Business Support Officer

Overview

We are seeking a dedicated and enthusiastic Business Support Officer to join our Adult Learning Finance & Admin team. We provide a full finance support function for the Buckinghamshire Adult Learning team, which sits within the Children’s Services directorate.

Do you have excellent organisational skills, and are able to use your own initiative when required to achieve agreed outcomes?  If you are willing to learn new and varied tasks to enhance your financial and HR knowledge and can work flexibly within a small team, then this opportunity could be for you!

This position is being advertised for Buckinghamshire Council internal and agency employees only.

About us

Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.  

Buckinghamshire is an ambitious, rapidly growing county, and our economy is one of the strongest in the country. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty and ranks as one of the top rural areas to live in the UK and yet it is incredibly well connected– only an hour from London on the train. The county has a rich history and heritage and is the birthplace of the international Paralympic movement.

We are looking for motivated, ambitious and inspiring people to join us on our journey. You will be entitled to a range of different benefits to make sure you are happy both at work and at home.

About the role

As the Business Support Officer, within the Finance & Admin team of Bucks Adult Learning, you'll find yourself at the heart of a collaborative & supportive environment where your work directly impacts on the educational opportunities available to adult learners within Buckinghamshire.

Your main responsibilities will be to support the Finance Manager & Finance Officer in the effective and efficient running of the Adult Learning finance & HR functions.

Some of the key responsibilities include:

• Managing the recruitment process for tutors and casual staff, processing of applications received, collation of documentation references, DBS checks etc for recruited staff.
• To be responsible for the maintaining and monitoring of relevant records for tutors and casual staff.
• To manage and maintain an accurate central register for all Adult Learning staff, including DSB checks, qualifications held, staff development and trainings attended. 
• To deal with the administration of volunteers; ensuring correct procedures are followed.
• Act as a financial administrator completing financial transactions such as reimbursement of expense claims, customer invoicing, purchase invoicing and purchase order processing using the SAP system.
• Deputise for the Finance & Payroll Officer in processing pay claims for causal staff and dealing with pay queries.
• To perform all other duties as required such as mailbox management, making travel arrangements, scheduling meetings.

Any-Desk:

As an ‘any-desk’ worker, you’ll need to be connected to our network to access digital folders and resources, but this can either be from home or an office location when required. You will be required to work from the office a couple of times a week, depending on your role and team requirements.

About you

We are looking for a dedicated and proactive individual who embodies our values of being proud, ambitious, collaborative, and trustworthy.

You will need:

• To be able to pick up new tasks & processes quickly, some tasks are routine, but others are very ad hoc.
• Good communication, planning, and organisational skills.
• Good problem-solving skills and the ability to use your own initiative to find out how things are done if necessary.
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office, with proficient Excel skills
• Use & experience of SAP would be advantageous
• Possess excellent customer service skills to handle queries

For full details about the role, please refer to the job summary attached.

Other information

We currently work in the office 40% of our working days i.e. 2 days a week for this role. Days are flexible depending on business need, but essential for the monthly payroll process, where we collaborate as a team. It would be advantageous if you are able to travel to our Aylesbury or Amersham Adult Learning centres, from where you will be mainly based.

Closing date 23:59 19th January 2025

Interview date to be confirmed.

If you would like to have an informal conversation with the recruiting manager, please contact:

Yvonne Lim at [email protected] Tel: 01494 475 484

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).

Our values and culture

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

• a fair and inclusive culture
• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

About the Business Unit

Ensuring that children and young people in Buckinghamshire reach their potential is a primary focus within our Education service. It’s essential that we provide inclusive and life-long learning opportunities for all of our young people - so we look to raise standards, attainment and aspirations in a number of ways.

Our key priorities include: improving the quality and timeliness of Education, Health and Care Plans and the support families of children with SEND receive; reducing the number of exclusions both permanent and fixed term; and providing the children of Buckinghamshire with the highest quality education possible.

We aim to provide the right support, at the right time for families requiring non-statutory intervention, and provide sufficient, high quality early years and school places for children in Buckinghamshire. Despite Buckinghamshire having a higher percentage of good or outstanding Early Years providers and schools than national averages, we are not complacent.

We are keen to strengthen the services we deliver to provide the children of Buckinghamshire the highest quality education possible.

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.

https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/