Adviser – Local Government Finance

local.gov.uk; City of Westminster; Hybrid; GBP 48,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job description

***We are recruiting 1 full-time permanent post and 1 full-time fixed-term or secondment post for 12 months***

Salary: £52,894 including London weighting, £48,710 home based

Location: Office (Westminster) or home-based

Directorate: Strategy and Policy

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.

We value diversity and encourage applications from all sections of the community to this high-profile role.

About the role

The run up to a Spending Review, multi-year settlement and potential changes to the local government finance system mean that this is an exciting time to be working in local government finance. Can you help us make the case for local government funding and policy changes that would benefit councils? Can you develop relationships with central and local government? Are you great with numbers and Excel while also having excellent written and presentational skills?

If so, you could work right at the centre of the LGA's analytical and policy work with local government as part of the LGA’s local government finance policy team. Collaborating with colleagues across the breadth of our policy work, as well as with local and central government, you will deliver high quality financial, analytical and policy advice to support the LGA's policy programme on local government finance, as well as financial aspects of other policy areas.

About you

It is essential that you have strong analytical and Excel skills in order to undertake complex analysis, interpret financial data, and understand the impact of economic and policy changes on council finances. This is not about financial accounting. Rather, it is about using analysis to understand the financial pressures and demands on councils, assessing how council finances might be impacted by different policy proposals, and then being able to explain these issues and outcomes to technical and non-technical audiences.

It is desirable that the candidate has a good understanding of the funding of local government and the key issues affecting councils. We are also looking for a candidate who has the ability to learn and grasp complex concepts and issues quickly.

We are looking for a candidate who is confident and whose skill set will enable the LGA to be an effective lobbyist and advocate, championing and furthering the interests of local government and helping councils to respond to the challenges they face.

It is important that you are politically aware with the ability to exercise discretion, judgement and confidentiality when dealing with politicians and officers at every level. This will be complemented by good presentational, research, and analytical skills. Your ability to grasp issues quickly will make you stand out.

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:

1. An understanding of local and central government, how they work, and the policy making and legislative process.
2. Experience of undertaking and presenting policy work, data gathering, modelling and analysis in local government finance.
3. Demonstrable knowledge of the current and future issues facing local government with an ability to assess their implications for local government finance.
4. Experience of participating in major and complex local government consultations involving central and local government.
5. Excellent numerical skills, with the ability to analyse complex financial, demographic and other data accurately, in order to identify trends, interpret evidence and turn this into a strong policy case.
6. Excellent IT skills including Excel, Word, and PowerPoint with the ability quickly to learn new packages as required.

The full candidate specification which we will use to assess candidates is available in the Job Description.

Closing Date: 11:59pm, Monday 5 May 2025

Interview Date: TBC

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 require a 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 [e-mail]

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:

Collaboration – We value collaboration, to pursue shared goals by encouraging and utilising diverse perspectives and working with internal and external colleagues across the organisation.

Inclusion – We value inclusion, where everyone feels valued, understood, and supported to contribute meaningfully.

Ambition – We value ambition, reflecting our desire to achieve best possible outcomes for local government, communities, and individuals.

Respect – We value respect, to ensure fairness, recognition, and shared accountability.