Chartered public finance accountant : Employers and vacancy sources

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1. Job description
2. Salary and conditions
3. Entry requirements
4. Training
5. Career development
6. Employers and vacancy …
7. Related jobs

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Case studies

• Audit assistant: Charlotte Pitts-Humphries 

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The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) is one of the leading professional accountancy bodies in the UK and the only one that specialises in the public services. We have been successfully training accountants, financial managers and auditors for 125 years. Join The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy.

Typical employers include:

• local and central government;
• educational institutions;
• housing associations and charities;
• police authorities;
• utilities bodies;
• healthcare bodies, including The National Health Service (NHS)   
• national and district audit bodies.

The public sector covers a wide-ranging group of organisations. The term generally refers to bodies that provide services to the public, although this does not necessarily have to be within the public sector. Public services are typically funded through taxation, and work relates to the balancing of costs rather than the maximisation of profits.

Chartered public finance accountants are also employed by large private sector organisations and in industry and commerce. Some work for accountancy firms, which provide services to a wide range of public sector organisations, such as healthcare bodies, charities and local and central government. The 'Big Four' are:

• Deloitte;
• Ernst & Young;
• KPMG;
• PricewaterhouseCoopers.

There are also a growing number of opportunities to work for specialist accountancy and management consultancy partnerships. These provide a range of advisory, consultative and audit services for the public sector. Some chartered public finance accountants with a good level of experience set up in private practice.

Sources of vacancies

• Search graduate jobs on this site.
• Prospects Finalist  and Jobs and Courses    
• TARGETjobs City and Finance  
• The GET Directory 
• Local Government Careers    
• Public Finance   
• Accounting Web   
• CIPFA Vacancies  for details of financial management trainee posts.
• The main Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy (CIPFA)  website for general vacancy listings.
• CIPFA Placements  for interim placement listings.
• National and local press.

Recruitment agencies sometimes handle vacancies for qualified and part-qualified applicants. These include Hays Personnel  (the public sector section) and Michael Page International .

Get tips on job hunting, CVs and covering letters and interviews.