About the job

Job summary

Discover a career in your hands at HMRC. Whether you're seeking purpose, growth, or a workplace that gives you a true sense of belonging, hear from some of our employees as they share their story about what it’s really like to work at HMRC.  

    

Visit our YouTube channel to watch the full series and come and discover your potential.

Are you a fully qualified accountant interested in taking the next exciting step in your career? 

Do you want to work somewhere that offers you clear structured development?  

Have you got the determination to build a career knowing the ins and outs of HMRC? 

If you’ve thought yes, then our Finance Development Scheme could be the career route you’ve been looking for. A career within an employer that offers you clear development, progression, exposure alongside flexible working hours and a real work-life balance, then look no further!

Job description

We will be hosting 2 webinars via Microsoft Teams to provide more details about the programme and the application process. We encourage you to join to learn more and ask any questions you may have. Find out more and sign up here.

We are offering a unique, modern two-year structured development programme within the HMRC Finance Community. Our financial services are vital not only to the everyday running of HMRC but to building the Department’s future as a trusted, modern tax and customs department.  
 
Individuals on the programme will be provided with a mentor from the start, benefit from regular one-to-one tailored support and guidance from the Finance People and Capability team and receive constructive feedback from two assessment points that will aid your Civil Service application process. Furthermore, the programme will look to develop key interpersonal skills such as leadership and communication, which will help individuals become well-rounded leaders in HMRC.

Responsibilities

During your two years on the development scheme, you will carry out two different work placements across finance teams, enabling you to gain an understanding of the different roles in finance and to broaden out your experience and exposure. Placements will be decided by the Finance People and Capability Team. 

Areas of work placements may include but are not limited to:  

• Financial Accounting and Reporting: delivering core financial controls, providing technical accounting advice and producing the annual report and accounts. 
• Management reporting: working on in-year financial management as well as non-financial data, contributing to the numbers by providing insight and analysis. 
• Finance Business Partnering: facilitating and challenging plans, budgets, and forecasts; analysing and communicating financial data and reports; supporting investment appraisals and business cases; finding solutions to address sophisticated business issues. 
• Risk Management: ensuring HMRC’s risk and control framework and risks are managed effectively so that good decisions and outcomes can be made. 
• Strategic Finance: developing an understanding of the department’s financial position and the policy and operational choices available in which to manage it. 

This is a development programme in finance for qualified accountants. We are looking for enthusiastic individuals who can demonstrate the traits to become our senior leaders of the future.

Person specification

We encourage you to demonstrate the following skills in your role:  

• Excellent collaboration skills: A great collaborator, good at forming and managing relationships with key individuals in the organisation. The ability to work flexibly in a team and contribute to a supportive work environment. 
• Good analytical skills: Being able to produce accurate data and then analyse it to inform your decisions and shape the nature of work. 
• Adaptability and flexibility: You will work in an ambitious, fast-paced and exciting environment. These skills are vital to responding to changing priorities and situations in the workplace. 
• Good Communication Skills: The ability to communicate clearly and honestly using various methods to maximise understanding, adapt to individual needs, and share information effectively whilst showing enthusiasm and respect for others. 
• Organisational Skills: The ability to manage your own workload and to work to team and project deadlines. 

Essential Criteria 

• Must be a fully qualified accountant and hold membership with a professional accountancy body. 

Please note: You must be a fully qualified accountant (Level 7) and be a member of CIMA, ACCA, ICAEW, CIPFA, ICAS or Chartered Accountants Ireland to apply for this role. Evidence of your full accountancy qualification will be requested prior to the interview stage of this campaign. Failure to provide this evidence may result in your application being withdrawn. 

Candidates who do not meet the essential criteria will be rejected.  

The following qualifications/ experience will not be considered for this role (this list is not exhaustive):  

• Degree/ masters degree in finance 
• Part-qualified accountants 
• AAT qualifications 
• Passed finalists 
• Qualified through experience  

A similar equivalent qualification may be considered for qualifications gained outside of the UK.  
 
Please note that although the qualification box is listed as optional, you are required to complete this section with your full accountancy qualification information and any other qualifications you wish to make us aware of as part of this application.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £42,618, HM Revenue and Customs contributes £11,506 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

How to Apply 

As part of the application process, you will be asked to provide the following: 

A basic application form, detailing your personal details.  
 
CV

Your name-blind CV will consist of 2 elements, Job History and Qualifications.  
 
You will be presented with two text boxes. The first will ask for your employment history - here you should set it out like a traditional CV, making sure you follow the format below:

• Name of employer
• Dates worked (to and from)
• Job title
• Brief description of your main role and responsibilities (please ensure you match this section against the responsibilities within the job advert.)

The next text box will ask you to include any relevant qualifications and previous skills and experience you may have. Although this box is listed as optional, you are required to complete this section with your full accountancy qualification and any other qualifications you wish to make us aware of as part of this application.  
 
Please note: Candidates who do not meet the Essential Criteria will be rejected.

Your CV will not be scored but may be used in the event of a tie break.

Personal Statement

Your 750-word Personal Statement should aim to provide detailed descriptions of your achievements, explicitly linking them to the skills required within the person specification.

You are not expected to cover the four Behaviours in your Personal Statement, as these will be assessed at interview should you progress to stage 2.

We recommend utilising your full 750-word count and structuring your Personal Statement in the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) format to enable you to provide comprehensive evidence of your skills and experiences. Please note that your application may be rejected if you exceed the word count specified. 

Sift

At full sift your Personal Statement will be assessed, with the successful candidates being invited to interview.  

We may also raise the score required at any stage of the process if we receive a high number of applications.

The Civil Service Careers website has further information on how to write a CV and Personal Statement for roles within the Civil Service. 

Interview 

During the panel interview Communicating and Influencing, and Making Effective Decisions will be assessed via a case study exercise (which will be shared with you at the start of your interview) in which you will be asked to do a presentation.

In your Changing and Improving, and Delivering at Pace behaviour-based questions, your interview panel will be looking for detailed, specific examples of times you have demonstrated each behaviour. It is recommended that you structure your responses in the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) format.

The Civil Service Behaviours document will provide you with information on how each behaviour-based question will be assessed. You will be assessed at SEO level.

This is an example of a strength-based question:

“It is often said that the customer's needs should come first. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?”

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.

The Civil Service Strengths Dictionary will give you an understanding of how strength-based questions are assessed within the Civil Service.

We strongly recommend using the Civil Service Success Profiles tools to help you when preparing for your interview.

Interviews will take place via Microsoft Teams. We aim to release sift results from the 27th of August with interview dates likely to take place mid-September. Please note that these dates are subject to change.

Eligibility 

Please take extra care to tick the correct boxes in the eligibility sections of your application form. We understand mistakes sometimes happen but if you contact us later than two working days (Monday-Friday) before the vacancy closes, we will not be able to reopen your application for you. If you do make a mistake, please contact us via: ubsrecruitmentexcellence@hmrc.gov.uk – Use the subject line to insert appropriate wording for example – ‘Please re-open my application – 362574 & vacancy closing date 07/08/2024’  

To check that you are eligible to apply for this role, please review the eligibility information before submitting your application. 

Reserve List 
 
A reserve list may be held for up to 6 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles – if this applies to you, we’ll let you know via your Civil Service Jobs account. 
 
Merit List  

After interview, a single merit list will be created, and you will only be considered for posts in locations you have expressed a preference for. Appointments will be made in strict merit order in line with the set number of roles in each location.  
 
Criminal Record Check 
 
Applications received from candidates with a criminal record are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

Reasonable Adjustments 

We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate. 

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: 

• Contact the UBS Recruitment Excellence Team via ubsrecruitmentexcellence@hmrc.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.  

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional. 

Important information for existing HMRC contractual homeworkers: 

This role may be suitable for existing HMRC employees who are contractual homeworkers. Occasional attendance to the office will be required where there is a business need. Please consider the advertised office locations for this role when applying and only select locations from the ‘location preferences’ section that you can travel to. 

Terms and Conditions 

Customer facing roles in HMRC require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement, this will be tested as part of the selection process. 

HMRC has a presence in every region of the UK. For more information on where you might be working, review this information on our locations.  

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences. 

Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant application(s) will be withdrawn from the process. 

Recording of interviews is prohibited unless explicit agreement is sought in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulations. 

Questions relating to an individual application must be emailed as detailed later in this advert. 

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.  

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government. 

New entrants will join on the minimum of the pay band.  

If you experience accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.