Accounts Assistant in Harrogate

Drive Excellence and Make a Difference with Oakdale

Location: Harrogate/Hybrid

Hours: 37.5 per week

Salary: £30,000 - £33,000 per annum (depending on experience)

Shape Services, Support People, Deliver Impact

For over 25 years, Oakdale has been delivering high‑quality, evidence‑based therapies and assessments for children, young people, and adults. As a not‑for‑profit, values‑driven organisation, we partner with the NHS, schools, local authorities, and private clients to provide care that changes lives.

The Role

The Accounts Assistant role is a core post in the Oakdale Centre, providing support to the finance team in the day‑to‑day running of the finance function. This is a pivotal hands‑on role requiring good technical skills in accounting and spreadsheet work with an essential eye for detail. The Accounts Assistant is an integral team member and must be willing to contribute towards the positive reputation of Oakdale and our future development. The role holds the responsibility of providing an efficient, organised and accurate finance function for the organisation and would be providing a variety of day‑to‑day financial operations such as sales and purchase ledgers and bookkeeping. The Accounts Assistant is expected to undertake a broad range of duties and responsibilities in maintaining the financial records of the organisation and providing appropriate management information from this data.

Main Responsibilities

• Providing essential support to the Finance department
• Following and using our accounting and database systems (Xero for accounts and a bespoke configuration of Salesforce for our database), taking ownership of the vital requirement to make sure that the organisation’s financial database and systems are accurately maintained
• Responsible for the reconciliation of bank accounts and maintaining the sales and purchase ledgers
• Responsible for raising and processing sales invoices for all areas of the business
• Responsible for processing purchase invoices and creating payment schedules for all areas of the business
• Responsible for credit control for all areas of the business
• Banking of client money, taking payments over the phone and issuing receipts where required
• Maintain the petty cash ledger
• Responsible for building and maintaining strong working relationships with commercial customers, suppliers and other external parties
• Supporting month end and year end processes, facilitating timely and accurate reporting of financial and management information
• Stewardship of Practitioner monies

General Duties

• To be an integral staff team member of the centre team and contribute to its positive reputation and development.
• To attend appraisals and training, when required.
• To comply with the requirements of the centre’s policies and procedures.
• To undertake occasional evening/weekend work.
• To undertake housekeeping duties as required.

Essential Skills

• General education to GCSE / Equivalent Grade C or above
• Experience using a range of IT systems and packages including databases
• A good understanding of bookkeeping and accountancy procedures
• Ability to make recommendations in process improvement
• Enthusiastic, committed, and a fast learner with previous experience in a busy environment (ideally two years experience of similar work typically gained working as part of a finance team)
• Ability to work in a role handling complexity and variety.
• Computer literate with an aptitude for numbers
• Ability to work with individuals across departments and liaise with external customers and contacts
• Solid organisational skills and the ability to prioritise a varied workload
• Able to work on own initiative and to tight timescales
• Proactive, organised, and methodical, with a temperament suited to working with details, taking pride in the accuracy of your work.
• High level of personal and professional commitment
• To be able to deal with financial transactions accurately
• Someone who shares the organisation’s values and is willing to go the extra mile to support their colleagues and help our clients as part of a small but dedicated and close‑knit team.
• Strong ability to follow patterns and problem‑solve if needed
• Ability to manage time effectively.
• Have good communication skills both written and verbal
• Be able to work as part of a team and use your own initiative

Desirable Skills

• AAT qualification 1, 2 & 3
• Experience of using Google Workspace.
• Experience of Xero accounting software
• Experience of the health or social care sector

Personal Qualities

• To have a commitment to The Oakdale Centres ethos and support the organisation in progressing and driving forward
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• To be honest and trustworthy
• Deal with all colleagues and customers with dignity and respect

Why Join Oakdale?

• 29 days’ annual leave (including bank holidays), increasing with service
• Flexible and agile working from day one
• SimplyHealth: 24/7 GP access, counselling, physiotherapy, and more
• Exclusive, heavily discounted rates for you and your family on private ADHD and autism neurodevelopmental assessments, through our own expert service.
• Fully funded flu vaccines
• Employee Wellbeing Initiative with trained mental health champions
• Smart Pension & Rewards: plan for your future with discounts and cashback
• Enhanced Occupational Sick Pay
• Cycle to Work & Technology Salary Sacrifice schemes
• Employee discount scheme
• Protected CPD days, annual away days, and high‑quality training
• Professional registration fees covered (where applicable)
• Opportunities to influence service improvement and innovation
• Laptop, monitor, keyboard, and any additional equipment you need to do your best work
• Discounts apply to dependents living within the same household.

Oakdale is proud to be a registered Disability Confident Committed Employer.