Financial Accountant (Food)
£40,000 - £43,500 plus excellent benefits (Work Level 6A)
Manchester city centre
We’re now working in a hybrid way, with colleagues dividing their time between home/remote working and the office. You can find out more about our hybrid working policy at colleagues.coop.co.uk/hybrid-working-policy

We’re looking for a financial accountant to join Co-op’s finance team and help to drive continuous improvement in accounting across the business. You’ll be looking after our food business balance sheet and financial controls and be the main point of contact for accounting support in the food financial control team. We’ve got a big job on our hands to transform the way we do things at Co-op. And when we get it right, it’ll have even bigger benefits for our customers, members and colleagues. 

As a financial accountant, you’ll provide subject matter expertise on accounting standards and how to apply them across the business. You’ll make sure everything is completed on time and in line with our accounting requirements, and work with colleagues to quickly resolve any queries in your area. If you can bring us the technical skills that we need, we can offer you with the perfect stepping stone into a career in finance, with a business that always puts people at the heart of its strategy.

What you’ll do
• provide financial accounting support to the Food financial control team, acting as an expert for any queries in that area
• produce and review a variety of high-quality balance sheet control account reconciliations
• assist with the production of Food subsidiary statutory accounts
• co-ordinate tax pack submissions
• be responsible for the monthly submission of Food P&L and balance sheet for Group consolidation
• look after all fixed asset related queries
• support the preparation of the quarterly VAT return for Food  
• work closely with internal colleagues across the business including Shared Services, as well as external auditors during group and statutory audits

This role would suit people who have
• an accountancy qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA etc.)
• previous experience in financial control or a financial accounting environment
• experience of producing or auditing statutory accounts and VAT returns
• balance sheet control account reconciliation experience
• experience with cash flow reporting
• great collaboration and organisation skills with strong attention to detail
• very strong excel skills with the ability to handle large quantities of data
• the ability to present information in a clear simplified way to both finance and non-finance colleagues

Why Co-op? 
Here you’ll do work that matters. We’re a commercial organisation with a purpose beyond profit, you’ll have an opportunity to help us build a stronger Co-op and stronger communities. You’ll also get a package that includes:
• competitive salary
• coaching, training and support to help you develop
• pension with up to 10% employer contributions
• annual incentive scheme
• Wagestream - a money management app that gives you access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it
• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 in line with service)
• discounts on Co-op products and services

Building an inclusive work environment

We’re actively building diverse teams and welcome applications from everyone. But simply having a diverse workforce is not enough. We aim to build an inclusive environment, where everyone can contribute their best work and develop to their full potential. We celebrate our differences, and recognise the importance of teams reflecting the communities they serve.

We can make reasonable adjustments to our interview process according to your needs. And we offer a flexible working environment so you can adjust your hours to suit your personal circumstances. You can find out more about Co-op people policies at coop.co.uk/peoplepolicies.

As part of your application you’ll need to complete an online assessment. It will take you around 12 minutes to complete this test.