This is a great opportunity for someone with senior experience in local government finance to play a key role in designing and targeting support to local authorities across England to address their finance challenges.
About us
The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. We work on behalf of our member councils to support, promote and improve local government.
We are a politically led, cross-party organisation that works on behalf of councils to ensure local government has a strong, credible voice with national government. We influence and set the political agenda on the issues that matter to councils to help them deliver local solutions to national problems.
We also provide councils with the tools and resources to respond to challenges present and emerging, and support improvement across the sector.
About the role
The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. We work on behalf of our member councils to support, promote and improve local government.
We are a politically led, cross-party organisation that works on behalf of councils to ensure local government has a strong, credible voice with national government. We influence and set the political agenda on the issues that matter to councils to help them deliver local solutions to national problems.
We also provide councils with the tools and resources to respond to challenges present and emerging, and support improvement across the sector.
About you
The Improvement directorate is looking for a Principal Adviser - Finance to join the Finance and Governance Improvement team in a permanent role.
You’ll contribute to the design and development of our national programme of financial improvement support to local authorities. Working closely with regional colleagues and the LGA’s finance policy team, you’ll analyse and gather insights on the financial issues affecting individual local authorities and the sector as a whole and contribute to the commissioning, brokering and delivery of support to authorities to address the challenges they face.
A full job description and person specification for the role can be found below.
You must have the right to work in the UK, the LGA are unfortunately unable to offer sponsorship visas. Evidence for the right to work in the UK will be requested at the interview stage.
To apply
If you would like to be considered for the role, please complete the online form and include a supporting statement detailing how you meet the criteria for the role before the closing date.
We are specifically assessing candidates against the following criteria:
- In-depth knowledge of local and central government and local government finance
- Strong and varied record of achievement in finance and/or audit at a senior level in complex political environments, preferably in local government
- Sound political awareness and sensitivity to develop and sustain consensus and ensure credibility with politicians, senior managers, key stakeholders and staff
- Strong analytical skills, including the ability to interpret evidence and identify trends combined with highly competent in the use of spreadsheets and manipulating financial data
- Highly developed written and oral presentation skills with the ability to speak confidently in public and to present complex ideas in a clear and comprehensible way
- Ability to anticipate and understand the needs of local authorities and take a dynamic and creative approach to developing solutions
- Holds a degree or equivalent
Closing Date: 5pm, 11 March 2024
Interview Date: 22 and 25 March 2024
At the LGA we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. Our recruitment decisions are based on fair, open competition, with appointment on merit. The LGA are proud to be awarded a “Disability Confident Leader”. If you are require an reasonable adjustment, which is a change to the format or conditions of the recruitment process to accommodate any disability-related needs you may have. Please contact us via HRandPayroll@local.gov.uk
Our benefits
- LGA annual leave entitlement is 29 days, rising to 31 days after three years’ service and to 33 days after five years’ service, plus all UK public holidays (pro rata for fixed term and part time contracts).*
- Flexible & agile working – office-based staff are required to work in the LGA’s London office two days per week as a minimum, subject to business need and this may vary significantly between different roles and from week to week.
- Future development – face-to-face and virtual courses are scheduled in line with developmental goals
- The LGA offers 24/7 access to a free, confidential employee assistance programme managed by Health Assured. This service is also available for Dependants.
- Family friendly policies
For more of LGA’s benefits and working with us, please view our webpage https://www.local.gov.uk/benefits-and-working-lga
Our values & behaviours
Our Values and Behaviours are there to give us an understanding of who we are as an organisation and who we want to be. They are a framework to help us understand:
- how we work with each other
- how we work with our members and stakeholders
- our expectations for ourselves and each other
Our values are:
Inclusive - We ensure that our work is inclusive of all voices.
Ambitious - We are ambitious for councils and their communities and are committed to striving for excellence in all that we do to support our colleagues, our membership and the sector to deliver the best possible outcomes.
Collaborative - We bring together the expertise and skills needed, working as one team.