Finance Officer

Grade: UKRI - Band C

Salary: £30,895 per annum

Contract Type: 12-month fixed term

Hours: Full time – 37 hours a week is preferred (Part‑time will be considered for a minimum of 30 hours p/w and a small amount of remote working is possible, but this role does require regular onsite attendance)

Location: BGS Keyworth, Nottingham

Closing date: 25th May 2026

Interviews: 9th and 11th June 2026

Great benefits package is offered! including an outstanding pension scheme (with a generous employer contribution – on average 27% of your pay), 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays!

About the role

The British Geological Survey (BGS) Finance & Project Support team is seeking a highly motivated Finance Officer who will be a key part in providing high‑quality and essential finance support. This includes assisting BGS staff with requisitions, purchase orders and payments to suppliers, ensuring the efficient and effective delivery of BGS science and operations. The role will also provide support for the Minor Repayments function using local systems, including Oracle Fusion, and will cover for colleagues within the team as required. The postholder will liaise with staff across BGS to support Accounts Payable (AP) and Accounts Receivable (AR) activities and will work closely with the centralised financial transaction team at UK Shared Business Services (UKSBS) to resolve queries and issues. This will include checking the completeness and accuracy of transactions, resolving outstanding AP / AR issues, and liaising with suppliers / customers where necessary. The role operates within the financial framework, policies and procedures set by UKRI and BGS. While this means there is limited discretion over certain processes, the postholder will have autonomy to arrange meetings and engage with colleagues as required, using their judgement to deliver outcomes effectively. The role involves managing a time‑pressured, high‑volume workload with competing deadlines. The Finance Officer will work closely with Finance and Project Support colleagues based in both Keyworth and Edinburgh.

Key responsibilities

• Monitoring the centralised BGS Finance email system and responding appropriately to queries and issues
• Working closely with other Finance Officers to resolve queries relating to requisitions, purchase orders, Goods Received Not Invoiced (GRNI) and Invoices on Hold (IoH)
• Raising Accounts Receivable invoices in line with agreed deadlines
• Undertaking ad hoc tasks to support the Finance and Project Support teams as required

About you

You will have good administration experience/skills within a complex financial environment, have worked with a computerised finance system before and have good experience of using Microsoft Excel. You will be liaising with many staff across BGS, providing support for accounting transactions. We are looking for someone with effective communication skills, both verbal and written, as a large part of the role will involve checking completeness and accuracy of transactions in addition to proactively interacting with staff, suppliers and customers. Having a flexible approach and being able to prioritise tasks effectively are also key requirements.

Essential

• Good experience of working within a complex financial environment (S & I)
• Good experience of using Microsoft Excel including formulas (S & I)
• Effective verbal and written communication skills including an ability to be clear and concise (S & I)
• Demonstrable the ability of working with minimal supervision and prioritising time and resources to meet deadlines (S & I)
• Good attention to detail (S & I)
• Effective team‑working skills and experience of working as part of multi‑disciplinary team (S & I)
• You will be committed to a diverse and inclusive approach to work in the geosciences (S&I)

Desirable

• AAT or CCAB part‑qualified (S)
• Working knowledge of basic financial accounting functions, such as accruals, prepayments, debits, credits etc. (S & I)
• Experience of not for profit and/or science research organisations (S)

How to apply

Applicants are required to include a CV and covering letter outlining their suitability for the role. We would stress the importance of this paperwork in our selection process. A well thought through application providing evidence and examples of how you meet the advertised essential and desirable criteria for the post will be considered far more favourably than a generic covering letter and CV. We will maintain a reserve list of suitably qualified candidates who meet the required standards, so we can consider them for any future opportunities that arise in this area. If you experience any issues applying for this role, please contact recruitment@ukri.org