Management Accountant - Fixed Term Contract

The salary for this role is £50,000 This role is being offered as a 12-month fixed term contract with the possibility of extension. Are you someone who prides themselves on exceptional attention to detail and accuracy? Have you successfully managed payroll in a small to medium-sized organization? Do you excel in extracting data from systems and spreadsheets to create insightful reports for analysis? Would you like the opportunity to influence the future of the finance function? If so, we’d love to hear from you! As a Management Accountant at Livestock Information (LI), you will play a key role in delivering accurate financial information, insightful analysis, and robust reporting to support informed decision-making across the organisation. Working closely with senior leaders and colleagues across the business, you will help ensure the organisation's financial health, support strategic planning, and meet both internal and external reporting requirements. This is a varied role offering broad exposure across the finance function. Day-to-day responsibilities will include preparing and analysing management accounts, overseeing invoices, supporting payroll activities, managing accounts payable processes, and contributing to financial planning and reporting. At LI, we utilise modern, cloud-based finance systems that are fully integrated across the organisation. This provides an excellent opportunity to work with innovative technology, streamline financial processes, and enhance reporting and business insight through connected systems. Your responsibilities Your responsibilities will include: Delivering the organisation's payroll function in partnership with the People Services team, using Xero Payroll to ensure employees are paid accurately and on time. Preparing and submitting PAYE and pension contribution returns accurately and within statutory deadlines. Responding promptly and professionally to employee payroll queries, resolving issues efficiently. Leading on IR35 assessments and Off-Payroll Working returns, ensuring adherence to HMRC legislation and internal governance requirements. Maintaining up-to-date knowledge of relevant financial legislation, payroll regulations, and accounting standards to ensure ongoing compliance. Preparing and submitting VAT returns in line with HMRC requirements. Using Xero to maintain accurate financial records and produce management information that supports business performance and informed decision-making. Preparing balance sheet reconciliations and investigating any discrepancies. Supporting the month-end and year-end close processes, ensuring financial information is complete and accurate. Assisting with the preparation of management accounts, financial reports, and forecasts. Liaising with internal and external auditors, providing information and support to facilitate annual audits and compliance reviews. Maintaining accurate financial records and ensuring appropriate documentation is retained for audit and governance purposes. Identifying opportunities to improve financial processes, controls, and reporting to enhance efficiency and accuracy. Undertaking any other reasonable finance-related duties as required to support the needs of the business. You may be required to undertake other duties assigned by your line manager as appropriate Requirements We are looking for someone with: Proven experience using finance and payroll software, particularly Xero. Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, with the ability to manipulate, analyse, and present financial data. Experience delivering payroll services within a small to medium-sized organisation. Sound knowledge of bookkeeping principles and financial processes, with the ability to support and advise non-finance colleagues. Experience managing financial data and producing accurate reports from multiple systems and data sources. Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to interpret financial information and identify trends. Exceptional attention to detail and a high level of accuracy when working with financial data. The ability to extract, analyse, and present data from multiple sources to provide meaningful financial insight. Experience preparing financial analysis and management information to support planning, budgeting, forecasting, and strategic decision-making. A proactive and continuous improvement mindset, with the ability to identify opportunities to enhance financial processes and controls. Excellent organisational and time management skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and meet deadlines. Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the confidence to build effective working relationships across the organisation and explain financial information to non-financial audiences. Qualifications You will hold the following qualifications/certifications: Professional qualifications such as AAT, CIPP, CIMA or similar Reporting structure This role reports into the Head of Finance Benefits As an LI employee, you will be entitled to our company benefits which include A fully remote and flexible working set up 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service up to maximum of 30 days (plus Bank Holidays) 1 Privilege Day 4 x annual salary Life Assurance Market leading pension scheme through Legal & General Enhanced Family Friendly Policies Excellent learning, training, and career development opportunities 24/7 access to our Employee Assistance Programme A diverse and inclusive culture where everyone is respected and valued Application and Interview Process To apply for this role, you will need to submit a CV and answer some pre-screening questions. The interview and assessment process for this role will involve a telephone interview with our Talent Team, followed by a first stage and a final stage interview. Interviews will be conducted either remotely via MS Teams or face to face. If we need to make a reasonable ad