finance business partner to senior stakeholders within our industry.
If you love building financial clarity in a business where every pound counts, and you want to be part of something with real purpose — this role is for you.
About Big Penny
Big Penny is n’ ta standard hospitality group — and that’ s exactly the point.
We’re independent, community‑rooted and built for connection. Across our venues you’ll find relaxed dining, private hires, live events, sports screenings and large‑scale gatherings — sometimes all at once. We operate seven days a week and thrive on variety. At our core, we exist to bring people together.
As a business we move quickly, care deeply about quality and hold ourselves to high standards — and we need our finance function to reflect that.
The Role
As Head of Finance, you’ll run the company’s finance function end‑to‑end — from management accounts, payroll and stock control to budgeting, forecasting and board reporting. You’ll be a core member of the Senior Management Team and a trusted right hand to the MD, bringing financial rigour and commercial insight to everything we do.
This is a hands‑on role with real influence. You’ll work closely and daily with the MD — owning the numbers, shaping decisions and helping drive the business forward. The finance team is intentionally lean (Head of Finance plus Finance Assistant, with scope to bring in part‑time support as needed), which means you’ll need to be both strategic and operational.
What you’ll be doing
Finance Leadership & Strategy
- Work as a true partner to the MD, providing financial clarity and input on all major business decisions
- Represent finance on the Senior Management Team
- Monitor company performance and proactively identify opportunities for improvement
- Drive continuous improvement of financial processes for efficiency, insight and control
- Support board meeting administration and reporting
Budgeting & Forecasting
- Lead the annual budgeting process in granular detail across all revenue lines and cost centres
- Maintain a rolling forecast, updated continuously as trading developsProduce scenario planning and financial modelling to support strategic decisions
- Own capex planning — building business cases, tracking spend and managing drawdown
Management Accounts & Reporting
- Prepare accurate monthly management accounts and ad‑hoc analysis
- Produce venue‑level and Head Office P&Ls, all consolidating into one company P&L
- Oversee individual event P&Ls end‑to‑end — pre‑event costing, post‑event reconciliation and variance analysis, managed through Monday.com
- Maintain fixed asset register, accruals and prepayment schedules
- Maintain up‑to‑date cash flow forecasts and creditor/debtor reporting
- Maintain an up‑to‑date Balance Sheet
- Sit monthly with GMs and key staff to review performance vs budget and support subsequent decisions
Stock Control & Commercial Insight
- Oversee wet and dry stock control across all venues — managing stock takes, posting results and investigating variances
- Deliver GP analysis by category (wet, dry, events) and identify shrinkage or margin issues early
- Translate financial data into actionable insight that drives commercial and operational performance
- Maintain and develop the accounting system (Xero)
- Ensure all invoices and expenses are approved and posted correctly
- Supervise reconciliation of supplier and key customer accounts
- Ensure card receipts and payments are posted correctly and accounts reconciled
- Manage the banking relationship and support the MD in ensuring the business is adequately financed
- Manage insurance renewals and administration
- Support the set‑up, maintenance and reconciliation of till systems across the venues
Statutory Reporting & Compliance
- Liaise with auditors and tax advisors
- Supervise the preparation and filing of statutory returns for Big Penny Ltd
- Manage the financial reporting for our Community Interest Company — a small but distinct legal entity that reflects our commitment to making a difference in our community
- Prepare and submit monthly duty and quarterly VAT returns
Payroll
- Maintain and update staff records
- Collate staff hours and prepare fortnightly and monthly payroll
- Submit HMRC and pension returns and initiate payroll payments
People
- Manage and develop the Finance Assistant
- Identify when additional part‑time resource is needed and manage it effectively
Success in this role looks like
- The MD and SMT have a trusted finance partner who gives them real clarity and confidence in the numbers
- Clear, accurate management accounts and venue P&Ls delivered on time, every time
- A cashflow forecast that is always live, always accurate and always useful
- Cost lines are controlled and on or below budget
- The business is hitting profitability targets
- Finance processes that are fit‑for‑purpose and can scale with the business
- A well‑supported Finance Assistant growing in confidence and capability
- You love coming to work and being part of what makes Big Penny great
You’ll thrive in this role if you:
- Hold an ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent professional qualification
- Have strong experience in a similar finance leadership role in hospitality at a large or multi‑venue operation
- Are very comfortable with Xero (or equivalent) and advanced Excel
- Have hands‑on experience with hospitality till systems
- Understand wet and dry stock control and GP management in a hospitality context
- Are commercially curious — you want to understand the business, not just record it
- Communicate clearly and build trusted relationships — particularly with the MD and operational leads
- Are organised, detail‑oriented and never leave a task half‑done
- Bring energy, initiative and a genuinely positive attitude
The Details
- Salary: competitive, depending on experience
- Based at our Head Office, Big Penny Social, Walthamstow (E17 6AL)
- Monday to Friday, standard office hours
- Weekly Senior Management Team meeting attendance
- Monthly food and drink credit to enjoy at Big Penny Social
- 23 days holiday plus bank holidays (rising to 25 days after two years)
- Complimentary tickets to Big Penny events
- Discount code for friends and family
- Free gaming hours in Flukes
- Regular staff social events
- A fun, friendly workplace where community and connection sit at the heart of what we do
