This is a full time, 18 month fixed term opportunity.

Join Great Western Railway – Proud to Support Our People and Our Passengers

At GWR, we're more than a train company - we're the proud custodians of one of the UK's most iconic rail networks. Every year, we help over 100 million people travel across the South West, South Wales and London, through some of the country's most scenic routes.

With a modern fleet, ambitious plans for the future, and a 91% customer satisfaction score, we're on a journey of continuous improvement. Our people are at the heart of that journey - and as a Financial Change Accountant you'll play a key role in ensuring GWR are set up for success.

About the role:

As the Financial Change Accountant, you will have a key role in preparing GWR to move into the direct control of the government.  This role will be heavily focused on reviewing and clearing reconciling items on balance sheet accounts. You will be responsible for developing proposals to improve the reconciliation process and to formally document processes where documentation does not exist or is out of date.

The nationalisation process will require GWR to move from FRS102 to FRS101 accounting standards and therefore a strong knowledge of IFRS and UK GAAP is important. New instances of key finance systems will be created at the point of transfer and the Nationalisation Accountant will play an important role in ensuring that balances have migrated correctly. You will be involved with the development of new procedures for GWR to ensure that we comply with Department for Transport Operator (DFTO) requirements. You will also play a key role in compiling the net asset statement on transfer as well as the rundown of the balance sheet items that have not transferred to “Newco”. 

Your main responsibilities will be:

• Reviewing balance sheet accounts and identifying and resolving any differences on the reconciliations.
• Developing system transition plans for financial systems (including IFMS) to ensure the transfer into new instances, and the bedding down of systems post transfer is successful.
• Assisting with the development of the net asset statement and managing the rundown of balances that are kept within “Oldco”.
• Assisting with the preparation of information requests from the business, the DfT, internal and external auditors.
• Identifying changes to the way that GWR will need to account under FRS101 and assisting with the implementation of the changes.
• Clearing down SAP balances that are not necessary for transfer.
• Documenting current processes and liaising with DFTO to implement changes to our procedures to comply with DFTO requirements.
• Supporting Financial Control, other Finance teams, and the wider business as required.

You'll need to be:

• A qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA etc).
• Organised and deadline driven, with an affinity for financial systems.
• Accurate, with a good eye for detail.
• A self-starter with an ability to propose and implement changes to processes.
• Able to work efficiently and be confident enough to challenge the status quo.
• Able to prioritise your tasks and to quickly pivot your focus when necessary.
• A good team player as well as a strong independent worker.

As a minimum you'll need to have:

• An accounting qualification.
• Experience in a large finance team.
• Experience with complex balance sheet reconciliations that utilise large data sets.
• An understanding of SAP S/4 HANA preferable or another large ERP.
• Experience with financial system changes.
• Good Microsoft Excel skills and numerical ability.
• A desire to improve the efficiency of current processes through innovation.

About the location:

The role is based at Milford House in Swindon with occasional travel to other GWR locations as required.

Working Pattern:

This is an 18 month fixed term opportunity. The role is 37 hours a week, with normal office hours being Monday to Friday from 08:30 to 16:30. A minimum of 3 days a week must be spent in a GWR office, with the majority of this spent in the office in Swindon.

Application

Please apply online via our website https://careers.firstgroup.co.uk/brand-gwr

If you have any problems applying, please email gwrrecruitment@gwr.com

The Reward

As well as a great team environment and comprehensive training, all GWR colleagues enjoy a range of benefits including:

• on-going development,
• defined benefit pension scheme with the Railways Pension Scheme,
• free rail travel across the GWR network for you and your family,
• company-sponsored health care plan,
• discounted shopping and gym membership
• employee assistance programme and much more.

We all belong at GWR. This is our vision for providing an inclusive environment for all our colleagues, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment. 

We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA, ethnicity, religion and disability. We maintain zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent.

We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

We review all roles and job descriptions to ensure they are accessible and, where possible, we support and provide flexible working options; we recommend that you refer to each vacancy description for further details.

If you require additional support to complete your application due to a disability or neurodivergent condition such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, or autism, please follow the links below. We encourage you to share any additional needs you may require so we can provide a fair and equal process for all who apply.

https://exceptionalindividuals.com/neurodiversity/

https://www.healthassured.org/blog/neurodiversity/

INGWR