Assistant Financial Accountant in Fareham

Department: Finance

Location: Brunel Way, Fareham, Hampshire

Working hours: Monday – Friday, 37.5 hours a week

Job summary – What to expect

As an Assistant Financial Accountant within our Finance team, you will be part of a team that is responsible for General Accounting for all entities supported by our Global Business Services team. You will engage with stakeholders across the business, both within and beyond finance, in the US and EMEA, as well as with third‑party service organizations and financial institutions.

Your responsibilities will include:

• As required, liaise with UK and EMEA sites to ensure submission of lease documentation.
• Assist in maintaining the UK and EMEA lease accounting system, processing new leases and adjustments based on submissions received from the business.
• Assist with the preparation of journals and balance sheet reconciliations.
• Maintain cash books for GBS reported entities, reconciling to the bank account daily and posting to accounting systems (Oracle) as required.
• Liaise with outsourced service providers and CooperCompanies colleagues within GBS (e.g. Accounts Receivable/Payable) and in local operating locations (e.g. Country Managers) on bank/cash management processes and information flows.
• Process and authorise payments, ensuring they are signed in accordance with bank mandates / “Payment Authorisation Schedule” (PAS) and liaising with Corporate Treasury as required.
• Monitoring cash balances and initiating inter‑account transfers.
• Handling cardholder queries from business users and processing changes to card limits.
• Monitoring user certifications against Company T&E and P‑Card Policy.
• Distribution of Monthly Statements.
• Ensure compliance with Cooper Companies’ accounting policies, as well as with Sarbanes‑Oxley (SOX), ASC842, and the established internal control framework.

About you

• Excellence in customer service and ability to build robust internal relationships using strong communication skills.
• Ability to be a self‑starter with high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Good analytical and problem‑solving skills with ability to think creatively and independently.
• Fluency in oral and written English essential.
• Strong numeracy and verbal/written communication skills.
• Ability to participate in a multi‑cultural, multi‑linguist operating environment.
• Ability to be a strong team player who can effectively support their colleagues and stakeholders.
• Ability to work in a high pressure, high volume environment.
• Proven experience in prioritising workload and delivering to tight deadlines, particularly around month‑end.
• Intermediate knowledge of MS Office including but not limited to pivot tables and lookup functionality in Excel.
• Knowledge of Oracle ERP, Cognos and Floqast systems (desirable but not essential).

Experience & Education

Experience

• Ideally 2‑3 years’ experience in an accounts assistant or equivalent role with responsibility for cash management and account reconciliations.
• Working in a dynamic financial or accounts environment within a large multinational company or Shared Service environment, however this is not essential.

Education

• AAT qualified or qualified by experience.
• Secondary language to a business/working knowledge level desirable but not essential.

What we offer

You’ll receive competitive compensation and a fantastic benefits package including 25 days holiday, pension scheme, healthcare cover, life assurance, access to our Wellness Platform to support you in mental health and wellbeing, a discounted contact lens scheme and much more! We also provide access to LinkedIn Learning to help you develop in your career and grow with CooperVision.

What you can expect

As a CooperVision employee, you’ll be welcomed into a diverse and progressive global business. We appreciate how important fostering a diverse and inclusive culture is and how different perspectives add value and contribute to our success. With our CooperPride, African Descent, Woman’s Impact Network and Mind Body and Wellbeing Employee Resource Groups, we offer opportunities for employees to learn and grow within an inclusive and safe space. All suitably qualified applicants will receive equal consideration and opportunities from CooperVision.