JOB DESCRIPTION

Administrator and Finance Officer (UK Branch)

Background

The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (UK Branch), a charitable organisation which for more than 50 years has initiated and supported pioneering social, cultural and educational developments, wishes to appoint a Programme Manager.

Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian was an Armenian born in Turkey in 1869. He conducted much of his work in Britain and became a British citizen but finally settled in Portugal. The Foundation which bears his name was established in 1956, a year after his death with headquarters in Lisbon. In addition to its Portuguese-based operation, it also maintains branches in Paris and London. In the UK, we are a small operation employing some ten full-time staff and spending some £3.5million per year. Our offices, in Hoxton Square, East London have space for events and meetings - which we make available to the partners we work with - and provides desk/office space to a small number of people working on initiatives we support.

Our mission

The purpose of the UK Branch is to bring about long term improvements in well being, particularly for the most vulnerable by creating connections across boundaries (national borders, communities, disciplines and sectors). In everything we do, we seek to be innovative, and to support projects which have, or have the potential to have, an international impact thereby enabling us to align work with that in our other offices

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The role

The Administration and Finance Officer will work with colleagues to support the delivery of the UK Branch’s objectives. The post is a combined role that includes assisting the Head of Finance and Administration in the provision of office and administration facilities, grant administration and financial duties.

Job purpose

The main purpose is to provide effectiveadministrationto colleagues and to assist the Head of Finance and Administration with both general administration and finance duties.

Specific responsibilities

The following list in intended to provide a flavour of the role and is not exclusive.

Project administration and finance

  1. Responsibility for the financial administration of projects and the project database including:
  • receiving, logging and assessing eligibility of proposals for funding
  • preparing papers for assessment by colleagues
  • ensuring timely reports are received and preparing reports and summaries
  • maintain management information systems including the projects database, ensuring software is up to date data is accurate
  • maintaining project files and archiving
  • preparing offer and rejection letters for signature

Finance administration/book-keeping

  1. Supporting the Head of Finance and Administration in the inputting of data and the management of our finances, including:
  • entering transactions onto accounting software
  • preparing cheques for signature and making payments, banking of cheques as required, recording and checking direct debit payments
  • undertaking reconciliations of our bank accounts and petty cash
  • prepare any other reconciliations, spreadsheets etc as directed
  • maintaining financial records and data accurately and within agreed systems
  • monitoring payment schedules

General Administration

  1. Provide support and assistance to colleagues as necessary:
  • taking the lead in dealing with general enquires made by telephone or email
  • maintaining database of contacts and ensuring accuracy of data
  • assisting in the office and facilities management
  • assisting with maintenance of stationery stock and any other items required
  • providing administrative support to colleagues as necessary
  • supporting colleagues with meetings and events, organising travel, catering when necessary and occasionally working out of hours
  • prepare agendas, minutes and any other meeting papers where required
  • helping ensure the office is tidy and presentable
  1. Deputising for Executive Assistant when required and undertaking any other necessary general office tasks as necessary

Accountability

Reporting to the Head of Finance and Administration, the post holder will be expected to work with a range of colleagues in the UK Branch and overseas, including external organisations.

Person Specification

In this role, you will begin to be proactive in planning and organising your own workload with limited supervision or guidance and have a good working knowledge of the organisation and our programmes.

Essential Criteria

Expertise/Competence/Skills
  • excellent written and oral communication skills
  • excellent interpersonal skills and ability to deal with people at all levels
  • knowledge of Sage Line 50 would be a strong advantage
  • excellent IT skills, including Microsoft office, internet and e-mail
  • ability to work to strict deadlines
  • good numerical ability
  • strong and proven organisational and planning skills
  • a high level of attention to detail and accuracy
  • proven ability to prioritise workload to meet deadlines

Qualifications

  • 5 GCSEs (Grades A*-C) including English and Maths or equivalent
  • A-level education or above or equivalent
Experience
  • proven experience of working with databases
  • proven financial and book-keeping experience
  • proven invoicing experience
  • proven experience with financial databases
  • proven experience of working in a busy office environment
  • proven experience of working with minimum supervision
Specific Qualities
  • proven ability to work under own initiative
  • a positive and flexible approach to work
  • reliable and committed
  • committed to delivering high quality service
  • ability to work as part of a team
  • ability to work under pressure
Other

An awareness of equal opportunities and a personal commitment to anti-discriminatory practice.

Terms

This is a permanent full-time post based on a 35 hour week (plus one hour for lunch). The staff guide details other terms and conditions of employment.

Salary and Pension

The salary for this post is up to £25,000pa. Salary increases are considered annually although the Foundation is under no obligation to increase salaries year on year. New employees are eligible to join the UK Branch’s stakeholder pension scheme to which the Foundation makes a matched contribution of up to 10 per cent of salary per annum.

Holidays

Leave entitlement is at the rate of 28 days per annum in addition to the statutory holidays.

Location

This post will be located at the UK Branch’s headquarters in central London.

Equal Opportunity Policy

The UK Branch of the Foundation has an equal opportunity policy and implements a programme of positive action to make this policy fully effective by ensuring that no job applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of age, colour, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, HIV status, marital status, nationality, religion or sexual orientation. The principle applies to recruitment, pay, terms and conditions of employment, promotion, training, career opportunities and service delivery.

April 2014

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