Accountant
Employer Location Suffolk, England, Saxmundham Salary market Closing date 25 Feb 2026 View more categoriesView less categories Sector Salary band, Contract type Hours Where will they be working You need to or to save a job.
Job Details
Hays is working in partnership with a highly respected professional services organisation to recruit an ambitious Assistant Accountant within their Business services team. This opportunity offers real scope for progression, hands‑on responsibility, and the chance to play a key role in delivering exceptional client service across a varied portfolio.
Your new role
As an Assistant Manager, you'll take ownership of preparing and reviewing client accounts, managing workflow across your portfolio and guiding junior team members. You'll bridge the gap between operational delivery and managerial responsibility-ensuring technical accuracy, supporting more complex advisory work, and strengthening client is a role that will allow you to develop your leadership skills while continuing to expand your technical expertise across accounting, tax, and advisory.
What you'll be doing
Client Delivery & Portfolio Management
1. Manage your own portfolio of clients, ensuring all work is planned, scheduled and delivered in line with agreed timescales.
2. Build trusted relationships with clients, understanding their business needs, risks and challenges.
3. Provide clear updates throughout the engagement and ensure high‑quality deliverables.
4. Support fee discussions and maintain accurate engagement terms.
5. Identify opportunities for value‑added services.
Technical Excellence
6. Apply strong knowledge of accounting standards and professional requirements.
7. Review key areas of assignments, ensuring working papers are accurate, justified and ready for partner review.
8. Assist with complex financial reporting, VAT queries and medium‑risk tax returns.
9. Provide high‑level explanations to clients on topics such as R&D relief, group loss relief and regulatory updates.
10. Ensure all technical review points are addressed prior to final sign‑off.
Leadership & People Development
11. Support junior colleagues through coaching, feedback and performance reviews.
12. Contribute to team planning discussions and ensure everyone understands objectives, risks and responsibilities.
13. Play an active role in recruitment and onboarding of new team members.
14. Demonstrate and promote company values, setting a strong example in behaviour and work ethic.
Operational & Commercial Awareness
15. Monitor WIP, prepare draft fees and deliver work efficiently to expected recovery rates.
16. Communicate proactively when scope or deadlines change.
17. Confidently make decisions within remit and escalate when needed.
18. Ensure compliance with Companies House and statutory filing requirements.
What you'll need to succeed
19. ACA, ACCA, CA qualified-or qualified by experience.
20. Strong experience gained within an accountancy practice.
21. Excellent technical understanding of accounting standards and tax fundamentals.
22. A proactive mindset with strong attention to detail and commercial awareness.
23. Confidence in reviewing work, supporting junior staff and communicating with clients.
24. A commitment to delivering high‑quality work and continuous improvement.
What you'll get in return
At Hays, we know that the right opportunity can transform your career. In this role, you can expect:
25. Clear progression pathways and professional development support.
26. A collaborative, people‑focused team environment.
27. Exposure to a wide range of clients and assignments.
28. Hybrid working arrangements and a competitive salary package.
What to do now
If you're ready to move forward in your career and take on a role where your contribution truly matters please contact Cara Whyte at Hays
Hays EA is a trading division of Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited and acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C's, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found at
Company
At Hays we invest in lifelong partnerships that empower people and businesses to succeed. With over 50 years’ success under our belts and a workforce of 10,000+ people across 32 countries, we’ve evolved to put our customers at the heart of everything we do.
From CFO to Newly Qualified, we work with talented finance professionals and match them with organisations where they can achieve a lasting impact.
So much more than specialist recruiters in accounting and finance, what really sets us apart is our knowledge through scale, deep understanding and our ability to meaningfully innovate for our customers. All our consultants have strong relationships across the industry and the support of our extensive global network. That’s why organisations of all types and sizes – from international blue chips to SMEs – trust us to find the people who can help transform their business.
So, whether you want something local or international, permanent, or interim, we have the breadth of coverage and the depth of understanding to help you find it.
We have specialist recruitment teams in the following areas:
29. Corporate Governance
30. Credit Control
31. Part-Qualified Accountant
32. Payroll
33. Public Practice Accounting
34. Public Services Accounting
35. Senior Finance – Qualified
36. Support, Ledgers & Bookkeeping
37. Tax & Treasury
You can rely on us to deliver today and help you plan for tomorrow
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