Finance Assistant

About the Veterans’ Foundation

The Veterans’ Foundation (VF) is an independent grant‑making charitable foundation that supports charities and organisations in the UK which provide support to those in need among serving armed forces personnel, veterans, operationally qualified seafarers and their families. The VF raises funds and has a substantial grants programme.

Purpose of Role

Working with the Finance Manager to support all aspects of the day‑to‑day financial management of the charity, and supporting the Executive Team, the Grants Team and the Fundraising Team with financial matters where necessary.

Principal Duties

• Take responsibility for basic finance functions including the recording of data and bank reconciliations, using XERO accounting system.
• Manage the VF Finance inbox, dealing with queries and correspondence.
• Bank and record cheques received and deal with paper bank statements and other paper correspondence for the finance team.
• Process invoices, staff expenses and requests for payment, ensuring associated accounting records and the VF’s filing system are updated accordingly.
• Produce, submit and allocate regular Gift Aid claims to HMRC.
• Ensure electronic filing is kept accurate and up to date.
• Set‑up online bank payments for weekly invoice and expenses payment runs.
• Collate monthly payroll information and liaise with outsourced payroll provider.
• Create basic month‑end journals.
• Assist as required with Management Accounts production, budgeting and forecasting and with the production of annual financial statements.
• Work with the Grants team to ensure all grant payments are paid correctly and on time; set up payments, confirm receipt, and ensure grants information in Xero matches the grants system (Salesforce).
• Work with fundraising and finance colleagues to record and monitor income and expenditure relating to donations and fundraising activities; assist with Gift Aid claims as required.
• Work with the External Lottery Manager and the Finance team to monitor the Veterans’ Lottery income and expenditure, including reconciliation of lottery income, monitoring attrition, reviewing invoices and data provided by the External Lottery Manager.
• Support the team with the production of annual financial statements and the financial audit as required.
• Support with external regulatory requirements (e.g., from the Gambling Commission or Charity Commission) as required.

General Responsibilities

• Offer support for the work of the VF generally, including cover for other members of the team ensuring that the work of the VF can continue effectively and without interruption.
• Represent the VF in a way that is consistent with its values and philosophy.
• Contribute to effective team working by sharing information and skills including at weekly team meetings, and by supporting colleagues.

Person Specification

• At least one year’s experience in a similar role; an interest in gaining accounting qualifications advantageous.
• Experienced in posting and managing accounting records with minimal supervision.
• Knowledge and experience in working with Xero or similar accounting software.
• Knowledge and experience in working with Salesforce or similar databases.
• Excellent IT skills including Excel and Word (including familiarity with functions such as lookup and sumif).
• High standards of numeracy, accuracy and attention to detail.
• The ability to prioritise workload and meet deadlines.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Willingness to work flexibly in response to the needs of the VF.