Finance Business Partner – SEND Reform – AR

Job Details

Finance Business Partner – SEND Reform

About the Role

We are looking for an experienced Finance Business Partner to provide strategic financial support to the Council’s SEND Reform Programme.

Following the submission of the Council’s SEND Reform Plan and the award of Experts at Hand grant funding, the Council requires additional finance business partnering capacity to strengthen financial governance, improve financial processes and provide strategic financial leadership across the programme.

You will work closely with finance colleagues, SEND services and senior stakeholders to ensure that SEND finances are effectively planned, monitored and managed, while supporting the Council to deliver sustainable SEND reforms.

Key Responsibilities

  • Design and embed a new financial operating model for SEND Reform, working with existing finance teams to establish robust processes aligned with Department for Education expectations.
  • Lead SEND financial planning, budget setting, monitoring and forecasting.
  • Manage the financial planning and monitoring of the Experts at Hand grant and the residual Deficit Management Plan budget.
  • Provide financial advice, challenge and support to the wider SEND Reform Programme.
  • Develop financial models and options appraisals to assess the financial impact and sustainability of proposed SEND reforms.
  • Identify financial risks, pressures and opportunities and provide clear advice to senior stakeholders.
  • Produce accurate and timely financial reports for programme boards, Department for Education meetings, Schools Forum and elected members.
  • Support the review and development of SEND funding policy, including funding banding arrangements across different settings.
  • Ensure strong financial governance, controls and processes are maintained throughout the programme.

About You

You will be an experienced finance professional with strong finance business partnering, budgeting and forecasting experience, ideally within a local authority or public-sector environment.

You should have experience of:

  • Strategic financial business partnering and providing financial advice to senior stakeholders.
  • Budget setting, monitoring and forecasting.
  • Financial modelling and options appraisal.
  • Managing complex budgets, grants or funding streams.
  • Producing financial reports for senior management and governance forums.
  • Developing and improving financial processes and controls.
  • Working collaboratively with non-finance teams to support service transformation.

Experience of SEND finance, DSG (Dedicated Schools Grant), High Needs funding, Schools Forum or DfE funding arrangements would be highly desirable.

Key Skills

  • Finance Business Partnering
  • SEND / Education Finance
  • Budget Setting & Forecasting
  • DSG / High Needs Funding
  • Financial Modelling
  • Grant Management
  • Financial Governance
  • Strategic Financial Planning