Job Title: Finance Funding Officer
Type: Hybrid with monthly travel to the office for meetings – HO in Northampton
Employment: Full‑time role, 37.50 hours per week
Salary: £DOE from £30k per annum
Closing Date: 1/5/26 or until the right candidate is hired
Applicants: All applicants need to attach an up‑to‑date and relevant CV to be considered.
Purpose of Role
As a Funding Officer, you will provide exceptional administrative support to our Nursery Managers and the Finance team. You will complete funding claims for the nurseries on the relevant platforms and portals. Ensuring estimate claims, actual claims and adjustments are completed accurately and in line with the deadlines provided termly by the relevant local authorities. Reconcile claims and payments, highlighting inaccuracies in payments and liaising with local authorities to resolve discrepancies. Work with nursery management and administrative teams to ensure funding rules and local authority rules in relation to funding claims and documents are met. Answer queries in relation to funding processes and claims to support Bright Horizons funding offer.
What We Can Offer You
* Flexible working and holiday entitlements
* Discounted childcare in one of our nurseries
* Fantastic range of discounts on high‑street retailers, grocery stores, cinema tickets, holidays and more
* Wide range of wellbeing resources, supporting our teams for the ups and downs of daily life
Why Bright Horizons?
We’ve been voted Great Place to Work for the last 17 consecutive years, as well as being awarded the newly created Great Place for Wellbeing and Great Place for Women 2022. Our support functions enable our nurseries to deliver the best possible care and education to over 10,000 children across the UK. Through this support, our nurseries can deliver excellence – with 98% of our 300+ portfolio being rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted. We’re on a mission to change the future for children, families, and the people we work with, and we’re committed to progressive working values like flexibility, work‑life balance, and wellbeing.
Key Accountabilities
* Provide support to Nursery Managers on funding
* Track funding entitlement
* Liaise with local authorities to maintain relationships and ensure funds are paid in accordance with contracts
* Maintain bank and balance sheet reconciliations
* Identify and highlight issues causing non‑processing of funds to the Finance Funding Manager
* Assist with internal and external audit processes
* Have a customer‑centred approach to the running of the function
* Promote good working relationships, dealing (where possible) with communication breakdowns before they arise, and defusing tense situations
* Work in partnership with the rest of the Finance team and wider business colleagues
Essential Experience
* Previous experience within a financial administrative role
* Microsoft Excel to an intermediate level
Desirable Experience
* Accounting qualification advantageous, but not essential
* Previous experience within funding advantageous, but not essential
Qualifications
* GCSE Maths and English
Personal Attributes
* Demonstrates consistent behaviours aligned with HEART principles, acting with honesty, excellence, accountability and respect in all interactions, decisions and ways of working
* Able to work in partnership with both internal and external contacts, including local authorities
* Understanding of confidentiality, and ability to work within it
* Strong communication skills, both written and verbally, with the ability to have empathy
* Ability to identify concerns, prioritise critical issues and resolve complex dilemmas in a fair, open and reasoned manner
* Reflect on the quality of own performance; respond positively to direction and improve own performance; know when to seek advice and support
* Ability to self‑manage, be flexible, adaptable, proactive and embrace new ways of doing things; ability to learn new processes and utilise internal software/database
Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
Bright Horizons is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. This post is subject to safer recruitment practice and pre‑employment checks, including an enhanced DBS check, which will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed. We are an inclusive employer and welcome people from all backgrounds to apply. We will consider reasonable adjustments required by applicants.
We look forward to receiving your application. If you experience any problems, please email europe.recruitment@brighthorizons.com and we will be happy to help.
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