Payments & Banking Officer Ref. 3706

Job Description

Flexible working: due to the nature of the role there is no homeworking, so you’ll be required to work full time from the office. However, we do offer compressed hours and flexibility around start and finish times. Full time hours are up to 37 hours, depending on location.

About us
MI5 keeps the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, its people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners, including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats. Through our protective security arm, we provide advice and guidance to government, businesses and other organisations about how to keep themselves safe. A role in MI5 means you’ll do unique and challenging work in a supportive and encouraging environment, making a real difference to UK national security.

The role
Payments and Banking is a vital and busy team working at the heart of our Corporate Finance function. As a Payments and Banking Officer, you will use our corporate finance system to action Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable and Cash Management processes, which could consist of entering and paying supplier invoices, raising customer invoices, following debt management processes or processing expense claims. Day-to-day you could be carrying out activities such as reconciling bank accounts or supplier statements, monitoring our team inboxes or liaising with requisitioners to assist with purchase orders and invoice queries. Working within our friendly team, you will support the Accounts Payable and Banking teams, dealing with a high volume of invoices daily. As part of Payments and Banking you may support other finance teams within the function.

You’ll build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders including suppliers, project managers and other teams across the wider organisation. You will also carry out regular reviews, alongside other team members, of supplier statements, ensuring accuracy, flagging any errors and following up with appropriate measures. This varied and rewarding role provides a critical service for our organisations and has significant scope for development with support and training offered from day one.

About you

You’ll need a minimum of five GCSEs at grade 4/C or above, including English Language and Mathematics, or equivalent O-Level, BTEC or Level 2 qualifications to apply. A background in finance would be beneficial but is not essential as full training will be provided. You will be confident using Excel, have strong attention to detail, and great problem-solving skills. Above all, we’re looking for enthusiastic, proactive and organised people with great communication skills, who are motivated to learn and keen to provide the best possible service. Previous customer service experience whilst not essential, would also be beneficial in this role.
If, after considering our requirements, you feel your current skills don’t align with this role, don’t worry, we have a range of other opportunities coming up. These include:
• Trainee Finance Officer Scheme (currently live): ideal for those just starting their finance career, with no prior qualifications or experience in a financial setting
• Finance Officer: for candidates with proven financial experience or who are working towards Level 4 AAT, or who hold a 2:1 or higher in a finance/accounting degree that’s accredited by a financial body like ACCA or CIMA
To be notified of any upcoming opportunities in our Finance team, we recommend you sign up to job alerts on our website.
Please note: We are looking to recruit individuals who want to build a career in finance. If you are successful in your application, we expect staff to remain within the Finance Capability for a minimum of five years.

We expect this role to be popular so please start your application at your earliest convenience.

Training and development
When you start, you’ll get an organisation and team induction where you’ll meet members of the team and be assigned a buddy who you’ll spend time shadowing to help you settle into your role. We will provide extensive training and work with you to develop the skills you need to successfully carry out your responsibilities.
We will also invest in your ongoing learning – supporting you to gain professional accreditations including the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) qualification. We are committed to developing our staff and recognise this will look different for everyone. We have an exceptional skills community dedicated to your development, so from day one, you’ll be empowered to set the direction for your career.

Rewards and benefits
You’ll receive a starting salary of £32,827 to £35,417 depending on location, plus other benefits including:
• 25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 days public and privilege holidays
• opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme
• a dedicated development budget
• an interest-free season ticket loan
• an excellent pension scheme
• a cycle to work scheme
• facilities such as a gym, restaurant and on-site coffee bars
• paid parental and adoption leave.

Equal opportunities
At MI5 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.
Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website:
Diversity | MI5 - The Security Service

We’re Disability Confident
MI5 is proud to have achieved Leader status within the Department for Work and Pensions' Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people. As a Disability Confident Leader, we aim to ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants who best meet the essential minimum criteria for this position, will be offered an interview, if it is practical for us to do so. (This is known as the Offer of an Interview.) To secure an interview for this role, the minimum criteria (in order of application process) are:

1. Meet the eligibility criteria: complete an initial application form, including pre-screening questions, to ensure you meet our eligibility criteria
2. You will be required to reach the minimum pass mark for the online Situational Judgement Test (SJT) which looks at your ability to problem solve
3. Demonstrate experience working with Microsoft Word and Excel
4. Showing strong motivation for applying to work for MI5 as a Trainee Finance Officer
There is a wide range of extra support available throughout the recruitment process to enable you to do your best, see our website for information on reasonable adjustments we can offer.

What to expect
Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:
1. An initial online application form including pre-screening questions to ensure you meet our eligibility criteria
2. Online Situational Judgement Test (SJT) rating the appropriateness of your responses to a series of short scenarios. The SJT tests criteria important for all roles in our organisation
3. Full online application form
4. An online interview
5. A security interview
6. Conditional offer of employment
7. Obtain Developed Vetting

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process in order to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6 - 9 months to process including vetting, so we advise you to continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.

Before you apply

To work at MI5 you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria on our website.

This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process on our website.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more securely.

The role is based in London or Cheltenham, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. An interest-free loan is available to assist with relocating into privately rented accommodation to take up the offer of employment.

We offer reasonable reimbursement of travel costs for candidates attending in-person appointments during the recruitment and vetting process. Full details will be provided with your interview or assessment invitation.

Reimbursement is discretionary and will only be made in line with the Candidate Expenses Policy, as amended from time to time. Candidates must book their own travel, using the most economical option, and provide original hardcopy receipts for reimbursement.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

Right to withdraw statement:
Please be aware that we reserve the right to close applications once a certain number have been received. Please submit your application as soon as possible to avoid missing out. If you have a disability (as defined under the Equality Act 2010) and need additional time to complete your application, please submit your initial application. Then, contact us via the email provided as soon as possible, using the subject line Reasonable adjustments extension and briefly outline the support you require.