Welcome

Dear Candidate,

Thank you for your interest in a career with Estuary Housing Association (EHA). This is an exciting time to be joining EHA as the Head of Finance.

Reporting to the Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Resources this new role provides the opportunity to lead the finance team and provide management of the Company’s finance function.

Estuary is a financially stable and well governed housing association with c.4,500 units, with its head office based in Southend-on-Sea and presence in each local authority throughout Essex. EHA also has a significant Supported Housing and Care division. With a new Chief Executive in place from June 2019, its new corporate strategy to be formally launched in 2020, this is an exciting time to be joining the company.

I am looking for an ambitious individual who will shape and modernise an established finance team into one that will support Estuary in delivering its objectives. This role comprises both operational responsibility and strategic input. To succeed you will need to be comfortable working with the Senior Leadership Team on strategic issues, as well as getting into the detail of the service to deliver outstanding performance and reporting. You must also be passionate about making a difference to the lives of our people, residents and customers.

You are not required to have a social housing background, so I would welcome applicants from other sectors to apply.

We want Estuary to be a great place to work and an employer of choice in Southend, and as such I am looking for someone who offers more than the technical skillset and understands the importance of motivating and energising the finance team.

I hope this introduction has motivated you to consider Estuary for your next role and I would welcome your application.

Michael Hadjimichael

Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Resources

About Estuary

Estuary is a Housing Association with a strong and clear regional commitment within Essex. We work very successfully within every district in Essex, the three outer East London Boroughs and in the Suffolk Coastal District.

We currently own and manage just over 4500 properties. We are always looking at ways to increase the number of homes we can offer and believe it is important to build communities, not just homes.

We are committed to the provision of good-quality housing, care and support services to meet local needs and to contribute to the development of sustainable communities. Our residents are at the heart of everything we do, their views are important to us in helping shaping future services.

We employ just over 300 people, two thirds of whom work providing care and support to people with learning disabilities. We also have an army of dedicated people behind the scenes providing a variety of services including rent collection, gardening, estate management and working on projects to build new houses.

Working for Estuary gives you the opportunity to fulfil your career potential whilst making a real difference to the lives of our residents and people who use our services. We are committed to the provision of good quality housing, care and support services to meet local needs and to contribute to the development of sustainable communities.

We value inclusiveness, and we are committed to embedding equality and diversity at the heart of our work. We aim to be an inclusive organisation, where individual differences are respected, where staff, people who use services, as well as their families and carers, are treated with dignity and on the basis of their merits, abilities and needs, and where everyone has a fair opportunity to fulfil their potential without suffering discrimination or disadvantage.

Benefits

Annual Leave: 26 days you can purchase up to an additional 5 days upon probation completion)

Pension: offer SHPS Pension CARE 1/60th or auto enrolment into SHPS DC scheme

This post is an essential car user, therefore it is entitled to an annual parking permit at warrior square car park and you will be able to claim business mileage at £0.40 per mile

BHSF benefits following 6 months employment, allowing staff to claim a fixed amount on healthcare bills such as dental and optical treatments

Occupational sick pay

Employee assistance programme

Childcare Voucher Salary Sacrifice

Flexible working

Season ticket loan

A variety of local retail discounts

Dress code relaxed as of Dec 2019 and appropriate to the role

Training and career progression

The Opportunity

Estuary Housing Association are looking to appoint a Head of Finance to join our team which is a newly created and pivotal role to the organisation. Estuary is a Housing Association with a strong and clear regional commitment within Essex. We are committed to the provision of good-quality housing, care and support services to meet local needs and to contribute to the development of sustainable communities. Our residents are at the heart of everything we do, their views are important to us in helping to shape future services.

We are an ambitious organisation focused on delivering great value services that make a difference, working closely with the residents to make Southend a better place to live and work. We aspire for Estuary to be a great place to work and an employer of choice in Southend. The Head of Finance is a key appointment which will provide operational leadership and management of the company’s Finance service, and strategic support for the Senior Leadership Team, resulting in the delivery of great value services that make a difference for our customers and our communities.

Reporting directly into the Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Resources, you will provide a financial perspective to strategic planning and business development and effective ongoing financial management and control within a culture of continuous improvement. You will develop and maintain good relations with new business partners, evaluating and financially appraising new business opportunities. We are looking for an ambitious individual who will shape and modernise an established finance team into one that will support Estuary in delivering its objectives. This role comprises both operational responsibility and strategic input.

To succeed you will need to be comfortable working with the Senior Leadership Team on strategic issues, as well as getting into the detail of the service to deliver outstanding performance and reporting. The ideal candidate will be a finance professional and be ACCA, CIPFA, CIMA qualified or equivalent, with previous experience of managing a finance team. You will have gravitas, drive and ambition with a degree of commercial acumen and the ability to liaise with high level key stakeholders and create insightful financial information that will drive business performance.

You will be a strong team manager and be able to communicate effectively at all levels within the organisation. You will drive achievement of key allocated Corporate Strategy objectives. You will lead and coordinate the budget compilation and business planning process for the organisation ensuring sound monitoring and controls are in place.

Estuary has a hands-on, problem solving team culture, so it is essential that you can roll up your sleeves and be involved in the day to day operations as well as coaching and influencing others to continue to innovate and improve the financial processes.

This is an exciting time to join Estuary and if you feel you have the drive and the passion to help us to achieve our mission and vision, then we can offer you a role that is not only hugely satisfying but brings great benefits and a stimulating and supportive working environment.

All third party & direct applicants will be forwarded directly to Senan Pierce at Hays Senior Finance to be screened as part of the recruitment process

How To Apply

We want to make the process of applying for this role as straight forward as possible.

To this end, we ask that your application consists of the following:

• A covering letter, no more than 1 page in length which addresses and provides evidence against the criteria, set out in the Person Specification. The covering letter provides you with the opportunity to explain your motivation for applying, as well as highlighting how your experience and achievements fit with the requirements of the role. As such, it is an important part of the application process.
• A copy of your most recent and up to date curriculum vitae.

Once you have completed your CV and covering letter, please upload them by clicking on the Apply button.

Recruitment Timetable

Closing date for all applications:

Sunday 19th January 2020

Interviews will take place on:

Thursday 30th January 2020

For an informal conversation about Estuary Housing Association and the role please contact Senan Pierce on M: + 44 (0) 7738 752 785 or email senan.pierce@hays.com

Key Documents

Head of Finance Job Description

Finance Organisational Chart

Audited Financial Statements

Annual Report 2018/2019

Our Tenant Annual Report can be accessed here - https://tenantannualreport.estuary.co.uk