Interim Head of Finance
Employer Location Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England Salary - per day + £60k equivalent day rate Closing date 6 Jul 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
A Multi-Academy Trust is seeking an experienced Interim Finance Manager to provide critical support during a period of transition. This role will focus on strengthening financial controls, supporting audit readiness, and ensuring continuity across finance operations.
Key Responsibilities
Knowledge Capture & Handover
1. Work closely with the Head of Finance to map duties, deadlines, controls, and key contacts
2. Document file locations, system processes, and review points
3. Develop and maintain a live handover and process log
Core Finance Controls
4. Oversee month-end close processes, including journals and reconciliations
5. Manage bank authorisations and checks
6. Ensure robust financial controls and maintain a clear audit trail
Audit Readiness & Coordination
7. Take ownership of the audit evidence tracker
8. Allocate requests and proactively chase responses
9. Review completeness and coordinate audit activity to meet timelines (including mid-October deadlines)
Funding, VAT & Compliance
10. Manage VAT claims, General Annual Grant (GAG) and other funding reconciliations
11. Oversee payroll and pension documentation
12. Ensure compliance with related-party disclosures and governance requirements
Systems & Process Transition
13. Support implementation and testing of a new purchase ledger system.
14. Ensure new processes are thoroughly documented and understood by the wider team
Team Coordination
15. Reduce single-person dependencies by sharing knowledge across the team
16. Clarify roles and responsibilities
17. Produce practical process notes to support ongoing operations
Candidate Profile
18. Proven experience in a Finance Manager or senior finance role within the education sector - ideally Multi Academy Trusts.
19. Strong understanding of financial controls, audit processes, and compliance
20. Experience with systems implementation and process improvement
21. Ability to work autonomously and manage multiple priorities in an interim environment
22. Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication skills
Why Apply?
23. Opportunity to make an immediate impact within a growing MAT
24. Key role influencing financial governance and operational stability
25. Collaborative leadership team and purpose-driven environment
Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited 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:
26. Corporate Governance
27. Credit Control
28. Part-Qualified Accountant
29. Payroll
30. Public Practice Accounting
31. Public Services Accounting
32. Senior Finance – Qualified
33. Support, Ledgers & Bookkeeping
34. Tax & Treasury
You can rely on us to deliver today and help you plan for tomorrow.
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