UK Finance Manager / UK Finance Lead in Rushden

Role: UK Finance Manager / UK Finance Lead

Salary: Up to £70,000

Location: Rushden, Northamptonshire

Are you an experienced finance professional looking for a broad, hands-on leadership role where you can take full ownership of a UK finance function and have a genuine impact on business performance?

The Accountancy & Finance Division at The ONE Group is exclusively partnering with a leading Retail and Distribution business to recruit an Experienced UK Finance Manager. As the UK Finance Manager you will oversee the day-to-day financial operations of an established business. This is a varied position combining financial control, statutory reporting, team leadership and commercial business partnering.

Working closely with senior management and an international finance team, you'll play a key role in maintaining strong financial controls, improving processes and providing meaningful financial insight to support commercial decisions and profitability.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and support the UK finance function, managing a small finance team alongside HR and payroll management, ensuring effective performance, clear priorities and continuous improvement.
• Oversee month-end and year-end reporting, including the preparation and review of management accounts, profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow and variance analysis.
• Prepare statutory accounts for multiple UK entities, coordinate annual audits and ensure compliance with relevant accounting and reporting requirements.
• Maintain a robust financial control environment, reviewing balance sheet reconciliations, fixed assets, inventory, leases, payroll, tax and intercompany balances.
• Oversee Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable processes, ensuring accurate reconciliations, effective controls and timely resolution of outstanding issues.
• Manage UK VAT compliance, support corporation tax requirements and ensure statutory filings and regulatory obligations are completed accurately and on time.
• Work closely with senior management to analyse financial performance, support budgeting and forecasting, and identify opportunities to improve profitability and cost control.
• Provide commercial insight into sales performance, labour costs, commissions, operational efficiency and business performance against targets.
• Develop financial models, analysis and recommendations to support commercial initiatives, investment decisions and wider business priorities.
• Partner with international finance colleagues to align reporting, forecasts, financial controls and business performance expectations.
• Support procurement activities, including supplier selection, negotiations and ongoing cost management.
• Identify opportunities to improve financial processes, reporting accuracy, internal controls and operational efficiency.

Skills & Experience Required

• ACCA, CIMA or ACA Qualified
• Strong experience in a senior finance role, with responsibility for financial control, management reporting and statutory compliance.
• Proven experience leading and developing finance teams, with the ability to manage priorities and deliver accurate, timely results.
• Strong technical accounting knowledge, including statutory accounts preparation, audit coordination and balance sheet reconciliations.
• Experience managing month-end and year-end processes, producing management accounts and analysing financial performance.
• Sound knowledge of UK VAT, tax compliance and statutory reporting requirements.
• Strong commercial awareness, with the ability to translate financial information into practical recommendations for senior stakeholders.
• Excellent analytical skills, with experience supporting budgeting, forecasting and financial modelling.
• Highly organised, proactive and detail-focused, with a continuous improvement mindset.
• Experience working within an international or group finance structure.
• Previous exposure to multi-entity statutory reporting and group audit requirements.
• Experience supporting operational performance, labour-cost analysis and profitability improvement.
• Knowledge of inventory accounting, lease accounting and fixed asset management.
• Exposure to procurement, supplier negotiations and cost-management initiatives.

The role involves responsibility for the UK finance function and regular collaboration with senior management and an international finance team – it’s a number 1 position for the Finance UK site.