Finance Manager

Salary: Grade 9 (£48,738 to £53,052) Contract term: 37 hours, 52 weeks, permanent Start date: October 2026 Closing date: 8am Friday 21 August 2026 Mercia Learning Trust Mercia Learning Trust is a successful partnership of four primary and three secondary schools located in Sheffield, and will soon be joined by our eighth school, Mercia Northridge. Established in 2012, with one secondary school, our trust has grown to serving over 5000 pupils, with 650 staff. Why do we exist? To empower everyone in our communities, especially the most disadvantaged, to succeed. How do we behave? We are kind - showing care and supporting each other. We have integrity - doing the right thing and always putting children first. We work with diligence - overcoming obstacles and having no excuses. What do we do? We run schools that focus on academic excellence, cultural capital and the development of character. How will we succeed? A culture of excellence – high standards shaped by clarity, not control. Academic focus – empowering all children through an exceptional curriculum. Purposeful collaboration – relationships built on trust, reducing sub-optimisation and driving collective success. Our staff are a crucial part of our trust, just like our pupils. We are devoted to recruiting, training, retaining and taking good care of our highly skilled and dedicated team. The role The Finance Manager is responsible for leading our trust's central transactional finance function, ensuring efficient, compliant and high-quality financial services are delivered across all schools. The postholder will lead and develop the finance team, drive continuous improvement in financial systems and processes, oversee all transactional finance audit activity, maintain a robust framework of financial controls and support school leaders through timely financial information and excellent customer service.