Finance Officer

12 month fixed term contract/ secondment opportunity.

We are looking for a Finance Officer to manage the procedures for disseminating and accounting for NIHR Research Delivery Network (RDN) funding within the Regional RDN (RRDN) for an annual budget of circa £30M. This role will assist the Finance Manager with financial management for the RRDN and will provide general support with the operations of the RRDN.

Main duties of the job

This role will provide robust details of financial accountability alongside the Finance Manager and Host Organisation Finance team. The Finance Officer will ensure, at all times, that there is clear transparency of RDN usage and ensure there is a clear audit trail for the accountability of expenditure.

This role will ensure that all processes will align to the Host Organisation's Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs), and help to develop and implement a streamlined system for the receipt and payment of invoices from research Delivery Organisations (organisations delivering RDN portfolio research) across the RRDN region. This role will be responsible for ensuring all RDN subcontracts are in place ahead of making payments.

The Finance Officer will be involved in the management of the budget and will introduce, adapt and improve systems to assess applications for funding and will lead on the day-to-day coordination of budgets and the reporting of RDN expenditure as required by the RDN Coordinating Centre (RDNCC).

If you are considering applying for this post on a secondment basis, please discuss with your Line Manager prior to applying to ascertain whether this could be supported.

Interview date: 13th February 2025

About us

The NNUH is one of the largest NHS trusts in the UK, providing first-class acute care for around one million people, living in Norfolk and surrounding areas. We are a teaching and research hospital, at the forefront of innovation, home to state-of-the-art facilities, such as the Quadram Institute. We are pleased to work closely with the University of East Anglia, providing teaching opportunities for our staff and placement opportunities for their students. We attract some of the best and leading professionals from across the country and are proud that our workforce represents 94 countries from across the world.

We are a friendly, collaborative hospital, working with local services and home to N& N Hospitals Charity.

We can offer you the full range of NHS benefits/discounts and in addition:

• Flexible working hours
• Fast Track Staff Physiotherapy Service
• Multi Faith prayer room
• Discounted gym memberships
• Excellent pension scheme and annual leave entitlement
• Wagestream - access up to 40% of your pay as you earn it
• Free Park & Ride service direct to NNUH site
• Free 24-hours confidential counselling support
• On-site Nursery
• On-site cafes offering staff discounts
• Support in career development
• Flexible staff bank
• Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars, Cycle to Work scheme and home electronics

Job description

Job responsibilities

In October 2024, the NIHR Clinical Research Network changed to become the NIHR Research Delivery Network (RDN). The RDN will build on the successes of the CRN in supporting the effective and efficient initiation and delivery of funded research across the health and care system in England for the benefit of patients, the health and care system and the economy.

The Research Delivery Network (RDN) will support:

• Clinical trials and other well-designed health and social care research studies (including studies that are delivered outside of an NHS setting).
• Public health studies that require the recruitment of individuals within an NHS setting (that is, acute, ambulance, mental health, community or primary care) or an episode of care which involves contact with the NHS.

The RDN is a new organisation with new structures, governance and ways of working. Study delivery in England will be supported through 12 NIHR Regional Research Delivery Networks (RRDNs). These will work with the national Coordinating Centre (RDNCC) and the Department of Health and Care to provide a joint RDN leadership function via the RDN Board, so that the NIHR RDN as a whole functions as a single, transparent organisation with a shared vision and purpose. NNUHFT will be the Host Organisation for the East of England RRDN region.

The NIHR RRDNs will have three key roles which it will fulfil via new models of service delivery and functions, to:

• Provide support to research sites to enable the effective and efficient initiation and delivery of funded research across the health and care system in England.
• Enable the strategic development of new and more effective research delivery capability and capacity. This will include bringing research to under-served regions and communities with major health and care needs.
• Work jointly with the Coordinating Centre in the strategic oversight of the NIHR RDN. This will ensure that the Portfolio is maintained as a cohort of high-quality, fully-funded, viable and deliverable studies. It will also ensure that the NIHR RDN as a whole serves the research delivery needs of investigators and R&D teams and is responsive to the changing domestic and global environment for health and care, life sciences and health research.

The NIHR RRDNs will develop excellent relationships with the organisations commissioning and providing health and social care across their regions, which are mapped onto NHS regions and Integrated Care Systems. They will help support research undertaken by those providers and at sites across the region, and promote research meeting the needs of local populations. NIHR RRDNs will work together with an RDN Coordinating Centre to support health and care research delivery for the benefit of patients, the health and care system and the economy as a whole.

• Support the Finance Manager in delivering a comprehensive finance service to the RRDN, including assisting in the annual budget planning process (developing Outline Use of Resources and consultation with key stakeholders) and providing expertise in the appropriate use of RDN funding to all internal and external stakeholders.
• Assist in devising, implementing and managing RRDN-wide procedures to ensure that RRDN funds are reliably and efficiently used according to current DHSC and NIHR guidance.
• Ensure that funds are spent in year and invoices processed efficiently and accurately.
• Gain in-depth knowledge and advice of the NIHRs current financial allocation model and its application to the RDN.
• Assist the Finance Manager with any local financial modelling, calculating indicative budget allocations and informing recipients of RDN funding outcomes.
• Follow up any queries raised by customer representatives or RDN senior management.
• Support the funding call for strategic funding across the RRDN.
• With the Finance Manager, frequently evaluate the procedure for accessing funding to ensure that it continues to meet the needs of researchers and other stakeholders in the RRDN.

Please refer to the Job Description for the full specification of responsibilities and requirements for this post.

Person Specification

Education and Qualifications

Essential

• Degree in a relevant subject (e.g., accounting, maths or relevant experience) or equivalent experience of financial management.

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

• Considerable financial and performance management experience in a large organisation.
• A good working knowledge of financial computer systems.

Skills and Abilities

Essential

• Ability to manage, develop and monitor expenditure against a budget.
• Ability to compile, interrogate and analyse data to produce meaningful and accessible financial management reports.
• Ability to prioritise competing demands, and to balance project development requirements with day-to-day operational needs.

Values and Personal Qualities

Essential

• Demonstrates understanding and commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
• Effective role model, demonstrating NNUH's PRIDE values of People focused, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Excellence.

Employer details

Employer name

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital

Address

20 Rouen Road
Norwich
NR1 1QQ

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

234-24-TA24049