Head of Service Finance HCW

Salary
£68,949 \- £75,505

Contractual hours
37

Basis
Flexi Hours

Package
We are pleased to offer a wide range of benefits to support you and your wellbeing. You can read about them on our Why work for us pages.

Job category/type
Finance

Date posted
20/05/2026

Job reference
REQ0000963

Are you looking for an exciting and leading role as Head of Finance?

Do you have the strategic and operational expertise to lead complex financial planning while supporting front\-facing services?

Would you like to work collaboratively with vital services delivering a varied portfolio of work that makes a real difference?

If so, we would like to hear from you.

We’re looking for someone who can take over the running of the Finance team that support Housing, Care and Wellbeing.

This team plays a vital role across the organisation, providing strategic financial planning of key services such as Adult Social Care, Homelessness and our entire Housing division, to being part of wrap around support for the operational front line workers. The net budget is £120m and it’s spend that matters.

This is a challenging and rewarding area of local government finance and you never know what each day can bring, so if you like variety and can think creatively and thrive on solving complex financial challenges, then this could be your next role.

The team is well established and high\-performing, and we are looking for someone to carry that on through a maternity cover that is expected to last 12 months.

We welcome applications from candidates who are either professionally qualified or can demonstrate relevant equivalent experience.

If you have any questions or would like an informal chat regarding the position, please contact elizabeth.griffiths@brighton.gov.uk Interview date:9 June 2026 pm and 10 June 2026 am About the role

The role requires you to support the development of and delivery of key financial objectives and outcomes. You will play crucial role in the delivery of this.

You will have:

• Proven experience of producing, managing and monitoring large and complex budgets


• Experience of advising service delivery teams on financial planning and respond to service needs


• Effective communication skills with the ability to explain financial information clearly and accessibly to a wide range of audiences


• Confident IT skills, including the use of spreadsheets and financial systems to support effective financial management and reporting


• A collaborative and inclusive approach, building inclusive working relationships across teams and services

We are a friendly and professional team who values a strong work ethic as well as championing and working inclusively within our team and across the wider organisation. Additional Information

We can offer you a comprehensive benefits package including:

• Ongoing professional development, including support for CPD, leadership development and staying at the forefront of financial best practice and public sector governance


• flexible working environment that supports a healthy work–life balance, alongside a strong organisational commitment to wellbeing, inclusion and continuous improvement


• A supportive and inclusive culture, with access to staff networks and a focus on equity, diversity and inclusive leadership


• A local government pension scheme and family\-friendly policies


• Employee benefits including discount schemes and a cycle\-to\-work programme


• The option to join a recognised trade union

Encouraging a diverse workforce

Our city is known and loved for its diversity. Not only is the mixture of people, culture and skills vital to the economic and social development of the city, it's what makes Brighton \& Hove such a great place to live, work and visit. We are committed to developing and retaining a workforce that is representative of the diverse communities we serve so we welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds. In order to achieve our aims of proportionate representation, we particularly encourage applicants from a BME or White Other background as well as those who identify as disabled, male or trans.

Find out more about our commitment to being a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone can achieve their potential by reading about our fair and inclusive actions, our anti\-racism strategy and the work we are doing to encourage a diverse workforce (brighton\-hove.gov.uk).

Why work for us?

As a council, we want to:

• be connected


• be confident


• be innovative and creative


• be diverse and inclusive


• be healthy and psychologically safe

For more information about our values and the benefits of working at the council, visit Why work for us which gives details of our wellbeing support, our benefits including leave and pensions as well as details of our training and development.

How to apply

Please read our Apply for a job at the council pages carefully. They give you all the guidance you need to complete your application as well as information on what will happen after you’ve submitted your application and at interview.

As part of your application, you will need to provide your education and career history and answer some application/shortlisting questions. Your answers to the application/shortlisting questions are the most important part of your application as they will be used in the shortlisting process to assess whether you meet the essential requirements for the role that are set out in the person specification and to decide whether you should be offered an interview. Before you start your application, please read our Shortlisting questions guidance (brighton\-hove.gov.uk) as this gives important advice which will increase your chance of success in the shortlisting process.

AI advice for candidates

We are interested in hearing about your experience and skills in your own words. While we value people who know how to use AI, we ask that you minimise using it in your application.

We are keen to hear how your experience and skills align to our values and the skills and experience needed to perform well in our roles with clear real examples from you. To support you in this, we have guidance on using the STAR model which can help you ensure you are telling us your whole story. We also provide clarity on the skills we are looking for in our adverts and in the job description/person specification attached to each job advert.

All the applications we receive are read by at least two hiring managers and we do not use AI in this process. Our experience of reading applications is that those that have heavily used AI contain generic paragraphs that are strikingly similar to other applicants’ responses. This makes it extremely difficult to differentiate between applications, and doesn't give us enough evidence of your individual skills. There is a risk that we will therefore not be able to shortlist you. Instead, we recommend you ensure your application stands out by presenting clear examples of your actual skills and experiences in your own words.

Additional information

Your starting salary will be pro rata if the above position is less than 37 hours or term\-time only.

We are a workplace that supports flexibility and employee wellbeing in the way we work whilst providing the best service for our customers. Team and service working arrangements are designed to support both employee work life balance and team collaboration. These would be part of your individual working arrangements alongside any personal preference agreed with your manager in advance of joining. Your contractual location will be the designated council office for your team and travel to and from your contractual location would be at your own expense.

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