Director of Finance (Deputy S151 Officer) - Kingston

About the Borough

Joining us, you get to work for not just one high performing London Borough, but two.

Sutton and Kingston councils have a number of shared services serving both authorities, with some teams and roles more focussed on one Council than the other, but the majority are shared across both, meaning you get multiple opportunities to learn from a wider pool of activities and two different political bodies.

We work flexibly in both Sutton and Kingston offices, and support working at home or flexible working patterns that enable you to tailor your working and personal life. We provide the equipment and tools to enable you to work flexibly, and in return ask you to use that flexibility to be creative and ambitious in the services we deliver.

There are some really exciting things happening in both Sutton and Kingston. We are developing the London Cancer Hub, a world leading cancer research and treatment hub that will bring together professionals from across different sectors to identify and test new treatments and therapies. We are undertaking the largest housing regeneration programme ever delivered in Kingston, building new energy efficient housing that will transform some of our oldest Council owned housing. Both boroughs have publicly committed to doing what they can to tackle the climate emergency and are investing in new technologies and societal change that will help bring carbon emissions down and improve our climate impact.

You should choose Sutton and Kingston if you are looking for an opportunity that will challenge you to deliver more, support you to achieve personal ambitions, and expect you to put borough residents at the heart of what you do.

Sutton is a well connected attractive part of London that has a reputation for excellent schools, green and leafy open spaces, and a history that drives a thriving heritage and culture offer through our museums and libraries. The Council is controlled by a long established Liberal Democrat Administration and has high ambitions set out in its corporate plan “Ambitious for Sutton”, that will ensure Sutton remains a great place to live, work and raise a family. The Council plays a leading role in a number of local partnerships and places great emphasis on engaging effectively with its residents, listening to local voices and making their message heard across London Government.

Kingston is a beautiful Royal borough with a historic setting on the banks of the Thames with excellent schools and a bustling retail centre, all surrounded by open green spaces such as Richmond Park and Bushy Park, former recreation grounds for Tudor Kings and Queens. The Council is controlled by a Liberal Democrat Administration and has a council plan “Greener, Fairer, Safer, Together”, that sets out a vision to be a vibrant, diverse and inclusive borough where residents are active, empowered, engaged and able to remain independent and resilient. The Council engages with residents through a number of forums and events through the year, and like Sutton plays a leading role in developing the South West Region of London.

About the Service and Team

A Royal Borough with ambition, purpose and impact

The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is London’s oldest Royal borough – a place shaped by a thousand years of civic leadership and still defined today by ambition, culture and community. With a population of 168,000 and a bold vision for inclusive growth, regeneration, climate action and financial resilience, Kingston offers a platform for senior leaders who are driven by purpose, partnership and lasting civic impact.

This is a borough of contrast and opportunity – from thriving town centres and world-class education to significant regeneration programmes and a rich, diverse community with global heritage, including the largest Korean population in the UK and a vibrant Sri Lankan Tamil community. Kingston is also a place of financial responsibility and reform, where resilience, transformation and accountability underpin strategic decision-making at every level.

About the Role and Our Ideal Candidate

As Director of Finance and Deputy Section 151 Officer, you will be one of two senior leaders shaping the direction, ambition and performance of the Shared Finance Service (SFS), with responsibility for delivering Kingston’s financial strategy including excellence in performance and governance.

Acting as the deputy to the Section 151 Officer, you will take strategic leadership for Kingston’s core finance function – driving excellence in financial stewardship, ensuring integrity of financial reporting, shaping the Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), and positioning the Council to meet both current and future challenges.

You will play a central role in advising Members, the Chief Executive and senior leadership team on complex financial, regulatory and commercial matters, while leading a broad portfolio spanning financial planning, business partnering, external audit, pensions, capital & treasury, revenues & benefits and financial inclusion.

As Director of Finance, you will act as the deputy to the S151 Officer and have stewardship and oversight of:

• A net revenue budget of c.£193m (General Fund), plus HRA, DSG and Pension Fund investments
• A finance workforce of over 160 FTE across the shared service structure
• Full production of Kingston’s annual accounts and audit reporting
• Responsibility for financial resilience, statutory controls and assurance
• Strategic leadership of capital, treasury, pensions, revenues & benefits and financial inclusion
• Supporting corporate transformation and major change programmes
• Shaping a future-ready, data-driven and commercially aware finance function
  

We are seeking an exceptional senior finance leader with the credibility, resilience and drive to influence strategic decision-making at the highest levels.

You will:

• Be a CCAB or CIMA qualified accountant and eligible to deputise for the S151
• Have significant senior leadership experience within local government or a comparable complex public body
• Be able to operate politically, shaping financial strategy alongside Members and senior stakeholders
• Demonstrate a track record in leading MTFS and budget-setting processes
• Bring strong technical assurance expertise (accounts, audit, pensions, treasury, governance)
• Inspire, influence and lead through change, building high-performing, future-ready finance teams
• Have a commercial, outward-facing mindset with the ability to drive innovation, transformation and value

Our Offer to You

As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we’re committed to helping you fulfil your potential and will offer you a supportive, friendly and collaborative environment to grow and develop your career and skills. We’re constantly striving to improve our ways of working so putting your ideas across however big or small; will be fully encouraged and supported by your colleagues and our dynamic and experienced management team.

Employees have access to a wide range of benefits to enable staff to achieve a work life balance, some of which include:

• A generous annual leave entitlement of 31 days plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply)
• Enhanced Maternity, paternity, shared parental, adoption and dependents leave
• Two volunteering days per year
• Flexible Working - Smarter Working Scheme (dependent on the role)
• Adjustable and agile working arrangements using Google Chromebooks
• Learning and development portal offering a range of courses
• Discounts on a range of local shops, restaurants, gyms and leisure centres
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
• Zip car scheme
• Confidential health & wellbeing and counselling support

Application Process

Allen Lane are acting as our Recruitment Partners for this role. For further information and details on how to apply, please visit their website - https://allenlane.co.uk/job/director-of-finance-deputy-section-151-officer/

Additional Information

We are proud to be a diverse and welcoming Borough and we strive to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve, and instil a sense of belonging in our staff. We celebrate and respect differences and appreciate the value of having a diverse workforce, therefore we welcome applications from under represented groups.

To support our workers and their families we offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, staff engagement forums and inclusive staff networks who help drive our diversity agenda.

We are also proud to be a disability confident employer and guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum essential criteria for a role. As an accredited London Living Wage Employer all our employees are guaranteed the London Living Wage regardless of their length or type of contract.

The UK has a points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the GOV.UK website for right to work guidance. Sponsorship availability varies and is subject to eligibility requirements and budget limitations. As a result, we cannot guarantee sponsorship for all roles and will evaluate sponsorship requests on a case-by-case basis.