Lead Finance Officer

Job Title: Lead Finance Officer
Starting Salary: £39,481 progressing to £43,149
Hours: 37 hours per week
Location: Farnham House, Stevenage with hybrid working
Contract Type: Permanent
Directorate: Adult Care Services

About the Team

The Client Finance Team supports vulnerable adults who are unable to manage their own financial affairs who have been assessed as lacking mental capacity. Acting as Appointees and Deputies, we help safeguard clients' income, assets and financial wellbeing, ensuring all decisions are made in their best interests.

As part of the Money Advice Unit, we work collaboratively with Adult Social Care colleagues, healthcare professionals, legal services and external organisations to provide specialist financial support and guidance across Hertfordshire.

This is an exciting time to join our growing team. You'll have the opportunity to develop expertise in Appointeeship, Deputyship and client financial management while making a meaningful difference to people's lives. We are a supportive and collaborative team, looking for empathetic individuals who want to help vulnerable adults remain independent and thrive within their communities.

This role is one of a range of new roles being advertised within our Money Advice and Client Finance service at this exciting time of growth. Check out our website for other opportunities.

About the role

As Lead Finance Officer you will support colleagues by working on complex cases relating to Appointee and Deputyship cases for clients who lack the capacity to handle their own financial affairs. The role holder will report to the team manager, undertaking priorities as requested, and supervise and coach team members. You will oversee banking, finance and statutory requirements, and be involved in problem solving issues.

Key Responsibilities

• Support and supervise Finance Officers, providing guidance, coaching and day-to-day support to help the team deliver a high-quality service.
• Manage a portfolio of complex Appointee and Deputyship cases, ensuring clients' finances are managed in their best interests.
• Oversee client financial management activities, including budgets, banking arrangements, prepaid cards and expenditure monitoring.
• Monitor performance, workloads and statutory deadlines, ensuring legal, regulatory and service requirements are met.
• Identify and manage financial risks, safeguarding concerns and complex issues, escalating where appropriate.
• Work collaboratively with social care, health, legal and external partners, including the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG), to achieve positive outcomes for clients.
• Maintain accurate financial and case records, ensuring compliance with audit and regulatory requirements.
• Support service improvement activities, staff development and the delivery of training and guidance across the service.

About you:

We are looking for an experienced and motivated professional who is passionate about supporting vulnerable adults and ensuring their financial affairs are managed safely, effectively and in their best interests.

You will be confident managing complex financial and casework matters, building strong relationships with a range of stakeholders, and balancing competing priorities in a fast-paced environment. You'll bring excellent attention to detail, sound judgement and a commitment to delivering high-quality outcomes for clients.

Essential

• Has knowledge of Appointeeship and Deputyship responsibilities, relevant legislation and guidance, and experience working with organisations such as the Court of Protection, Office of the Public Guardian (OPG), DWP, legal services or financial advisers.
• Has experience managing complex casework, financial matters or enquiries involving multiple stakeholders, with the ability to make informed decisions and maintain high levels of accuracy.
• Understands, or can quickly develop knowledge of, welfare benefits, debt management, financial inclusion and banking products used to support vulnerable adults, including prepaid card arrangements.
• Is highly organised, with strong financial, numerical and analytical skills, and can effectively prioritise workloads, projects and deadlines.
• Is confident using a range of IT systems, including Excel and case management systems.
• Has excellent communication and relationship-building skills, enabling them to work effectively with colleagues, customers, families, professionals and partner organisations.
• Can work independently and collaboratively, undertake visits as required, and provide supervision, mentoring or coaching to colleagues where needed.
• Has experience of working within Adult Social Care, a Client Finance service, or a similar environment, including contributing to service improvements and effective workload management.

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

This job role is Level 10. Please locate the job profile here:

To hear more about this opportunity please contact Joanna.Adams@hertfordshire.gov.uk for an informal discussion about the role.

Interview Date: 22 and 23 October

Benefits of working for us

How to apply

As part of your application, please upload your most recent CV. Ensure your CV is up to date with your employment history (including any employment gaps), and including any training/qualifications. We encourage you to include examples of where you have demonstrated the requirements/criteria in the advert / job profile to allow the panel to fully recognise your skills and abilities. You will have the opportunity to include a short covering paragraph within your application to give us a little more information about your skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Additional information

We are changing
Hertfordshire County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). If you are employed by Hertfordshire County on 1 April 2028, it is expected that most roles will transfer to the newly-created unitary councils on existing terms and conditions under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings – Protection of Employment) principles.

LGR is one of the biggest changes we will face in a generation. It will reshape how we work and how services are organised and gives us a real opportunity to build something better. To find out more, visit https://www.hertfordshire-lgr.co.uk/

Disability Confident
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

Safeguarding
This role has been identified as requiring a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

English Fluency
The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a signed language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required). Further information about the legal requirement can be found here.