Finance Business Partner

Finance Business Partner

Influence at the highest level. Impact at the frontline. Grow your career with us.

📍 Nottingham / Hybrid
💰 Salary: Grade H (£42,123 - £45,529)
🏢 Finance & Resources Directorate

Reports to: Senior Finance Business Partner

Multiple opportunities across our business partnering teams.

At Nottingham City Council, finance isn't just about numbers - it's about making decisions that shape services, support communities, and deliver real change for 331,077 residents. Our Business Partners are the face of finance for the entire council - not an afterthought or a "nice to have," but trusted partners working side-by-side with operational leaders.

This is a role for a finance professional who understands that great business partnering moves beyond monthly reporting and reactive number-crunching. It's about shaping decisions, influencing outcomes, and making a real difference. As a Finance Business Partner, you'll work alongside a Senior Finance Business Partner, supporting the delivery of financial advice to service leaders and helping to translate financial data into operational insight.

You'll work under the supervision and guidance of a Senior Business Partner, with clear oversight and support as you develop your skills. This is a genuine development opportunity - the next step on a pathway that leads to our career-graded Senior Business Partner roles. You'll have access to technical experts, structured development, and the backing of a finance function that understands the value you bring.

About the Role

You'll provide financial oversight over departmental budgets and support the development and delivery of Medium-Term Financial Strategy proposals, including revenue and capital monitoring and financial planning. You'll provide professional financial and accounting advice to service leaders, guiding decision-making and supporting the long-term financial sustainability of services.

Crucially, you'll inform and influence business decisions, providing challenge where needed to resolve problems and exploit opportunities in collaboration with managers. You'll offer financial analysis and interpretation of the options available, ensuring that real added value comes from the support and advice you give.

You'll support the Senior Business Partner within your area of finance to deliver financial advisory, ensuring robust financial governance and stewardship of public funds, and you'll support them to provide technical and financial expertise at relevant project boards and working groups - ensuring adequate challenge in commercial ideas.

The reality of the role: Nottingham has set a balanced budget for 2026/27 with a forecast surplus of £1.063m - but the medium-term picture is challenging. The MTFP sets out a net General Fund budget requirement of £419.858m and projects a cumulative budget gap of £37.107m over four years without new savings. The council has identified £11.948m in new savings for 2026/27, but will need to identify at least £50m over the MTFP period.

Adult social care budgets are forecast to rise from £126.9m in 2026/27 to £167.8m by 2029/30 - a 32% increase - and children's services from £106.4m to £113.9m. At the same time, the council is investing £25m in frontline services, alongside the lowest council tax increase in 18 years at 3.5%.

This is not a role for someone who wants to simply report the numbers. You'll be supporting the conversations where difficult decisions are made to address these gaps. You'll help shape the financial advice that enables the council to meet rising demand within constrained resources. And you'll build the skills and credibility to become the trusted adviser that senior leaders turn to. You won't be buried in a back office, producing reports that no one reads - you'll be working with services, helping colleagues navigate their challenges.

Your Influence and Responsibility

• Financial support and challenge: You'll provide accurate and timely financial advice, analysis and challenge to service leaders, supporting them to understand the financial implications of their decisions.
• Financial stewardship: You'll promote a culture which empowers budget holders and supports the delivery of value for money services, with a clear knowledge of key cost drivers.
• Team support: You'll support the management and development of Senior Technicians and Technicians, helping to build capability within the team.
• Improvement: You'll contribute to initiatives that modernise financial processes, drive innovation and improve value for money.

What You'll Lead and Influence

• Supporting budget monitoring processes and ensuring budget holders are aware of emerging financial pressures or variances
• Supporting the Senior Business Partner to develop and implement options to address budget variances or funding gaps
• Supporting the production of the medium-term financial plan, undertaking resourcing forecasts and determining required savings to achieve a balanced budget over the period
• Contributing towards the closure of the Council's Accounts, and creating and providing quality assurance over corporate reports including statutory returns
• Supporting and enforcing the delivery of an effective system of financial controls across the organisation

Who We're Looking For

You're a finance professional with experience in a complex organisation, who combines technical competence with the ability to influence, support and challenge. You're ready to take on greater responsibility, you're curious about how services work, and you want to develop your career in local government finance. You don't just report what happened - you want to help shape what happens next.

You'll bring

• Financial and commercial awareness with strong analytical skills and a creative approach to problem solving
• Experience of providing financial support and advice to a service
• Experience of supporting decision-making and delivering solutions through financial analysis and option appraisals
• Clear budget management competencies with detailed knowledge of budget systems, monitoring and financial regulations
• The ability to identify, assess and make recommendations for the mitigation of financial risks, strengthening the overall financial control environment
• An understanding of accounting principles and practices and their applicability to local government accounts
• CCAB qualification, final stage, or qualified by experience, with evidence of ongoing professional development

You'll also bring the qualities that make a great Business Partner - qualities that go far beyond technical accounting skill:

• Commercial acumen - you understand the economics of service delivery: what drives costs, where efficiency can be found, how to maximise value
• Influencing skills - you can challenge constructively, persuade without authority, and bring people with you
• Strategic thinking - you see beyond the current year, connecting operational decisions to medium-term financial sustainability
• Emotional intelligence - you read the room, understand the pressures on operational colleagues, and build trust through empathy
• Curiosity - you never accept "that's how we've always done it"; you're always asking "what if?"
• Resilience - you hold your ground when it matters, while knowing when to flex
• Political astuteness - you understand the friction between political aspirations and financial realities, and you have the confidence to constructively challenge when required
• A mission-driven, public service orientation - you're genuinely motivated by stewardship and the assurance that every pound of taxpayer money is maximised to best serve the community

Why Nottingham, Why Now?

Few councils have undergone a change of this scale. Having rebuilt financial resilience and restored confidence, we're now focused on long-term excellence.

Nottingham's financial recovery has been remarkable. In November 2023, the council issued a Section 114 notice. By early 2026, the government confirmed its intention to scale back intervention - acknowledging the significant progress made. The council delivered a £20.4m net underspend in 2025/26, did not require Exceptional Financial Support, and set a balanced budget for 2026/27. Debt has fallen from £827m to £292m in six years.

But the next phase is harder. Adult social care and children's services remain the biggest pressures on the council's finances, with budgets forecast to rise significantly over the MTFP period. The council must continue to deliver savings while investing in services, and must maintain day-to-day financial control while planning for the future.

We're looking for Business Partners who want to be part of something different. Who see the challenge in UK local government not as a reason to retreat, but as an invitation to innovate. Who understand that the best finance professionals don't just keep the score - they help change the game.

We offer

• Local Government Pension Scheme - one of the most generous in the country
• Hybrid working - flexibility to balance office and home
• Flexible working arrangements
• Ongoing learning and development, including a clear pathway towards Senior Business Partner and our career-graded Strategic Business Partner roles
• A supportive, inclusive culture
• Up to 26 days annual leave, plus bank holidays increasing with time served
• Professional subscriptions paid
• Employee wellbeing support

Our Commitment to Inclusion

We are proud to be an inclusive employer where everyone is valued and respected. We want our workforce to reflect the communities we serve.

We particularly welcome applications from:

• Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities
• LGBT+ communities
• Disabled people

♿ Disability Confident Employer - guaranteed interview scheme available
🎖️Armed Forces Covenant signatory

Ready to take the next step in your finance career?

If you're a finance professional who thrives on challenge, wants to influence real decisions, and is ready to grow into a senior business partnering role, we want to hear from you.

👉 Apply now and shape the future of Nottingham.

For informal enquiries, please contact:
Larry Seymour, Finance Transformation Lead
larry.seymour@nottinghamcity.gov.uk

Shape the future of public finance. Grow here.

You can find the job description for this post here.

At Nottingham City Council we believe that work is what you do, not where you do it. We offer different working arrangements, depending on the role, including hybrid working. Further information on Worker Types and what these mean in terms of how and where you work can be found on the additional information for applicants page.

For informal enquiries please contact John Barr, Finance Team Leader at john.barr@nottinghamcity.gov.uk

Closing Date: Sunday 6th December 2026

Please note there may be occasions where we close the advert before the closing date and we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

Interviews will be held: TBC

If you have any technical issues when completing your application, please contact our Employee Service Centre: https://emss.org.uk/support

By applying to this job, you agree to our Terms & Conditions.

Thank you for your interest in working for Nottingham City Council. As one of the largest employers in Nottingham we offer a wide range of roles across a range of services. In return for your skill, drive and commitment to serving the people of Nottingham, we can help you to develop an exciting and rewarding career, with access to the following benefits.

In addition to working within a great team and a competitive salary you will have access to:

• 26 days annual leave (rising to 33 days after 5 years' service) + bank holidays with the ability to buy additional leave annually
• Access to a generous, defined benefit pension scheme offering 17.9%
• Smart Working - to support your work life balance
• Health and wellbeing benefits including access to our Employee Assistance Programme
• Discounted membership at selected local sports and fitness centres, cinema, shopping and much more!

Nottingham City Council is committed to recruiting a talented workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We are a fair, inclusive and Disability Confident Employer, welcoming applications from people of all backgrounds, identities and abilities. We recruit for diversity and value difference.

If you are a disabled candidate and wish to be considered under our Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this within your application. We are committed to making reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process and employment journey.

We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and welcome applications from serving personnel, veterans, reservists and military families.

We particularly want to hear from you if you are from Minority Ethnic communities, identify within the LGBTQ+ community, or are disabled. These groups are currently underrepresented in our workforce, and we are committed to better reflecting the communities we serve.

We are supportive of flexible working arrangements wherever possible and encourage candidates to discuss this with us during the recruitment process.