Progress Schools
Finance Business Partner
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Join us as a Finance Business Partner: Empower Futures!
Hours of work: Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm
Hybrid with travel to:
- All schools (Occasionally)
- Head office (Switch House)
Fixed Term: 12 Months
Help shape the future of financial leadership within education.
Do you want to work for a company where wellbeing is more than a word, it’s a commitment? Somewhere where the person matters as much as the professional?
At Progress Education, that’s just the approach we take.
Our top-notch benefits go beyond the basics—enjoy access to discounted gym memberships, a free wellbeing app that is jam packed with fitness, yoga and mindfulness resources and dedicated counselling support. And because we know your passion is with pupils and not paperwork, we do everything we can to reduce the amount of surplus admin too.
Your work-life balance matters. That’s why we offer generous holidays, additional leave for foster carers and flexibility wherever possible.
And why do we do this? Because when you thrive, so do our students. So we want to invest in your personal and professional growth as much as we do the young people who attend our schools.
But that’s not all, we also offer…
- Professional Development: Support for professional qualifications, in-house training, including paid qualifications. Last year we invested approx. £3.5k per colleague!
- Financial Security: Death in Service Insurance providing four times your salary.
- Family-Friendly Policies: Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Leave.
- Health and Wellbeing Cashback: Access to Medicash for you and your dependants, covering the costs of eye tests, optical, dental, prescriptions, and holistic treatments up to £900 annually.
- Recognition Awards: Monthly, Quarterly, and Annual Recognition Awards.
- Referral Bonus: £500 for referring top talent.
- Exclusive Discounts: MiRewards benefits platform, offering loads of discounts and rewards.
- Weekly drop-ins with Senior Leaders: Connect, clarify and communicate with weekly drop-ins with our Managing Director and organisation SLT.
- Group Connection: Annual Group conference and a comprehensive benefits review.
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At Progress Schools, finance is about far more than producing reports. We believe financial insight should empower our school leaders to make informed decisions that maximise resources and improve outcomes for young people.
We're creating a brand-new Finance Business Partner role to strengthen the connection between Finance and Operations—and we're looking for someone who wants to help shape it.
If you're naturally curious, enjoy understanding the story behind the numbers and want to influence real operational decisions, we'd love to hear from you.
About the Role
As Finance Business Partner, you'll become the dedicated finance lead for a portfolio of schools, working closely with Headteachers and operational leaders to understand financial performance, identify risks and opportunities, and provide meaningful commercial insight.
You'll review management accounts, investigate variances, support budgeting and forecasting, and help school leaders understand how financial decisions impact operational performance.
Rather than simply reporting the numbers, you'll help explain them—and work collaboratively to improve them.
What Success Looks Like
After six months in the role, you'll know your schools inside out.
You'll understand the story behind every significant variance, Headteachers will see you as their first point of contact for financial support, and you'll be confidently identifying risks, opportunities and improvements before anyone else.
You'll be helping operational leaders make better decisions through insight, challenge and collaboration—not just reporting the numbers.
What You'll Bring
We're looking for someone who combines strong financial knowledge with excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
You'll have experience in management accounting or finance business partnering, be comfortable analysing financial information and enjoy working collaboratively with operational colleagues.
Whether you're an experienced Finance Business Partner or a Management Accountant looking to take the next step into a commercially focused role, we'd love to hear from you.
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Why Join Us?
This is an opportunity to build something new.
You'll have genuine ownership of your portfolio, work closely with senior leaders across the organisation and play a key role in developing our Finance Business Partnering function.
If you enjoy making a difference, influencing decisions and helping others succeed, this is the role for you.
What are we looking for from you?
- Academic Background: Part-qualified or qualified ACCA, CIMA or ACA (desirable)
- Experience: Experience within a management accounting or finance business partnering environment
- Knowledge: Strong understanding of management accounts and Profit & Loss reporting.
- Promotion of Values: Commitment to promoting equality, diversity, safeguarding, wellbeing, and British values.
- Time Management: Effective time management for planning, delivery, and assessment.
Please click here to view the Job Description.
How to Apply:
Ready to be a part of our journey? Submit your application by clicking APPLY. If you have any further queries, then please get in touch with our friendly recruitment team by emailing recruitment@theprogress-group.co.uk
Let's redefine education together! #JoinOurTeam #EducationRevolution #AlternativeEducation
Diversity and Inclusion Statement:
The Progress Group is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunities regardless of age, sexual orientation, gender, pregnancy, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, disability, medical history, skin colour, marital status, genetic information, or parental status. All employment decisions are based on merit, job requirements, and business needs.
Safeguarding Statement:
We are committed to safeguarding and protecting all children and young people by implementing robust safer recruitment practices. For details of our commitment to safer recruitment please visit our website for further information.
Note: We are unable to provide Visa sponsorship for this role.
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