Assistant Accountant

Job Description

Assistant Accountant - Housing (12-Month FTC initially)

Salary: Up to £42,000 per annum (dependent on experience) Location: London Working Pattern: Hybrid working (work from home on Fridays) Hours: 09:30 - 17:30, Monday to Friday Contract: 12-Month Fixed-Term Contract

Benefits: 25 days annual leave, private medical insurance, hybrid working

The Role

We are seeking an experienced Finance professional to join a well-established organisation within the housing sector. This is an excellent opportunity for a qualified or part-qualified accountant looking to broaden their exposure across financial accounting, service charge accounting, reconciliations, audit support, and process improvement.

Reporting into the Head of Finance, you will play a key role in ensuring the accuracy and integrity of financial records while supporting the continuous improvement of finance processes and controls.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable functions, ensuring transactions are processed accurately and efficiently.
• Assist with payment runs and ensure payments are made within agreed timescales.
• Reconcile receipts and investigate unidentified or misallocated payments.
• Support the monitoring and recovery of outstanding debtor balances.
• Perform bank and payment portal reconciliations, resolving discrepancies promptly.
• Prepare and maintain service charge reconciliations, ensuring income and expenditure are accurately recorded.
• Reconcile managed units' income and expenditure and investigate any variances.
• Support the annual review and implementation of rent and service charge increases, including account adjustments.
• Prepare quarterly balance sheet reconciliations and resolve outstanding reconciling items.
• Maintain robust audit trails and supporting documentation for all finance activities.
• Review existing accounting models and processes, identifying opportunities for improvement.
• Support the development and implementation of enhanced accounting, reconciliation, and reporting processes.
• Work closely with the Head of Finance to improve financial controls, systems, and procedures.
• Assist with year-end accounts preparation, audit schedules, and supporting documentation.
• Undertake ad hoc finance and accounting duties as required.

About You

• Qualified, part-qualified, or actively studying towards ACA, ACCA, CIMA, or an equivalent accounting qualification.
• Previous experience within a finance, accounts, or assistant accountant role.
• Experience of service charge accounting and calculations, ideally within the housing sector.
• Strong numerical, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent attention to detail and organisational abilities.
• Intermediate Excel skills.
• Collaborative and proactive approach to work.
• Experience with housing management software such as Pyramid would be advantageous.
• Previous year-end and audit support experience is desirable.

What's on Offer

• Salary up to £42,000 dependent on experience.
• Hybrid working with WFH every Friday.
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays.
• Private medical insurance.
• Exposure to a broad range of finance responsibilities.
• Supportive and collaborative working environment.
• Excellent opportunity to develop housing and service charge accounting expertise.

If you're a finance professional looking for a varied role with excellent development opportunities, we'd love to hear from you.